About the task- You are employed as a Project Officer within a government authority. The Minister has asked you to advise her on the need for an EIA for a proposal that is being developed, and is likely to be referred to the Environment Department: in which case the Minister will be required to make a decision about whether an EIA is required.
In accordance with normal practice, you will report your investigation to the Minister through a Memorandum (Memo) of 2000 words; this will form the basis upon which the Minister makes her decision. The format of a memorandum is simple - you must write the report as though you are a project officer who is providing advice to the minister on how the assessment process should proceed (examples of memos will be provided in class when this assessment task is introduced).
In the Memo you want to provide an overview of the need, or not, for an EIA - this overview will be supported by a thorough argument that presents the evidence for your claims. If an EIA is needed you will outline the general structure and focus of what the EIA will contain. For this you will be considering the scope of the EIS and the main sections to be included (following the contents of an EES outlined in the EES Guidelines in Thomas & Murfitt (2011)). If one is not needed you will supply the evidence to demonstrate that the requirements of environment assessment will be fulfilled by existing local legislation, using at least 2 examples of similar projects that have proceeded without an EIA as a further justification for your claim.
As part of setting the scene for the scope of an EIA, you will discuss the types of alternatives that should be considered to avoid impacts. Also, to provide greater understanding about the investigation or the significant environmental issues, you will need to indicate any additional information or investigations that will need to be carried out in order for the minister to make a decision (for example, suggesting the need to survey a nearby waterway to determine if any endangered species were present that could be impacted by the development)
Since this is the first time you have been responsible for advising on a proposal, you will need to review an earlier EIS, or a project that was assessed as not requiring an EIS, before you begin looking at your project.
A wide audience will read your Memo, using it as a base for further investigation. This makes it very important that you provide clear evidence for your claims, by specifying references to the materials you have used.
- Brief discussion of the general purpose of an EIA
- Demonstration of how criteria were used for assessing the need for an EIA
-Clear argument with reasons for why the proposal should/should not go through a formal EIA process, linked to the screening process:
If an EIA is needed - clear articulation of the scope, including the significant socio-environmental issues and other material, to be included in the EIS, with brief justification for the material
If an EIA is not needed - presentation of evidence relating to satisfaction of other/existing environmental assessment processes that are in place. And; reference to at least 2 other similar projects that have also not required an EIA as evidence for your decision
- Clear format and structure, appropriate use of figures and tables
- Clarity and accuracy of expression, plus accuracy of grammar and spelling
- Use of EIA and topic related references.