D.10: Presentation of Natural Heritage Information in the Environmental Statement

next » PART E: Consideration of the Environmental Statement (Along with the Project Consent Application)
Key Stages and Steps in the EIA Process
Stage 1: Before Submission of the Environmental Statement
  • Deciding whether EIA is required
  • Requiring submission of an Environmental Statement
  • Preliminary Contacts and Liaison
  • Scoping the Environmental Statement
  • Information Collection
  • Describing Baseline Environmental Information
  • Predicting Environmental Impacts
  • Assessing the Significance of Impacts
  • Mitigation Measures and Enhancement
  • Presenting Environmental Information in the Environmental Statement
Stage 2: Submission of Environmental Statement and Consideration of Environmental Information
  • Submission of Environmental Statement and Project Application for consent
  • Consultation and Publicity
  • Requiring more Information
  • Negotiating modifications to the Project
  • Considering the Environmental Information
Stage 3: Making the Decision
  • Making the Decision
  • Guaranteeing compliance
Stage 4: Implementation
  • Implementation of mitigation and compensation measures
  • Monitoring
  • Review, reassessment and remedial measures
  • Reporting

See Also Figure 2 and Section B.6 above and Appendices 1 - 5 of this Handbook.

SNH's Role

D.10.1

SNH may advise on and respond to requests about the presentation of the information in the Environmental Statement.

Statutory Provisions

D.10.2

There are statutory duties on developers to include certain matters in an Environmental Statement (see B.6 above). There are statutory powers for Competent Authorities to require the inclusion of certain matters in an Environmental Statement. However, the way in which these matters are presented in the Environmental Statement is a matter for the developer, a non statutory procedure, which may involve discussion with SNH. The Regulations do not specify how environmental information should be presented in an Environmental Statement, except to say that a non-technical summary must be included. In practice, non-technical summaries are often separately bound and more widely distributed and available. Guidance on this stage is also provided in PAN 58 at paragraphs 72 - 79.

Presentation

D.10.3

Presentation therefore depends largely on the importance of natural heritage issues in the Environmental Statement. Where no significant natural heritage issues arise the Environmental Statement may simply refer to them in a general chapter on other environmental effects or information. Where natural heritage issues are significant they should be addressed to the extent necessary in the main body of the Environmental Statement, although larger Environmental Statements may have separate volumes containing detailed information about specific issues. Topic reports in Appendices are a common and accepted feature of Environmental Statements.

D.10.4

The size of an Environmental Statement will depend on the range and complexity of issues and no standard size can be given. However, the Institute of EIA consider that Environmental Statements with less than 50 pages are usually regarded as inadequately detailed if more than one or two key topics are involved. Environmental Statements of more than 150 pages should only be necessary where the project has many environmental impacts and is of a large scale. Too much detail can distract and deter readers and make key issues difficult to appreciate.

Box D.10.1
Good EIA Practice
Presentation of Environmental Statements

SNH should encourage an Environmental Statement to be:

  • adequate for the purpose but succinct and not over-detailed;
  • clear and understandable;
  • consistent in content and presentation across issues;
  • well, but not lavishly, presented with the effective use of maps, diagrams, charts, drawings, illustrations, photographs, sketches, photo montages, tables and matrices to reduce text and explain complex issues and with summaries and key conclusions highlighted;
  • scientifically sound, but with the minimum use of scientific and technical language, with glossaries and the use of common names for species and an annex for scientific nomenclature wherever possible;
  • inclusive of source data to allow readers to interpret this for themselves but with detailed information in appendices or separate volumes to avoid cluttering the main text of the assessment;
  • logical in its structure, presenting a clear description of the project, baseline information, prediction of effects and their significance, before mitigation measures, and then describing the mitigation measures and the residual effects of the project (including their significance) taking mitigation into account;
  • free standing and not reliant on key information in another document especially if that document is not publicly available;
  • based wherever possible on standard methods or standard forms of presentation that will be familiar at least to other specialists or professionals advising the Competent Authority.
D.10.5

Environmental Statements are increasingly available on CD or DVD and distribution in this form is compliant subject to the caveats explained in paragraphs E.1.8 and E.1.9 below.