Simulations of EIA screening across jurisdictions : exposing the case for harmonic criteria?
No Thumbnail Available
Date
2017
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Abstract
Screening is one of the most critical stages in environmental impact assessment (EIA). However,
there is no consensus about best approaches to screen development proposals, particularly in
large territories with multiple jurisdictions. This study explored the challenges of harmonizing
EIA screening criteria across jurisdictions, using Brazilian states as the empirical context. It set
out to answer the following question: what would be the screening decisions of approved
development projects if they had been licensed in different states? This study selected four cases
of projects that had obtained environmental licenses in the state of Minas Gerais, and, based on
their data, simulated license applications in other three states in south-eastern Brazil. Interviews
helped to determine likely screening decisions. Screening approaches, while similar, varied
significantly in terms of choices of threshold criteria across the four states. With the exception
of one project type, the projects would face very different EIA requirements in the other
jurisdictions. Such differences seem to stem more from political choices than from geographical
idiosyncrasies. Implications for policy-making regarding harmonization are discussed.
Description
Keywords
Screening, Developing, Licensing, Environmental impact assessment
Citation
ROCHA, C. P. F.; FONSECA, A. de F. C. Simulations of EIA screening across jurisdictions : exposing the case for harmonic criteria? Impact Assessment and Project Appraisal, v. 35, p. 1-13, 2017. Disponível em: <http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/14615517.2016.1271537?journalCode=tiap20>. Acesso em: 25 ago. 2017.