****Write a summary of this report within 1 or 2 page.

Screening In this section you will learn methods of conducting a quick assessment of the planned projects and developments to decide if their impacts on the environment and well-being are severe enough to develop a full EIA. What is screening? Screening is the first stage of the EIA process which results in a key EIA decision, namely to either conduct the assessment (based on the likely significant impacts) or not conduct it (in the anticipated absence of such impacts). Screening needs to follow specific procedures often described in the legislation so all the projects follow the same process. In some cases, particularly if the possible impacts of a project are not known, a preliminary environmental assessment will be prepared to determine whether the project warrants an EIA. - Key contributions of screening to a good EIA: Facilitates informed decision making by providing clear, well-structured, factual analysis of the effects and consequences of proposed actions. Influences both project selection and policy design by screening out environmentally and/or socially unsound proposals, as well as modifying feasible action.

Why do we need to conduct a screening? An essential aspect of conducting an EIA is to determine the level of impact of the proposed project, development or initiative. When we look at major development projectsespecially those involving natural resources, such as mining, hydroelectric dams, oil extraction, or tourismwe can say for certain that they will require an environmental and social impacts assessment. On the other hand, the development of a tourism project may seem a low-risk at first, but a second look could reveal that the project requires the removal of endangered flora or fauna from the development site, large amounts of drinking water, energy and extensive sewage production. It will also lead to increased road and air traffic to deliver supplies, visitors and workers. Finally, the impacts of project can change over timethus during screening and the whole EIA impacts are considered over the lifetime of the project, from its construction through to operations and after closing. The threshold requirements for conducting or not conducting an EIA vary from country to country. In some countries regulations and laws provide a list of the types of activitiesi.e., certain types of significant environmental and social impacts such as resettlements, large-scale deforestation, land-cover change and extensive water use or waste production or projects above certain monetary values. Most proposals can be screened very quickly and often the majority of them may have few impacts and will be screened out of the EIA process. Only a limited number of proposals, usually major projects, will need a full EIA because they likely have major irreversible impacts on environmental resources such as biodiversity, water, air, fragile ecosystems, on people through health impacts or their livelihood, needs for resettlement and on cultural heritage sites. We can thus identify three types of projects: 1. For high-impact projects: Projects that are likely to have significant serious adverse environmental impacts (i.e., irreversible, affect vulnerable ethnic minorities, involve involuntary resettlement, or affect cultural heritage sites) and thus likely a full EIA is required: Dams and reservoirs forestry and production projects. Industrial plants (large-scale). Irrigation, drainage, and flood control (large-scale). Mining and mineral development (including oil and gas). Port and harbour development. Reclamation, resettlement and new land development.

Thermal and hydropower development; manufacture, transportation, and use of pesticides; and other hazardous and/or toxic materials. 2. For projects likely to have adverse environmental impacts that are less significant than those of in the previous category: These projects likely wont have irreversible impacts, and mitigation measures can be designed more readily than for high-impact projects. Normally, a limited EIA will be undertaken to identify suitable mitigation and management measures, and incorporate them into the project. Agro-industries Electrical transmission; rural electrification Aquaculture, irrigation and drainage (small-scale) Renewable energy Tourism Rural water supply and sanitation 3. For projects that are likely to have minimal or no adverse environmental impacts: No EIA is required. These categories are often numbered 1, 2, and 3, or indicated as A, B and C to distinguish between them. What are the approaches to screening? Screening is done by the project developers often using a set of criteria determined by the responsible agency. It is important that screening be done as early as possible in the development of the proposal in order for the proponent and other stakeholders to be aware of possible EIA obligations. It is also important that screening be applied systematically and consistently, so that the same decision would be reached if others did the screening. There are some specific methods applied to screening, which reflect prescriptive and/or discretionary approaches. Overall, we can distinguish two different types of screening (United Nations University [UNU], UNEP, RMIT, 2007): Prescriptive or standardized approaches in which development proposals that either require or are exempt from EIA are listed in legislation and regulations, and proponents can often decide based on these standardized approaches; this could include: Legal (or policy) definition of proposals to which EIA does or does not apply. Inclusion list of projects (with or without thresholds) for which an EIA is automatically required. Exclusion list of activities which do not require EIA because they are insignificant or are exempt by law (e.g. national security or emergency activities). Customized approaches in which proposals are screened on an individual or case-by-case base, using indicative guidance with categories. Different countries and international agencies combine these types of screening procedures. Most often, a simple categorization (such as A C or 1 3) is used. These categories help proponents and licensing agencies decide when a whole EIA is needed. The need for an EIA can be estimated based on planned projects whose impacts extend beyond the project site, such those as using water that cannot be produced (or producing sewage and waste that cannot be processed) the on the project site. Specifically, the European Union suggests a set of questions to quickly assess project proposals. These questions are designed so that a Yes answer will generally point toward the need for EIA and a No answer to one not being required (European Commission [EC], 2001). 1. Will there be a large change in environmental conditions? 2. Will new features be out-of-scale with the existing environment?

3. Will the effect be unusual in the area or particularly complex? 4. Will the effect extend over a large area? 5. Will there be any potential for transboundary impact? 6. Will many people be affected? 7. Will many receptors of other types (fauna and flora, businesses, facilities) be affected? 8. Will valuable or scarce features or resources be affected? 9. Is there a risk that environmental standards will be breached? 10. Is there a risk that protected sites, areas, and features will be affected? 11. Is there a high probability of the effect occurring? 12. Will the effect continue for a long time? 13. Will the effect be permanent rather than temporary? 14. Will the impact be continuous rather than intermittent? 15. If it is intermittent will it be frequent rather than rare? 16. Will the impact be irreversible? 17. Will it be difficult to avoid, or reduce or repair or compensate for the effect? In these cases, proposals are screened based on preliminary assessments of the potential impacts (or on the type and magnitude of activities) that the project is planning to undertake. These may include such planned activities as amount of land cleared or water use, sewage and air emissions produced over certain thresholds. Here it is really important that thresholds are set across the potential areas of impacts such as the extent of water withdrawal, air emission release to the air, destruction of soils or changes to land cover. Specific projects such as oil refineries, thermal power stations, gas and oil extraction and large agricultural operations would all require EIAs. Finally, most countries in the LAC region focus on defining the types of projects, as well as their size and potential impacts to determine the need for an EIA.

TABLE 5. EXAMPLES OF DIFFERENT TYPES OF SCREENING CATEGORIES Organization Types of screening Details on types of screening Inter-American Project C No EIA required, but some Category C operations may require specific safeguards Development categoriesA, B, C, or monitoring requirements to address environmental and other risks (social, disaster, Bank (IDB) and Uncategorized cultural, health and safety etc.).

According to the B Projects require an environmental and/or social analysis, according to, and focusing scale of the project, on, the specific issues identified in the screening process, and an environmental and location, sensitivity social management plan (ESMP). Category B if its potential adverse environmental and potential impact. impacts on humans or environmentally important areas including wetlands, forests, grasslands, and other natural habitatsare less adverse than those of Category A projects. A Projects likely have significant adverse environmental impacts that are sensitive, diverse, or unprecedented. These impacts may affect an area broader than the sites. Potential impacts are considered sensitive if they may be irreversible (e.g., lead to loss of a major natural habitat) or raise impacts on indigenous peoples; natural habitats; physical and cultural resources; or/and involuntary resettlement.

World Bank Three categories, Category A: Projects likely to have significant adverse environmental impacts that depending on the are sensitive, diverse, or unprecedented. These impacts may affect an area broader type, location, than the sites or facilities subject to physical works. EIA examines the potential sensitivity, and negative and positive environmental impacts, compares them with those of feasible scale of the project alternatives (including the without project scenario), and recommends any measures and the nature needed to prevent, minimize, mitigate, or compensate for adverse impacts and improve and magnitude environmental performance. The proponent is responsible for preparing an EIA report. of its potential

B: Proposed project can have potential adverse environmental impacts on human

environmental

populations or environmentally important areas, but less adverse than those of

impacts.

Category A projects. These impacts are site-specific; few if any of them are irreversible; and in most cases mitigating measures can be designed more readily than for Category A projects. The scope of EA for a Category B project may vary from project to project, but it is narrower than that of Category A EIA. C: A proposed project is likely to have minimal or no adverse environmental impacts. Beyond screening, no further EA action is required.

European Case-by-case Decided according to thresholds and/or criteria (for example size), location (sensitive Union examination based on ecological areas in particular) and potential impact (surface affected, duration). lists of sectors and Member States may set thresholds or criteria for the purpose of determining which of types of activities such projects should be subject to assessment on the basis of the significance of their that require an EIA environmental effects such as: and a set of activities For power stations: capacity in MW that may require EIA

For landfills: total volume, volume/day, tonnes/day, total capacity in tonnes

depending on their

For shopping centres: area in hectares or m2 (area, floor space)

location, activities, For roads: length of road (in km) and impacts.

Specific project are listed, including crude-oil refineries, thermal power stations and other combustion installations, installations for the extraction of asbestos, chemical installations, groundwater abstraction, works for the transfer of water resources between river basins, dams, extraction of petroleum and natural gas, pipelines for the transport of gas, intensive rearing of poultry or pigs, quarries and open-cast mining.

Source: IDB, 2011;World Bank, 1999; European Union, 2001.