Introduction:

Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is an important management tool for ensuring optimal use of natural resources for sustainable development. It covers developmental sectors such as industries, thermal power projects, mining schemes etc.  EIA has now been made mandatory under the Environmental (Protection Act, 1986) for 29 categories of developmental activities involving investments of Rs. 50 crores and above.

Body:

Significance of the EIA:

• EIA reports are a critical component of India’s environmental decision-making process.
• It acts as a detailed study of the potential impacts of proposed projects.
• It helps in predicting environmental impacts at an early stage in project planning and design.
• Based on these reports, the Environment Ministry or other relevant regulatory bodies may or may not grant approval to a project.
• The EIA reports are also important to define measures that the project could take in order to contain or offset project impacts.
• EIA-based approvals for most projects also involve the process of conducting public hearings, so that who are likely to be affected can be taken on board before approving the project.
• EIA links environment with development. The goal is to ensure environmentally safe and sustainable development.

Issues Related to EIA:

• Environmental decision-making processes for development projects are supposed to use the best available scientific knowledge to ensure that development does not lead to negative impacts.
• But there are compromised decision-making on development and infrastructure projects.
• Sometimes the EIA reports lack the expected degrees of honesty, owing to bias, corruption, exaggeration and wrong claims.
• EIA reports for the approved “redevelopment” projects in Delhi were prepared by copying from copyrighted papers, web-pages and other EIA reports.
• There are many instances of missing or misleading information which understate the potential impact of the projects.
• Many projects are approved without public consultation.
• Lack of awareness among the local people about the process of EIA, its significance for them, their own rights and responsibilities.
• Most of the time EIA reports are unavailable in local languages, thus local people are unable to decipher the reports, and are misled by the proponents
• Expert Appraisal Committees (EAC) is dominated by ex-bureaucrats and institutional experts rather than eminent environmentalists.
• Very little importance is given to socio-economic issues, including those related to gender.
• In the end, it is citizens who have to bear the brunt.

Way Forward:

• Competent authorities must ensure that a project causes minimal adverse environmental impact and generates maximum social and economic benefits.
• Involving affected people and concerned citizens in environmental decision-making has far reaching effects.
• It allows for democratising environmental governance.
• Participatory processes give opportunities to understand and plan for unforeseen effects.
• In 2009, the Delhi High Court in Utkarsh Mandal v/s Union of India upheld that it is the duty of the EACs to consider the merits of the objections raised at the public hearings.
• Women and other vulnerable sections of the society are the first and most affected by consequences of developmental processes and damage to the environment.
• Adverse impacts of development projects can be reduced with the full and equal participation of both genders, particularly women in decision-making processes.
• NGOs, civil society groups and local communities need to build their capacities to use the EIA notification towards better decision making on projects.

Conclusion:

An EIA should not be used just as a means for obtaining an environmental clearance; rather, project proponents should use it as a management tool to assess the soundness of a project plan.  The focus of EIA needs to shift from utilization and exploitation of natural resources to conservation of natural resources.