Necessary service in today’s times
Environmental impact assessment (EIA) is an indispensable service in the current context of sustainable development. This assessment plays a key role in assessing and predicting the potential impacts of development projects on the environment, thereby providing effective management, mitigation and prevention measures.
During the construction phase, EIA helps identify and evaluate the project’s impacts on factors such as air, water, soil, ecosystems, and social issues. This is an important basis for planning management and minimizing negative impacts. During the operation phase, EIA continues to monitor and monitor impacts to promptly adjust response measures.
In particular, EIA helps ensure compliance with laws on environmental protection. Projects must undergo EIA appraisal and obtain environmental permits before being implemented. This contributes to enhancing the responsibility of investors towards environmental issues.
In the context of increasing challenges of pollution and climate change, EIA has become an indispensable environmental management tool, helping development projects closely align with the requirements of environmental protection and improvement. . This is an important service that contributes to promoting the sustainable development of businesses and communities.
What is the environmental impact?
Environmental impacts are the effects and changes that human activities or development projects cause on environmental components. These impacts can be positive or negative, short-term or long-term, can be recognized immediately or take time to appear.
The impact on the natural environment is one of the important aspects that needs to be evaluated and given top priority. Activities such as natural resource exploitation, construction, transportation, industry… can cause many serious environmental problems such as air, water, and soil pollution; degradation and imbalance of the ecosystem; Climate Change; out of resources…
Air pollution from industrial and vehicle emissions can affect human and plant health. Water pollution due to waste, oil and grease from production and daily activities can affect water sources for daily life and farming. Soil pollution due to toxic substances and heavy metals can also harm people’s health and farming productivity.
Besides, the development of economic and transportation projects can also impact the social and cultural environment. The process of relocation, population clearance, and land recovery can cause conflicts of interest and loss of social security. Some projects also have the risk of affecting historical relics, scenic spots, and traditional cultural values of the locality.
To minimize negative impacts, project owners need to conduct a comprehensive environmental impact assessment and propose appropriate prevention and mitigation measures. Management agencies also need to strengthen management, supervision, and enforcement of laws on environmental protection. Only then can development activities go hand in hand with protecting and improving the living environment.
Meaning of environmental impact assessment
Environmental impact assessment plays an extremely important role in ensuring the sustainable development of projects and production and business activities. Below are some main meanings of EIA work:
- Identify and forecast the potential impacts of the project on the environment, thereby proposing appropriate measures to prevent, minimize or overcome negative impacts. This contributes to protecting the environment and public health.
- Create an important scientific and legal basis for the decision-making process. These results are used as a basis for environmental licensing, decisions on design plans, technology and project management and operation plans. This helps ensure the legality and responsibility of relevant entities.
- Create consultation and interaction channels between stakeholders such as authorities, communities and investors. This helps ensure transparency, democracy and increased accountability in the decision-making process.
- Contribute to raising investors’ awareness and responsibility for environmental protection. Thereby, businesses proactively seek technology and management solutions to limit negative impacts.
Environmental impact assessment is an effective environmental management tool, contributing to promoting the sustainable development of projects and production and business activities. The role of EIA becomes even more important in the context of increasing environmental challenges today.
Environmental impact assessment process
The environmental impact assessment process is a multi-step process and involves many different subjects. Below is a summary of the main steps:
Step 1: Screening
This is the first step to determine whether a project needs to undergo EIA or not, based on criteria such as scale, nature of the project, implementation area and legal requirements. If the project is determined to be subject to an EIA, the process will continue to the next steps.
Step 2: Determine scope (Scoping)
In this step, relevant entities will jointly determine the scope, content and level of detail of the EIA. The key issues and potential impacts that need to be considered will be clearly identified.
Step 3: Carry out EIA
By collecting information, field surveys, analysis and evaluation, experts will identify and forecast the project’s potential impacts on the environment, propose prevention and mitigation measures. minimize and overcome. The results are summarized in the EIA report.
Step 4: Consultation and public announcement
The EIA report will be publicly announced and comments will be sought from relevant parties such as local authorities, communities, social organizations… Comments will be received and explained in the report. EIA.
Step 5: Approval and licensing
The competent state management agency will review and approve the report. If approved, the project owner will be granted an environmental permit for implementation.
Step 6: Monitor and check
During project implementation and operation, measures to minimize environmental impacts will continue to be monitored and inspected. Results will be reported periodically to regulatory agencies.
The process is a continuous cycle, with the participation of many subjects and ensuring transparency and democracy to achieve the goals of environmental protection and sustainable development.
Right to assess environmental impact
Environmental impact assessment is a quite complex process and requires the participation of many subjects, including experts with different expertise. Key entities that can participate in the process include:
1. Project owner:
– Take main responsibility for preparing and implementing EIA for your project.
– Responsible for providing complete and accurate information about the project.
2. State environmental management agencies:
– Have authority to approve reports and issue environmental permits.
– Responsible for inspecting and monitoring the implementation of environmental protection measures.
3. EIA experts and consulting organizations:
– Experts on environment, ecology, society, economics…
– Have professional qualifications and experience in the field
– Carry out steps such as surveying, analyzing, evaluating, and proposing measures.
4. Local communities, social organizations:
– Parties directly affected by the project.
– Be consulted during the process.
– Reflect community concerns and recommendations.
Close coordination between these entities is very important to ensure that the process is carried out objectively, scientifically and comprehensively, to effectively protect the environment.