1. EIA Process, IEE, TOR Dr. Wesam Al Madhoun

2. The Environmental Impact Assessment Process
Major steps in the EIA process are:
Screening
Initial Environmental Examination (IEE)
Scoping
Full-Scale Assessment
EIA Review and Decision Making
Monitoring and Follow-Up

3. You are here EIA Required EIA Not Required EIA Approved EIA Not
Initial Environmental
Examination (IEE)
IEE
Review
Screening
EIA
Required
Scoping/ Terms of Reference
EIA Not
Required
You are here
Full-Scale
EIA
EIA
Approved
Decision
Making
Monitoring
EIA
Review
EIA Audit and Evaluation
EIA Not
Approved
Evaluate
Options

4. Screening
It would be time consuming and a waste of resources for all proposed projects and activities to undergo EIA
Not all development projects require an EIA, as some projects may not pose an environmental threat
Screening is the process used to determine whether a proposed project or activity requires an EIA and, if so, what level of environmental review is necessary

5. Purpose
Identify those projects or activities that may cause potential significant impacts
Identify special conditions/analyses that may be required by international funding bodies
Categorize the project as one where:
Full-Scale EIA required
Some further environmental analysis required
No further environmental analysis required

6. Typical Proposals Requiring Full-Scale EIA
Infrastructure projects
Large-scale industrial activities
Resource extractive industries and activities
Waste management and disposal
Substantial changes in farming or fishing practices

7. Screening Techniques Assessor or decision-maker discretion
Project lists with thresholds and triggers
Exclusion project lists
Preliminary or initial EIAs
Combination of these techniques

8. Screening Criteria Screening criteria typically consider:
Project type, location, size (e.g., capital investment, number of people affected, project capacity, areal extent)
Receiving environment characteristics
Strength of community opinion
Confidence in prediction of impacts

9. Project Location Requirements for screening:
The screening checklist should include a section on site location characteristics, including, at a minimum, the four categories of environmentally critical areas:
National Parks
Indigenous people’s area
Tourist area
Ecologically sensitive area

10. Project Location (Cont’d)
Site selection defines the location of the study area and the specific environmental resource base to be examined
Often the single most important factor contributing to a project’s potential negative impacts
Regional development plans should be used as guides to select project locations where environmental conditions will be minimally impacted

11. Example Project Screening Criteria from Thailand
Type of Project
1. Infrastructure
Commercial Airport
Mass Transit System
Hotel or Resort
Threshold Scale
All
> 80 Rooms
Location -
4 Critical Areas
2. Agriculture and Natural Resources
Dam or Reservoir
Irrigation
>100 million cu. m.
> 15 sq. km.
SLIDE 8 NOTES ANNEX A
PROJECT SCREENING CRITERIA IN THAILAND
1.OVERVIEW
This slide shows the project screening criteria used in Thailand. Column headings represent the three criteria used to determine whether a project requires an IEE: type, size, location.
2.TYPE OF PROJECT
Thailand's project screening criteria define many types of projects which require an IEE. Most of these are in the industrial and power sector. This is not surprising since such projects typically have the most severe potential significant environmental issues. In the agriculture and natural resource sector, water resources projects are targeted for environmental impact assessment. These projects typically impact terrestrial and aquatic biological resources and may have both positive and negative significant impacts on quality of life resources for the population in the study area.
3.THRESHOLD SCALE
The threshold scale for each project type is well defined. It is listed in units appropriate to the specific project type, or as "All" for project types for which an EIA is required irrespective of size.
4.LOCATION
The use of sensitive locations as a requirement for an IEE has not been well developed in Thailand, except for hotel or resort projects. Several of the other project types listed could have severe environmental issues at sizes well below the threshold scale, if they were located in environmentally sensitive areas. For example, a reservoir of only 10 square kilometers could have severe environmental issues if located in a wildlife refuge.

12. Example Project Screening Criteria from Thailand (Cont’d)
Type of Project
Threshold Scale
Location
3. Industrial and Power
Petrochemical Industry
Oil Refinery
Chlor-Alkaline Industry
Natural Gas Separation
Iron/Steel
Cement Industry
Smelting
Pulp Industry
Industrial Estates
Thermal Power Plants
Mining
> 100 tons/day (raw material)
All
100 tons/day (output)
100 tons/day, batch
> 50 tons/day
> 10 megawatts
SLIDE 8 NOTES ANNEX A
PROJECT SCREENING CRITERIA IN THAILAND
1.OVERVIEW
This slide shows the project screening criteria used in Thailand. Column headings represent the three criteria used to determine whether a project requires an IEE: type, size, location.
2.TYPE OF PROJECT
Thailand's project screening criteria define many types of projects which require an IEE. Most of these are in the industrial and power sector. This is not surprising since such projects typically have the most severe potential significant environmental issues. In the agriculture and natural resource sector, water resources projects are targeted for environmental impact assessment. These projects typically impact terrestrial and aquatic biological resources and may have both positive and negative significant impacts on quality of life resources for the population in the study area.
3.THRESHOLD SCALE
The threshold scale for each project type is well defined. It is listed in units appropriate to the specific project type, or as "All" for project types for which an EIA is required irrespective of size.
4.LOCATION
The use of sensitive locations as a requirement for an IEE has not been well developed in Thailand, except for hotel or resort projects. Several of the other project types listed could have severe environmental issues at sizes well below the threshold scale, if they were located in environmentally sensitive areas. For example, a reservoir of only 10 square kilometers could have severe environmental issues if located in a wildlife refuge.

13. Asian Development Bank (ADB) Screening Categories
All Projects
Category A
Projects that typically require an EIA study
Category C
Projects that typically do not require an IEE
Category B
Projects that typically require only an IEE
Examples:
Forestry Research & Extension
Rural Health Services
Marine Sciences Education
Forest Industries
Water Impoundment
Industries
Renewable Energy
Aquaculture
Tourism Development
Infrastructure Rehabilitation
SLIDE 9 NOTES ANNEX A
ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK PROJECT CATEGORIES
1.OVERVIEW
This slide shows the categories used by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to differentiate between projects which require different levels of environmental review. For projects that are anticipated to be funded by ADB, every effort should be made to adhere to ADB procedure from the earliest project development stages. The categorization procedure is explained in Section 21 of ADB's Operations Manual entitled "Environmental Considerations in Bank Operations". The band uses the categorization to prioritize projects that will require the involvement of ADB environmental specialists. Project categorization can be incorporated into a country's national procedures for project screening to facilitate the prioritization of environmental resource assessment expertise. Section 21 of ADB's Operations Manual is reproduced in full in Annex B.
2.PROJECT CATEGORY A
Projects in this category typically require an EIA. The project type, scale and location determine this designation. The potential significant environmental issues for these projects may lead to significant changes in land use, as well as changes to the social, physical, and biological environment. ADB suggests that an environmental specialist's advice will be required to determine the scope of the EIA necessary for compliance with ADB's environmental policies. Bank personnel are involved in this category of project from early field reconnaissance through EIA review. Additional examples of projects which fall under this category are provided in Section 21 of ADB's Operations Manual which is reproduced in full in Annex B.
3.PROJECT CATEGORY B
This category is for projects that usually require an Initial Environmental Examination, but not an EIA study. Often the only difference between projects in this category and those in category A is the scale. Large power plant projects fall under category A; medium-sized power plant projects are in category B. The environmental impacts from these projects are generally less severe than projects in category A, and these projects are not located in environmentally sensitive areas. Mitigation measures for these projects are more easily prescribed. The Bank suggests that an environmental specialist will be required to assist in formulating the Terms of Reference for the IEE so that the IEE report will comply with the bank policies.
Additional examples of projects which fall under this category are provided in Section 21 of ADB's Operations Manual which is reproduced in full in Annex B.
4.PROJECT CATEGORY C
This category is for projects that typically do not require an environmental assessment. These projects are unlikely to have adverse environmental impacts.

14. Palestinian Law

15. Project Screening Flow Chart
Project type on project screening checklist? NO
YES
Project scale above the screening threshold? NO
Project located in a critical area?
YES NO
YES
IAA funding, or any other special circumstances?
Will the project be funded by an IAA? NO
YES NO
Get specific IAA requirements NO
YES
No initial
environmental
examination
required (IEE)
Prepare the work plan for the initial environmental examination (IEE)

16. You are here EIA Required EIA Not Required EIA Approved EIA Not
Initial Environmental
Examination (IEE)
IEE
Review
Screening
EIA
Required
Scoping/ Terms of Reference
EIA Not
Required
You are here
Full-Scale
EIA
EIA
Approved
EIA
Review
Decision
Making
Monitoring
EIA Audit and Evaluation
EIA Not
Approved
Evaluate
Options

17. Initial Environmental Examination
Initial environmental examination (IEE) is intended as a low-cost environmental evaluation that makes use of information already available

18. Purpose of IEE
Describes the proposed project or activity and examines alternatives
Identifies and addresses community concerns to extent possible
Identifies and assesses potential environmental effects
Directs future action

19. Objectives of IEE
Identify all potential environmental concerns relating to a proposed project or activity
Identify all significant environmental issues (SEIs)
Resolve simple SEIs
Develop the focus for follow-up studies based on unresolved SEIs
OBJECTIVES OF THE INITIAL ENVIRONMENTAL EXAMINATION (IEE)
1. OVERVIEW
The objectives of the IEE are to: (1) identify all of the potential environmental issues associated with the project type and location; (2) from the complete set of potential SEIs, determine which are applicable to the specific project; (3) evaluate the significance of each issue's impact on environmental resources, (4) decide which issues may be resolved in the IEE and which require an EIA, (5) resolve all issues possible within the scope of the IEE, (6) develop recommendations for additional studies to resolve outstanding issues.
2. IDENTIFY ALL POTENTIAL SIGNIFICANT ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES (SEIs) AND DETERMINE THOSE THAT APPLY TO A SPECIFIC PROJECT
The IEE, as its name suggests, is the initial examination of a project's environmental issues. The examination should be time and resource efficient, using existing information on the environmental resources of the area whenever possible. This function of the IEE may be viewed as a low-cost scoping study that identifies environmental issues to be resolved. A number of methods may be used to facilitate the identification of potential SEIs typical to specific project types, or projects of a particular development sector. These methods are discussed in later slides. The potential SEIs are checked against the project and study area information to determine the actual environmental issues for a particular project. The issues must be evaluated and graded according to their significance and complexity of resolution.
3. RESOLVE ALL SIMPLE SIGNIFICANT ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES
A work plan should be created for the simple SEIs that may be resolved within the scope of the IEE. These are the SEIs that may be resolved by easily identified and applied environmental protection measures. For these types of SEIs, the IEE can take the place of an EIA, and if no complex SEIs are found, an EIA may not be necessary.
4. DEVELOP FOCUS FOR FOLLOW-UP STUDIES
Complex SEIs must be resolved through follow-up studies whose scope allow for extensive field work, in-depth analysis, and whatever else is required. Recommendations to resolve these issues must be developed and included in the IEE report. If these recommendations are accepted by reviewing agencies, the IEE will have additional responsibility of creating a complete terms of reference for the recommended study.

20. Possible IEE Outcomes
No requirement for further environmental study; proposal not anticipated to have significant impact.
Limited environmental study needed; environmental impacts are known and can be easily mitigated.
Full-scale EIA required; impacts unknown or likely to be significant.

21. IEE in the Overall EIA Process
Project
Screening
Identifies projects that typically contain potential significant issues
Initial Environmental Examination
1. Identifies potential significant environmental issues associated with a project
2. Grades effects and identifies actual Significant Environmental Issues (SEIs)
3. Resolves simple SEIs
4. Recommends further action for resolving outstanding SEIs
Full-Scale EIA or Other Additional Study
Resolves any remaining significant environmental issues
SLIDE 2 NOTES
FLOW CHART LINKING THE FUNCTIONS OF PROJECT SCREENING INITIAL ENVIRONMENTAL EXAMINATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT
1. OVERVIEW
This slide shows the functional linkage between these three steps in the Environmental
Impact Assessment process.
2. PROJECT SCREENING
Project screening identifies the projects that typically contain potential Significant Environmental Issues. The projects are identified, or selected, using screening criteria based on project type, size, and location. Projects that are selected must pass through an Initial Environmental Examination (IEE) so that Significant Environmental Issues (SEIs) may be identified, and when possible, resolved.
3. INITIAL ENVIRONMENTAL EXAMINATION
The IEE performs four important functions.
1) It identifies the potential SEIs associated with a project. These potential SEIs are effects on environmental resources that may result from various components of a project. They may be related to the design, the construction, or the operation phase of the project.
2) It determines the actual environmental issues for the specific project and grades them according to their significance and whether or not they may be resolved within the scope of the IEE.
3) The SEIs that are simple enough to be resolved within the scope of the IEE are pursued. Environmental protection measures and an environmental management plan are developed. Projects for which all issues have been resolved in the IEE use the IEE in place of an EIA.
4) For SEIs that cannot be resolved within the scope of the IEE, recommendations are made for the work required for resolution.
4. THE EIA
The EIA is used to resolve complex environmental issues. The IEE is very important for the EIA because it focuses the tasks to be performed in the study on specific complex issues, and develops the background on these issues. The EIA is a much more efficient study when it can draw on the work of the IEE.

22. IEE Flow Chart
1. Identify Potential Significant Environmental Issues
2. Obtain Information
3. Effects Classification/ Identification of Significant Environmental Issues (SEIs)
4. Resolve SEIs Where Possible (Review Alternatives/Develop Environmental Management Plans and Protection Measures)
The IEE makes recommendations for further study:
Full-Scale EIA
IEE is the final EIA Report, including:
1. SEIs
2. EPM
3. EMP
5. Are all SEIs
resolved?
YES NO
SLIDE NOTES
FLOW CHART OF THE FUNCTIONAL STEPS IN THE INITIAL ENVIRONMENTAL EXAMINATION
1. OVERVIEW
This slide shows the steps involved in performing an Initial Environmental Examination. Each of these steps will be described in the slide series.
2. USE OF THIS SLIDE
The information contained in this slide was for the most part presented in the previous slide. This graphical representation may aid some participants' comprehension through reiteration of the steps in a pictorial format. In addition, the critical step of data collection is included here.

23. Identification of Potential Significant Issues
1. Identify valued environmental/ecosystem components (VECs)
Professional judgment/past experience
Legislative requirements
Stakeholder and community values
Identify the potential for impacts to each VEC
3. Identify potential for cumulative impacts (i.e.,to the site as a whole and to the region)

24. Commonly Considered VECs
Natural physical resources (e.g., surface and groundwater, air, climate, soil)
Natural biological resources (e.g., forests, wetlands, river and lake ecology)
Economic development resources (e.g., agriculture, industry, infrastructure, tourism)
Quality of life (e.g., public health, socio-economic, cultural, aesthetics)
National commitments (e.g., endangered species protection)
CLASSIFICATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES
1. OVERVIEW
This listing of environmental resources is useful as a general checklist, but as with environmental screening checklists, it lacks situation specific information.
2. CLASSIFICATION
Environmental resources can be separated into four classifications for environmental assessment work. These classifications provide a minimum of overlap in specific resource impact assessment.

25. Methods for Identifying Potential Impacts to VECs
Matrices
Sectoral
Project type
Checklists
Professional expertise and experience with similar project types
Combination of techniques

26. Sectoral Matrix Example
Ports and Harbours
Airports
Rapid Transit
Highways
Oil/Gas Pipelines
Development Projects
Valued Env. Component
(VEC)
Archaeological/Historical
Surface Water Quality
Seismology/Geology
Terrestrial Wildlife
Socioeconomic
Resettlement
Public Health
Land Quality
Air Quality
Aesthetics
Fisheries
Land Use
Industries
Erosion
Forests
Noise
Insignificant Impact
Significant Impact
Moderate - Significant Impact
SLIDE NOTES
SECTORAL MATRICES FOR IDENTIFYING POTENTIAL SEIs
1. OVERVIEW
This slide is an environmental screening matrix for the transportation sector. The impacts listed are typical of the project types. They may or may not pose an actual environmental issue to be resolved depending on the specifics of any given project and its location.

27. Project Checklist Example
Actions Affecting
Resources and Values:
1. Disruption of Hydrology
2. Resettlement
3. Encroachment on Precious Ecology
4. Encroachment on Historic/ Cultural Values
5. Cooling Tower Obstruction
6. Regional Flooding Hazard
7. Waste Emissions Related to Siting
Potential Damages:
SLIDE NOTES
PROJECT CHECKLIST FOR IDENTIFYING POTENTIAL SEIs
1. OVERVIEW
This slide shows a portion of an environmental screening checklist that may be used to identify potential SEIs. The example is a checklist for a thermal power project. The portion shown relates to the issues resulting from the selection of project location. Additional sections deal with other design considerations as well as other project implementation phases.
The checklist includes a section containing general suggestions for environmental protection measures. The suggestions can be especially useful to inexperienced IEE staff.
1. Impairment of Other Beneficial
Water Uses
2. Social Inequities
3. Loss of these Values
4. Loss of these Values
5. Conflicts with Other Beneficial
6. Hazard to Plant Operations
7. Intensification of Problems of
Pollution Control
EIA Procedures and Decision Making

28. Considerations in Determining Potential Effects
Impacts to:
individual VECs
entire site (i.e., impacts to all VECs combined)
cumulative impacts to the area (i.e., considering other existing and planned projects)
Impacts from all phases of the project (i.e., construction, operation, decommissioning)
Impacts on different time-scales
Impacts from different orders of impact

29. Orders of Impact Example
Loss of Fisheries Income
Social Tension and Poverty Intensified
Loss of Plain Fisheries
Dry Flood Plains
River Embankment
First Order
Second Order
Third Order
Fourth Order
THE ORDER OF ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS (IMPACTS)
1. OVERVIEW
This slide shows an important EIA concept utilized extensively at the IEE stage. This is an important technique in identifying SEIs. It is a chain reaction effect caused by impacts to interdependent resources. In this example, the project activity that initiates the environmental impact chain is a river embankment which usually overflows during the rainy season and supports an extensive flood plains fisheries. This is a common occurrence in many deltaic areas.
2. FIRST ORDER EFFECT
The river embankment causes the flood plains to dry up during the rainy season. This is an obvious first order impact. In the past, when only conventional project planning process was utilized (i.e. without an EIA) in river training schemes, consideration of environmental effects went no further than this stage. In fact, the drying up of the flood plains was the purpose of the river embankment scheme in the first place.
3. SECOND ORDER EFFECT
The second order effect would be the loss of flood plain fisheries. Although this is obvious to an environmental scientist, it may not be so to an engineer in an office in the city.
4. THIRD ORDER EFFECT
The third order effect is the impact on the local people who rely upon the fisheries for consumption and for income. The loss of the fisheries might have a substantial impact on them.
5. FOURTH ORDER EFFECT
The fourth order effect might be an increase in social tension which could lead to violence. For instance, if the fishermen were mainly landless farmers who relied on the fisheries for most of their income, the reclamation of the land for agricultural purposes might make the large landowners wealthier and the landless fishermen poorer. This is a social equity issue.
6. CONCLUSION
The chain of impacts can quickly become very complicated. The purpose of the IEE and the role of the expert is to determine which issues are substantial and where to draw boundaries on the analysis. For instance, there may or may not be productive fisheries in the flood plains; there may or may not be a substantial population which relies on the fisheries for their income and food; and there may or may not be alternative livelihoods readily available for the displaced fishermen. Through this process, all environmental issues for a project are identified.

30. Data Requirements Project Area of potential impact Type Size Location
Physical resources
Biological resources
Economic development resources
Quality of life
Other existing and planned projects
COLLECTION OF INFORMATION ON THE PROJECT AND STUDY AREA
1. PROJECT INFORMATION
Project information should be available from the project pre-feasibility team. Project type, size (or scale), and proposed location are the most important information areas.
2. STUDY AREA INFORMATION
Information on the environmental resources in the study area is critical for determining the significant environmental issues (SEIs). Depending on the area, there may or may not be reports describing these resources. If there are no existing reports and the area is rich in environmental resources, the SEIs will probably have to be resolved by a full-scale EIA.
4. PREVIOUS REPORTS ON SIMILAR PROJECTS
Reports on similar project types, or projects that may cause similar environmental disturbances, should be reviewed. These reports may include valuable baseline data on environmental resources as well as environmental impact assessment methodology. IEE and EIA reports are the most applicable, but feasibility studies and project permitting reports may also be useful.