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Impact Assessment and Onshore Pipelines Imogen Crawford

Impact Assessment and Onshore Pipelines Imogen Crawford. Proposition. EIA as it stands is not effective EIA doomed to failure in some legal systems Qualified: EIA as it relates to Construction of Onshore Pipelines Not necessarily the same in other contexts. Onshore Pipelines.

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Impact Assessment and Onshore Pipelines Imogen Crawford

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  1. Impact Assessment and Onshore Pipelines Imogen Crawford

  2. Proposition • EIA as it stands is not effective • EIA doomed to failure in some legal systems Qualified: • EIA as it relates to Construction of Onshore Pipelines • Not necessarily the same in other contexts

  3. Onshore Pipelines • Cross country for 100’s of Kilometres • Approx 50m wide cleared strip • Many different habitats • Seasonal constraints - hibernation, salmon run • Habitat fragmentation and barrier to species movement • Barrier to stock movement • Social impacts– traffic, camps in traditional villages

  4. Onshore Pipelines • Tight control difficult with many work fronts and equipment movement • Pipelaying is fast moving and multifaceted • BUT – it can be put back together: • Reinstatement starts at the beginning

  5. Environmental Impact Assessmentessential but……… • EIAs are written at early conceptual stage • Purpose - for the approval process • Of necessity, generic in scope • Often with no/minimal field visit • A ‘one off’ piece of work • Package of specialist reports, not synthesised • Produced by ‘experts’, so not critically reviewed by other parties

  6. Environmental Impact Assessment..falling short • A ‘finshed’ piece of work • Disconnected from Construction phase • Often stalls at this point, now legal requirement satisfied Unless… • A company’s Environmental Management System continues the concept as a process Or • It is driven on by stakeholder interest, like Lending Banks

  7. Environmental Impact Assessmentin the real world Next stage is a process and the most exciting…. Identification – Mitigation – Monitoring – Review It is: • Job specific • Location specific • Participatory, involving other, non environmental professionals • Dynamic, ongoing and integrated process • A Training tool for Environmental Awareness

  8. Impact Register

  9. Legislative Context • EIA developed within European legal system • Integrated Environmental Management • Ease of process implementation dependant on legal context

  10. Legislative Context In natural environment context eg English Law is: • Focussed on damage avoidance • Choice of mitigation measures at the time of impact • Uses the concept of IEM and ‘Best Practice’ eg Russian Law is: • Based on compensatory system, pre-supposes damage • Prescriptive, rigid and and • Set limits and payments rather than preventive mitigation • Mitigation likely to be inappropriate, but locked into the Permit/License to operate

  11. Legislative Context In Russia EIA is impossible to implement • Command and control ethos • Compensation for damage pre-paid • Inflexible and rigid mind set • Generic approach, denying the specific And of course, • Compensation system – suits large companies

  12. Discussion Points • Has the EIA stalled in practice? • Does the success of an EIA process depend on its legislative context?

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