EIAs at Higher Level: This statement is Higher Level only. It asks how environmental impact assessments build sustainable resource management into new mines, dams, roads and power stations: what an EIA does, its stages, what it looks at, and how far it can be trusted.
Practise this as you read
- Outline one purpose of an EIA, and identify an impact it would study.
- Evaluate the use of EIAs, with a definition, both sides and a judgement.
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Look before you build: An environmental impact assessment checks a development project before it is allowed to go ahead. It is how sustainable resource management is built into new projects.
The points to remember
- An EIA studies a development project before it is approved.
- It assesses environmental, social and economic impacts, and whether the project is sustainable.
- It uses independent, detailed surveys (a baseline study).
- It predicts impacts and suggests mitigation to avoid or reduce harm.
- It is a tool for decisions: approve, approve with conditions, or refuse.
- It continues with audits and monitoring after the project is built.
Its purposes, in one list: to prevent or limit damage; to give a baseline study; to predict and evaluate impacts and decide if the project will be sustainable; to suggest mitigation; and to help plan the decision.
Real example: Chile: Chile is the world's largest copper producer, and every new mine, or expansion of an old one, must have an EIA approved before work starts.
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An EIA follows the same steps everywhere, although the details differ by country. Follow them through one real project that was refused.
The stages of an EIA
- Screening: does the project need a full EIA?
- Scoping: which impacts matter most?
- Baseline study and prediction of impacts.
- Mitigation, then a report that the public can comment on.
- Decision, then monitoring and audit after it is built.
Why it was refused: the mine would have destroyed wetlands and streams where sockeye salmon breed, and the plan to make up for the loss was judged not good enough. In 2023 the US Environmental Protection Agency also blocked a large mine there; the company is still challenging this in court.
An EIA does not end when the project is approved. The guide stresses audits and continued monitoring after the project is completed.
After the building is finished
- Monitoring compares the site with the baseline, year after year.
- It checks the predictions were right and the mitigation works.
- It catches unexpected harm early, e.g. a leak years later.
- An audit checks the company kept its promises, so it can be held accountable.
Mine
- The Ranger uranium mine lies inside Kakadu National Park, Australia, a World Heritage Site
Watch
- For decades the Supervising Scientist tested the rivers and wetlands downstream against the conditions before mining
Close
- Processing stopped in January 2021; the pit is being filled with tailings and covered
Restore
- The land must be restored so that it could become part of the national park, and monitoring goes on
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An EIA looks at three kinds of impact, not only nature. Papers often ask for one kind, so keep them apart.
Three kinds of impact
- Environmental: habitats, species, water, soil and air.
- Social: loss of land or homes; less water; outside workers changing communities.
- Social: ugly views (visual pollution); conflict between the company and local people.
- Economic: jobs, taxes and income, but also harm to other industries such as fishing or tourism.
- An EIA weighs all three to judge whether a project is sustainable.
| Kind of impact | At the Pebble mine |
|---|---|
| Environmental | wetlands and salmon streams lost; risk of polluted water from the waste rock |
| Social | Alaska Native villages that depend on salmon for food and culture; roads and outside workers in a remote area |
| Economic | mining jobs and taxes, against a salmon fishery that supports thousands of jobs |
Social is not the same as health: When a question asks for a social impact, give one about people's land, water, community, views or conflict. An illness from dust or polluted water is a health impact and is not accepted as the social one.
To evaluate an EIA, start with what sustainability means, then weigh how far an EIA can secure it.
Strengths of an EIA
- Gives decision-makers a baseline of the current situation.
- Predicts impacts before the project starts.
- Suggests mitigation to prevent or reduce harm.
- Makes companies and governments accountable in follow-up checks.
- Includes social and economic impacts; can raise awareness and involve the public.
- Can stop a harmful project altogether.
Remember it as: Before, during, after: baseline, mitigation, monitoring.
Limitations of an EIA
- May not stop a project, even one with severe impacts; advice may be ignored.
- Needs experts that some countries lack; no global standard.
- Can be biased if the developer pays for it, or corrupt.
- Some impacts are hard to measure (landscape, quality of life); some are missed.
- It may be cheaper to pay a fine than follow it; it can delay projects.
- Cannot reflect the views of all stakeholders equally.
Two conclusions that score: Even a weak EIA is better than none, because it makes developers think about sustainability.
But even a perfect EIA cannot guarantee a project stays sustainable, because conditions change, for example with climate change.
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How this comes up: Paper 1: identify a social or environmental impact an EIA would study for the project in the case study, or state one purpose of an EIA. Paper 2: evaluate the use of EIAs, with a definition of sustainability, both sides and a judgement.
A company planned a huge open-pit copper and gold mine near Bristol Bay, Alaska, home of the world's largest sockeye salmon fishery. After an EIA, the permit was refused in 2020.
Evaluate the use of an EIA to ensure the sustainability of a new development project.
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