1 Module 12 Environmental Impact Reports. Learning Outcomes From This Topic 2 ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION...
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- Slide 1
- 1 Module 12 Environmental Impact Reports
- Slide 2
- Learning Outcomes From This Topic 2 ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION
& BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION ACT 1999 (EPBC) ENVIRONMENT
MANAGEMENT PLAN ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT Content Structure
Implementing The EA ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT EIS Purpose EIS
Provisions EIS Parts EIS Process Informal EIS Process Flowchart
Disseminating Information Publishing EIS SCOPING PUBLIC
NOTIFICATION Public Notification Public Consultation Site Visits
DRAFTING & PUBLISHING THE REPORT The EI Report Publishing
- Slide 3
- 3 Module 12 Environment Protection & Biodiversity
Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC)
- Slide 4
- ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION & BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION ACT 1999
(EPBC) cont. 4 The ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION & BIODIVERSITY
CONSERVATION ACT 1999 (EPBC) provides Legal Provisions for managing
and protecting Nationally- and Internationally-important flora,
fauna, ecological communities and heritage places defined as having
national environmental significance. POLICY REGULATION &
RESPONSIBILITY: The EPBC targets national environmental protection
issues. States and Territories are responsible for state and local
environmental impact issues. Source: environment.gov.au
- Slide 5
- ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION & BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION ACT 1999
(EPBC) 5 The EPBC classifies the following as being MATTERS OF
ENVIRONMENTAL SIGNIFICANCE and global in scope: Listed World and
National Heritage sites Internationally-significant RAMSAR wetlands
Endangered species and ecological areas Internationally-protected
migratory species The Commonwealth marine ecosystem The Great
Barrier Reef Marine Park Nuclear operations such as uranium mining
National Heritage A SIGNIFICANT IMPACT has consequential and
notable environmental influence. Consider INDIRECT and OFFSITE
impacts. Source: derm.qld.gov.au
- Slide 6
- ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION & BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION ACT 1999
(EPBC) 6 The EPBC ACT is implemented by the Department of
Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts when an action, proposal,
or project must be assessed for SIGNIFICANT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
and feasibility. The REFERRAL is made public and sent for review by
the particular State, Territory, and Commonwealth Ministers. A
SIGNIFICANT IMPACT has consequential and notable environmental
influence. Consider INDIRECT and OFFSITE impacts. Source:
derm.qld.gov.au
- Slide 7
- ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION & BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION ACT 1999
(EPBC) 7 Environmental Ministries and Government Environmental
Agencies establish, implement, and manage policy and regulations
regarding actions concerning matters of national environmental
significance such as those that impact SPECIES that are or could
become extinct in the wild or vulnerable or (critically) endangered
Source: derm.qld.gov.au
- Slide 8
- ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION & BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION ACT 1999
(EPBC) 8 OR INTERNATIONALLY-IMPORTANT WETLANDS resulting in the
establishment of potential pest species, adverse habitat and marine
ecosystem functioning or consistency, adverse effects on marine
species or cetacean and life cycle, changes in air or water quality
adversely effecting biodiversity, human health, and ecological
reliability, continual and potentially-harmful organic chemicals
and heavy metals that accumulate adversely effecting biodiversity,
human health, and ecological reliability, and damage to historic
features or artifacts. Source: environment.gov.au
- Slide 9
- ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION & BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION ACT 1999
(EPBC) cont. 9 REGARDLESS OF OTHER ADVERSE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS
Environmental Ministries and Government Environmental Agencies
cannot obstruct a proposal if there is NO SIGNIFICANT IMPACT on
matters of NATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL SIGNIFICANCE. PENALTIES FOR
BREACHING THE EPBC ACT may be a civil penalty up to $550,000 for an
individual and $5.5 million for a corporate body OR a criminal
penalty up to 7 years imprisonment and/or $46,200. Source:
derm.qld.gov.au
- Slide 10
- 10 Module 12 Environmental Management Plan
- Slide 11
- ENVIRONMENT MANAGEMENT PLAN 11 The ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION ACT
1997 gives the Authority power to authorise an activity, provides
regulation in environmental protection agreements that govern
activities that impact the environment, and provides stewardship
for protection of the environment and The ENVIRONMENT MANAGEMENT
PLAN (EMP) provides information to the Authority on proposed and
existing activities within the relevant region. Source:
environment.act.gov.au
- Slide 12
- ENVIRONMENT MANAGEMENT PLAN cont. 12 The EMP defines how the
activity may impact environmental factors and how environmental
impacts may be mitigated and managed. The EMP describes the
activity, describe the current environment (that will be impacted),
requires the proponent conduct an environmental risk assessment,
states proposed environmental protection management strategies, and
mandates the activity inspected and accepted by the Authority to
ensure environmental soundness. Source: environment.act.gov.au
- Slide 13
- 13 Module 12 Environmental Assessment
- Slide 14
- ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT 14 THE ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT (EA)
is a public document (prepared by the federal action agency) that
determines impacts to off-site areas (known as indirect impacts) as
well as impacts on the immediate environment. THE ENVIRONMENTAL
ASSESSMENT provides data and analysis to determine if either an
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) or a Finding of No Significant
Impact (FONSI) statement should be prepared. The EA proves
compliance with the Act when NO EIS is required. The EA aids in
preparing the EIS when a FONSI is not applicable. Source :
environment.act.gov.au
- Slide 15
- ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT 15 An ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT
consists of Creating baseline data and information The Projects
purpose, need, and alternatives Identifying probable impacts of
planned activities Establishing relevant mitigation procedures to
improve impacts Determining the importance of environmental issues
and alternatives The Agency must approve the EA before it is made
available to the public. The EA is made public through Notices of
Availability. The EA is announced by a Public Notice advertisement
in a newspaper generlly circulated in the Project area. ed Source :
environment.act.gov.au
- Slide 16
- ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT cont. 16 THE ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT
contains Summary Introduction o Background o Purpose and Need for
Action o Proposed Action o Decision Framework o Public Involvement
o Issues Alternatives, including the Proposed Action o Alternatives
o Mitigation Common to All Alternatives o Comparison of
Alternatives Environmental Consequences Consultation and
Coordination Source : environment.act.gov.au
- Slide 17
- IMPLEMENTING THE EA 17 The EA STRUCTURE To be successful THE
ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT PROCEDURE must include Preliminary site
investigations, Expanding the terms of reference (ToR), The
environmental scoping, The environmental baseline study, A
conclusive environmental impact evaluation, Impact mitigation
actions, Assessed alternatives, Project determination and
monitoring, Budgeted resources, and Competent professionals.
Source: derm.qld.gov.au
- Slide 18
- IMPLEMENTING THE EA cont. 18 THE ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT
PROCEDURE cont. The EA is a draft public document when Project
Notice is published. A15-Day review period is required. A 30-day
review period is required for particular or unusual conditions.
Similar time periods are allotted for public comments and
objections. Comments are submitted to the lead Agency in writing or
by email. A Public Hearing is NOT held to hear public comments. The
lead Agency will respond to comments and certify a FONSI or a
Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare a EIS is forthcoming. Generating
an EIS is a similar but more complex process. Source:
derm.qld.gov.au
- Slide 19
- IMPLEMENTING THE EA cont. 19 CONDUCT an INITIAL SITE ASSESSMENT
1. Identify sensitive areas requiring protection: sensitive flora
endangered fauna aquatic plants and animals, natural waterways
groundwater recharge areas 2. Identify and assess potential air,
noise, and other impacts to the surrounding neighborhood. 3.
Monitor baseline air, water, and noise in adjacent construction
areas. 4. Identify possible contaminated areas. Sample & test
suspect soils. Source : environment.act.gov.au
- Slide 20
- 20 Module 12 Environmental Impact Statement
- Slide 21
- ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT 21 An ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
STATEMENT (EIS) describes likely impacts a proposed project or
activity will have on the environment. The ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
STATEMENT lists and describes impacts, suggests ways to mitigate
and prevent potential negative project impacts, and includes
project information collected from technical reports and studies.
The EIS should enable reasonable economic and technically
achievable conditions to be developed to ensure that the impact of
the proposal is reduced to acceptable levels. The level of analysis
and detail in the EIS should reflect the level of significance of
particular impacts. Source: aplng.com.au
- Slide 22
- EIS PURPOSE 22 The PURPOSE of the EIS is to assess the Projects
potentially harmful as well as beneficial environmental, economic,
and social impacts, describe procedures to manage, monitor, plan,
measure, and minimise anticipated adverse environmental impacts,
help determine Project feasibility, help determine Project activity
feasibility, provide Project feasibility and impact mitigation
procedures to the proponent, Commonwealth and State authorities,
and the Public, Source: derm.qld.gov.au
- Slide 23
- EIS PURPOSE cont. 23 The PURPOSE of the EIS cont. provide
recommendations and aid in preparing a Project EMP, assist the
administering Authority in reviewing the environmental application
(for which the EIS is needed), Provide information to other
Commonwealth and State Authorities to aid in decision-making, meet
assessment requirements in accordance with the Commonwealth
Environment Act, and permit the State to meet its obligations in
accordance with the bilateral agreement. Source:
derm.qld.gov.au
- Slide 24
- EIS PROVISIONS 24 The EIS provides information that helps
clarify the Proposal, options and alternatives, and best solutions,
for mitigating adverse on-site and indirect impacts on the existing
environment. The EIS provides an outline in accordance with policy
provisions to help assess impacts of the planned Project and
associated with development. Source: derm.qld.gov.au
- Slide 25
- EIS PROVISIONS cont. 25 The EIS describes best practices
measures for assessing the degree of impact on the environment and
actions to be implemented to mitigate adverse impacts during
construction. EIS MITIGATION MESURES must include a draft of the
Environmental Management Overview Strategy OR Environmental
Management Plan that state acceptable impacts and environmental
management strategies that meet specified performance criteria.
Source: derm.qld.gov.au
- Slide 26
- EIS PARTS 26 Every EIS consists of the EXECUTIVE SUMMARY, the
DOCUMENT that include terms of reference (ToR), the ENVIRONMENTAL
MANAGEMENT PLAN (EMP) which includes o the environmental management
intents, o required performance measures, o control strategies, and
o monitoring, AUDITING PROCEDURES, and APPENDICES containing o
detailed technical information, and o source documents. Source:
derm.qld.gov.au
- Slide 27
- EIS PARTS cont. 27 EIS APPENDICES must include a copy of the
Final Terms of Reference, a list of consultants and individuals
involved in developing the EIS, methods used to achieve EIS
results, background, research, and scientific studies used to
prepare the EIS and their availability, explanation of required
development approvals, standard specifications, and relevant maps,
diagrams and other illustrative material as appropriate. Source:
derm.qld.gov.au
- Slide 28
- EIS PROCESS 28 THE EIS PROCESS The EIS process is coordinated
by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) (as the administering
authority of the EP ACT). The EIS Process is completed when the EIS
Assessment Report Is sent to the proponent. Source:
derm.qld.gov.au
- Slide 29
- EIS PROCESS cont. Informal EIS Process Flowchart 29 Source:
dlsweb.rmit.edu.au
- Slide 30
- DISSEMINATING INFORMATION 30 WEB PROTOCOL Post EIS and related
Project documents (i.e.: initial advice statements, terms of
reference(ToR)) on the proponents website. File sizes of document
downloads should be less than 500kb. File format should be
universally compatible (i.e.: Word, Adobe Acrobat, JPEG). Public
advertising should NOT BE EXCLUSIVE to the Internet. The website
should NOT be the only place to obtain EIS copies Addendum reports,
the Initial Advice Statement, draft and final ToR. An email address
should be provided for submissions, questions, comments, and
feedback. Source: derm.qld.gov.au
- Slide 31
- DISSEMINATING INFORMATION cont. 31 WEB PROTOCOL cont. Keep hard
copies of all email submissions. Record the number of hits to the
website to assess public interest in the Project. By Agreement,
provide a link to the appropriate government website. CD PROTOCOL
Save in TEXT format Save all EIS parts including Appendices,
Figures, etc. DO NOT save information the EPA deems CONFIDENTIAL
Save newspaper advertisement and government contacts information
Source: derm.qld.gov.au
- Slide 32
- PUBLISHING 32 PRINTED COPIES The EPA requires printed copies of
the draft and final EIS for Agency distribution Advisory boards
Public notices and display purposes. Proposals the EPBC Act
considers to be CONTROLLED ACTIONS will require additional copies.
Source: derm.qld.gov.au
- Slide 33
- 33 Module 12 EIS Scoping
- Slide 34
- EIS SCOPING 34 EIS SCOPING determines environmental issues to
be investigated and included in the EIS. EIS SCOPING identifies
what will be contained in the EIS and criteria used and importance
of EIS issues to be investigated. EIS SCOPING is used to identify
potential environmental issues and concerns, aid in proficient EIS
creation, inform the Study Team on potential impacts, determine
alternatives to mitigate impacts, Inform the public and encourage
public involvement, save time, Source: aplng.com.au
- Slide 35
- EIS SCOPING cont. 35 EIS SCOPING is used to identify potential
effects of predicted environmental changes on the community, inform
those directly impacted by the Project of perspective alternatives,
determine the quality of the existing environment and value the
community places on it, determine analytical methods and
procedures, determine additional assessment needs (i.e,: time,
personnel, equipment), evaluate concerns and determine the
feasibility of pursuing the proposed Project, communicate the
potential impacts for further analysis and establish the ToR as the
basis for the ongoing assessment Source: aplng.com.au
- Slide 36
- 36 Module 12 Public Notification
- Slide 37
- PUBLIC NOTIFICATION 37 PUBLIC NOTIFICATION is a statutory
requirement and on public display during the public
notification/submission periods. Advertisements are placed in local
publications Public Notices to review the draft ToR and EIS are
posted. EPA and Agency website ToR and draft EIS postings are
displayed. District offices, councils, and public libraries post
public notifications. Source: derm.qld.gov.au
- Slide 38
- PUBLIC CONSULTATION 38 PUBLIC CONSULTATION occurs during the
EIS DRAFT with local residents adjacent to and neighbouring the
Project site, community services, and local businesses and interest
groups. PUBLIC CONSULTATION occurs in addition to the mandatory
Public Notification that requires posting of the ToR, draft EIS,
and BMC. PUBLIC CONSULTATION includes community surveys,
newsletters, community notice boards and one-to-one discussions and
public forums. Source: derm.qld.gov.au
- Slide 39
- SITE VISITS 39 SITE VISITS are conducted during the public
notification period and drafting of the EIS. Collected field data
is intended to show members of the decision-making board key
features of the project site. Source: derm.qld.gov.au
- Slide 40
- 40 Module 12 Drafting & Publishing The Report
- Slide 41
- THE EI REPORT 41 The EI REPORT provides an appraisal of the
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) process and the Environmental
Protection Act 1994 (EP Act). EP Act (Section 58) lists Standards
the EPA must follow when preparing the EIS Report. EPA Act (Section
59) describes the Report content. Source: derm.qld.gov.au
- Slide 42
- THE EI REPORT cont. 42 The EI REPORT the final EIS terms of
reference (ToR), discusses the submitted and validity of the EIS
summarises key issues about potential adverse and beneficial
environmental, economic and social impacts of the Project, the
proposed management, planning, and monitoring intended to minimise
adverse environmental impacts, and the appropriateness and
feasibility of the Project, and recommendations on preliminary
actions necessary to gain Project approval. Source:
derm.qld.gov.au
- Slide 43
- PUBLISHING 43 PRINTED COPIES EIS drafts and finals should be
placed at local City Council administration centres, the local
libraries, and the offices of the EPA for public perusal.
Additional copies of the Final Report must be available for
purchase by the public on request in printed form, at a reasonable
cost, and not to exceed the actual cost of printing the document.
Source: derm.qld.gov.au