Part A: Introduction to This Handbook
Box A.1.1
The Handbook is intended to provide Scottish Natural Heritage staff with practical guidance and a ready source of information about Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), focusing in particular on the treatment of natural heritage issues and SNH's role in the EIA process.
This Handbook replaces the whole of the previous Environmental Assessment Handbook III issued in February 2001. In a way that has practical application for staff, this major revision of previous guidance aims to:
- cover the whole scope of SNH’s remit;
- include further legislative changes and additions from 2001 to 31st December 2004;
- incorporate a range of policies recently developed by SNH;
- build on experience gained;
- introduce new good practice techniques, case studies and examples; and
- provide a more focused guide, relating to SNH’s role in the EIA process.
It again includes, at Appendix 6, a “package” of an Environmental Impact Assessment Case Log and Review Procedure which is specifically designed to produce appropriate responses from SNH at all stages in the process. It is important that this Case Log is used throughout SNH's contact with the EIA process, it helps to provide rigour and consistency in all SNH responses. It also provides a transparent audit trail, which is useful in meeting the requirements of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002. It will help SNH to chart the progress of and respond to the EIA process on a case-by-case basis and build a consistent database of EIA casework.
The Handbook is divided into seven parts:
- Part A: Introduction to this Handbook
- This general introduction to the Handbook.
- Part B: Introduction to the EIA Process
- A general introduction to the EIA process, including the legislative background, what projects are subject to EIA; the principles to be applied in determining whether EIA is required and the contents of an Environmental Statement.
- Part C: SNH and the EIA Process
- An SNH overview of the process, the key roles of SNH in the process, and some general guidance on what is significant to SNH in terms of the EIA process.
The rest of the main text of the Handbook then follows SNH's role at each of the main steps in the process of EIA, under four main stages: before the Environmental Statement is submitted; during the consideration of the Environmental Statement; the decision making stage and the post decision stage. Thus, the remaining four sections of the Handbook are as listed below.
- Part D SNH Inputs Prior to the Submission of the Environmental Statement
- Explaining the various stages before the Environmental Statement is submitted and the roles of SNH in these stages including helping to decide whether an Environmental Statement is required (including the screening process); requiring the submission of an Environmental Statement; scoping an Environmental Statement; provision of information by SNH; baseline natural heritage information; predicting environmental impacts; assessing the significance of impacts; mitigating measures and enhancement; and presentation of natural heritage information.
- Part E Consideration of the Environmental Statement (and the Project Consent Application)
- Explaining the various stages of considering the Environmental Statement including consultation and publicity; SNH liaison with the Competent Authority and the developer; wider consultation and dissemination; transboundary environmental effects; requiring more information or analysis; requiring modifications of the project; Supplementary Environmental Statements; reviewing the Environmental Statement; formulating the SNH response and a new section on Outline Planning Applications.
- Part F SNH’s Role in the Decision Making Stage
- Explaining the role of the Competent Authority and others, the stages of decision making, and the roles of SNH in these stages, including use of the precautionary principle; the relationship of EIA with the development plan and other consent procedures; and guaranteeing commitments and compliance and the decision of the Competent Authority.
- Part G SNH’s Role in Implementation and Compliance
- Explaining the stages of implementation of the project and ensuring compliance with the terms of any authorisation given, in relation to mitigation and compensation for environmental effects, and the roles of SNH in these stages including time scale of implementation of mitigation and compensation measures; monitoring programmes; review reassessment and remedial programmes; and reporting.
There are then seven Annexes as follows:
- Annex 1.
- Is a Glossary of terms used in the Handbook.
- Annex 2.
- List of Current Legislation, annotated with notes.
- Annex 3.
- List of Current Relevant National Policy and Guidance, annotated with notes.
- Annex 4.
- Projects Requiring EIA (Schedule 1 and Schedule 2 Projects).
- Annex 5.
- References and an Annotated Bibliography
- Annex 6.
- A brief resume of the historical development of EIA in Scotland
- Annex 7.
- An example of a Letter from SNH Requesting the Scottish Ministers to Require an Environmental Statement to be submitted.
These are followed by Case Studies illustrating SNH's involvement in the EIA process.
Finally the Handbook contains eight Technical Appendices, six of which deal with detailed methodologies for impact assessment for:
- Appendix 1
- Landscape and Visual Impacts;
- Appendix 2
- Ecological Impacts;
- Appendix 3
- Earth Heritage Impacts;
- Appendix 4
- Soil Impacts;
- Appendix 5
- Countryside Access Impacts; and
- Appendix 7
- Impacts on the Marine Environment.
The sixth Appendix is the EIA Case Log and Review Procedure mentioned in paragraph A.1.2 above and referred to in more detail at Section E.9 below. The eighth appendix is a new one to assist in identifying the likely significant effects on the natural heritage of different project types.
This Environmental Assessment Handbook is complementary to the SNH guidance in “The Design and Build Process for Trunk Roads: A Guide for SNH”, prepared for SNH by ERM, 1996 (1). When dealing with motorways and trunk road proposals it is important to follow the guidelines in that document, together with the guidance and procedures agreed between the Scottish Office and SNH in “The Assessment of Trunk Road Projects: Consultation Process Between the National Roads Directorate and Scottish Natural Heritage: Consultation Guidance Note”, The Scottish Office, Sept 1996 (Consultation Draft) (2) or any replacement guidance. It is also intended to supplement SEERAD guidance on the EIA of intensive agriculture projects on uncultivated land and semi-natural areas. The advice in these documents and this Handbook do not conflict. The relationship between project EIA, which is the subject of this Handbook, and Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) will be explained in forthcoming guidance from SNH
Presentation
This Handbook covers a complex and often detailed range of information, policy, advice, guidance and statutory and non-statutory procedures relating to the whole of the EIA process. To make it more readable and easier to use, the text includes a series of figures and boxes. All of these are numbered for reference purposes. The boxes used are as follows:
Shadow boxes with bold text highlight or summarise key points of information.
Double edged boxes with bold italicised text highlight key points of advice to SNH staff.
Figures are edged with a simple single line box.
Good EIA Practice is highlighted in a box with a broken line edge.
Application to Project Types
EIA is required for a wide range of project types. This Handbook applies to all project types in terms of the basic process of EIA and the policies and procedures to be followed by SNH throughout that process. However, to continuously refer to all the different types of projects and different Competent Authorities and project proposers would make the text cumbersome and difficult to follow. Consequently, for this reason and because the main body of the EIA guidance from government (Circular 15/1999) addresses the EIA process in relation to the Town and Country Planning System, this Handbook tends to refer to "developers" and Competent Authorities. Unless otherwise indicated the advice in this Handbook applies to the EIA process in respect of all project types, even though it concentrates on the main 1999 Regulations and the Circular relating to planning projects. Where a specific procedure relates only or primarily to planning authorities under the EIAR 99 then the term "planning authority" is used instead of "Competent Authority".
References to all Project Proposers as “developers”
For the purposes of this Handbook, to help make the text more readable, all project proposers are referred to as “developers”, whether or not their project constitutes development within the meaning of the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997 and whether or not the project is for public service or infrastructure or for commercial purposes. Scope of EIA Projects and Application of the Different EIA Regulations
Annex 2 Table 1 of this Handbook lists all the relevant EIA Regulations relating to the different types of projects and their consent procedures. A summary of the scope of EIA regulations applicable to a wide variety of project types is given in Annex 2 Table 2. This is followed by Table 3 which identifies the main project types in the various regulations and, for each one, summarises which is the competent authority; the relevant consent procedures; the relevant EIA Regulations; their geographical jurisdiction, the reference of the Statutory Instrument and the date it came into force. The Table also gives the appropriate references for the following topics in each of the Regulations, as described below.