Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)

Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)

• EIA involves predicting and evaluating the likely environmental project impacts, including cumulative effects, during construction, commissioning, operation, and abandonment.
• EIA also designs preventive, mitigating, and enhancement measures to protect the environment and community welfare.
• Study areas include earth and environmental processes, water and air quality, biological resources, social sectors, cultural, and aesthetic aspects.
• EIA salient features include primary and secondary impacts, assessment methodologies, documentation, mitigation, alternative designs, and environmentally critical areas/projects.
• A beach, or "dalampasigan", is automatically considered an environmentally critical area.

Legal Context

• PD 1586 established the Philippine Environmental Impact Statement System (EISS) in the late 70s.
• DENR A.O. No. 30 - 2003 is the IRR of PD 1586, released in late 2003.

Coverage

• EIA covers pre-construction, construction, operation, and abandonment phases

Design of Mitigation Measures

• Mitigation measures include avoiding impacts by changing route or site details to protect ecological or archeological features.
• Replacement includes regeneration of a similar habitat of equivalent ecological value in a different location.
• Impacts can be reduced using filters, precipitators, wastewater treatment, noise barriers, dust enclosures, visual screening, wildlife corridors, and adjusted activity timing.
• Restoration includes site restoration after mineral extraction.
• Compensation include relocation of displaced communities, community facilities, financial compensation, recreational parks, or other environmental benefits.

Water Impacts

• Water quality and quantity impacts in both freshwater and marine environments should be assessed for chemical, biological, and thermal pollution.
• Erosion and siltation can affect water quality and quantity and can have impacts on soils and ecosystems.

Noise and Vibration Impacts

• Traffic analysis should be conducted within a 200m radius of the project site/property.
• Analysis should identify streets, dimensions, and categories (cement, asphalt, major, minor), major intersections/choke points, and distances from the project site.
• Analysis should identify one-way streets/alleys and streets for public/private vehicle use, destinations, intersections with traffic lights, streets accessing the site.
• Analysis should indicate vehicle volume per intersection and produce a scaled traffic study map with north arrows within the 200m radius.
• Traffic maps should reflect traffic arrows, indicate two-way and one-way streets, identify streets with side street parking and pedestrian crossings.
• Traffic issues and causes should be identified and categorized, documenting vehicle time and movement at intersections.

Traffic Considerations

• It's important to consider the length of time that constitutes light, moderate, or heavy traffic.
• Proposed projects impact on existing future traffic conditions should be factored in.

Mitigation Measures

• Mitigation measures categorize issues based on technical/physical factors like street types, traffic lights, signs, and administrative/enforcement factors like traffic rules and regulations such as NBC and Condo Act..
• Local Government Unit/Barangay concerns like traffic and parking ordinances.
• Formulate corresponding mitigating measures.

Sample Parking IRR

• According to NBC, for every 8 living units less than 50m2, there should be 1 slot.
• According to NBC, for every 4 units (50-100m2) should have 1 slot
• According to NBC, every unit with more than 100m2 should have 1 slot.
• According to MACEA guidelines (Makati), every 100m2 GFA should have 1 slot
• According to OCA guidelines (Ortigas) every 90m2 should have 1 slot

Social Impacts

• Impacts can effect people, tribal communities and employees

Social Risk

• Social risk is a risk to effective operations (financial, operational, reputational) as result of negative stakeholder response to company or specific issue.
• Social risk can be caused by positive or negative impacts
• Community factors include population density, culture, diversity, and residential stability.
• Also uniformity or diversity of impacts and community knowledge of the project are factors.

Hazard Assessment

• Geologic hazards include fault-related/seismic hazards, mass movement, and volcanic hazards.
• Hydrologic hazards include fluvial, riverine, and coastal hazards.