EIA aims to eliminate or minimize negative impacts and optimize positive impacts through mitigation and enhancement measure’. Discuss

Environmental impact Assessment is a process which can be used to improve decision –making and ensure that development t options under consideration are environmentally, socially and economically sound and sustainable. It is concerned with identifying predicting and evaluation the foreseeable .  Or  as a national instrument, shall be undertaken for proposed activities that after likely to have a significance adverse impact on the environment and are subject to a decision of  a competent national authority .(According to Mwalyosa R  et al ,1999:19)

        The Environment mental impact Assessment was first introduced in the U SA under the environmental policy 1969. Since then it has evolved and a variety o f offshoot assessment techniques have emerged (focusing for example  on social biodiversity, environmental health and cumulative effects and risk) acting as a broader impact s assessment toolkit .Purpose o f EIA is intended to identify the impacts (both beneficial and adverse ) of a proposed public and  private development  activities. Often the focus is dominantly environmental (biophysical) but good p practice also addresses social and economic aspects. EI A is mainly used at the level of specific development s and project  such as dams, industrial plans, transport  infrastructure ( airport  railway s and roads ) farms  enterprises, natural resource exploitation (sand extraction), Strategic Environment al Assessment(SEA) .In summary EIA aim s to eliminate or minimize negative impacts and optimize positive impacts through mitigation and enhancement measure. EIA relates to a process rather than particular activity. According to (Wood C,2004)

EIA is most valuable when applied early in the planning process for a project as a Support to decision making .It provide a means to identity the most environmentally suitable option at an early stage, the best practicable environmental option, and alternatives to the proposed initiative and thus a avoids or minimize potentially damaging and  costly negative impacts and maximize positive impacts.( According to Glasson J, et al 2005)

         Key stages in the Environmental Assessment process include : screening, alternative, preliminary, assessment, scooping  mitigation, main EIA study and environmental impact statement, review and  monitoring . These need to be managed so that they provide information to decision makers at every stage of the project planning cycle.

Screening g (usually by an EI A Authority  or using published checklists )to decide whether an EIA is required and focus resources on project most likely to have significant impacts those where official EIA guidelines usually contain lists or schedules specifying which developments require on EIA ( always or in particular circumstance).

Consideration of possible alternatives (demand, activity location process and design, scheduling and inputs) should be under taken before a choice is made. Same projects can be site specific (in mining extraction can only occur were a mineral is sited). In such cases the EIA might focus more in measures such as scale, mitigating measures and traffic management. Projects promoted by public sector agencies are more likely to consider alternative sites agencies are more likely to consider alternative sites or routes for development.

Preliminary assessment where screen suggests further assessment is needed or if there is uncertainty about the nature of potential impacts. Use rapid assessment techniques, but provides sufficient detail to identify key impacts, their magnitude and significance, and evaluate their importance for decision making indicates if full EIA is needed

Scoping narrowing process usually undertake by a” assessment team “to identify the key issues o f concern at an early stage in the planning process and guide the development o f terms of reference for the EIA. It aids site selection, identifies possible alternatives and avoids delays due to having to assess previously unidentified possible impacts. Scoping g should involve all interested parties such as the proponent and planning or environmental agencies and members of the public. The result t determine  the scope, depth and terms of reference to be addressed within   an environmental agencies and members  arts of the public c the result s determine e  the scope, depth and term s o f  reference to be addresses within an environmental impact statement .

        Main EIA study building on and deepening the preceding steps to predict the extent and magnitude o f impacts and determine e their significances variety o f method s can be used including checklist s, questionnaires, matrices, overlay s, network s, model s and simulations.

                     Review – to assess the adequacy o f the EIA to decision making and consider its impacts implicates of  project implementation (in some countries , such review is a formal and  independent  process)

           Monitoring o f project implementation and  operation (including decommission in g), an d eventually an audit o f the project after its completion.

        Cultural heritage Impact Assessment(CHIA)  is the primary heritage planning g

vehicle to assess and review the potential cultural heritage significance of a particular resource, consider the impact of any proposed site development or  alteration and recommend d on overall approach that best conserve any identified cultural heritage resources. Cultural heritage management is an important policy issue, both at the international and national levels,

        At the international level UNESCO and world Bank have been the leading agencies in preparing guidelines on the management of natural and cultural heritage .Among others, the two international bodies require investors to undertake  EIA to expected impacts on the environment due to socio- economic development and to prevent destruction or damage.

        In Tanzania the ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism is responsible for the management and conservation of cultural heritage resources under Antiquities departments. The antiquities Act of Tanzania, enacted in 1964 and subsequently amended in 1979 is the basic legislation for the protection  and preservation of country heritage resources .(According to Macdonald  M, 2006:4)

        There are two types of cultural heritage impacts, the first is Movable cultural heritage include things made from different materials and can be removed from their place of origin .movable cultural resources are such as archaeological objects of stone, metal , pottery ,wood , bones and others. The second type is Immovable cultural heritage. These resources are usually found on the landscape and cannot be removed from their original context where they are required to be conserved. Immovable cultural heritage impacts includes archaeological sites ,rock shelters, burial sites  and monuments.  

        CHIA involve three as a rule for project proposal where Baseline study. Required as a rule for projects proposal where it is found that sites of cultural heritage are present. Baseline heritage has two aims; To establish a complete inventory of all known and potential sites of cultural a complete inventory of all known and potential sites of cultural heritage resources within potential damage to the physical fabric (structure) of archaeological remain, pollution, change of the water table. The second criteria are impact assessment. CHIA must be undertaken to assess and identity the impact on cultural heritage that occur within the development area. The prediction of impacts and evaluation of the significance has to be conducted by expert/professionals in cultural Heritage. During the assessment, both direct and indirect impacts should be well stated .The third criteria is mitigation measures. Various measures required for the protection and preservation of identified cultural resources in the impacted area .Example it was proposed to construct a road, then the value of cultural heritage seemed to be more important, the road could be altered to bypass the cultural heritage, In the case of a dams, it might be necessary to relocate the dam so that area health the resource is excluded

            According to (Mwakyosa R,et all 1999:20)explain the relationship between CHIA and EIA as following;

           EIA is a continuous and integral component of planning that should run continuously throughout the planning cycle of any development initiative. It is complementary to all other forms of planning. To be effective; EIA relate to CHIA because both are earliest stage of project planning g and desingn.Provision should also be made for mechanisms to facilitate continuous feedback between the EIA and CHIA process, project design activities and decision – making.

        Also EIA and CHIA, facilitates dialogue, prediction and response and provides a forum for proponents, decision - makers and the public\, to consider the potential impacts of a projeect on local communities, natural resources and e environmental quality. Also provide a framework within which actual effects can be monitored, and provides managers with respond to these effects.

        CHIA And EIA relates because both  are  the tool to improve e decision--making  and provide project - specific and strategic information before project implementation decisions  are reached, their mechanism for  addressing cross sectorial and  cross -  boundary  issues . CHIA and EIA help to avoid in inadvertent   problems and their associated cost during projects design.

        Helps to enhance social and economic opportunities and to promote conservation and provides a mechanism for enhancing new economic and social opportunities for introduce long term  environmental protection and conservation measures into project design.

Provides a framework for stakeholder participation in decision making, experience has shown that development projects imposed on local communities often  fail to address issues  of local concern and priority, and hence fact to engender a perception of local ownership, EIA and CHIA facilitate public participation within the project cycle and bring various stakeholder groups together and provide an opportunity to exchange  information and build consensus between the groups involved.

EIA and CHIA relates because both are the tool to improve decision -making and provides projects specific and strategic information before project implementation decisions are reached. It is also a mechanism for addressing cross sectoral and  cross -boundary issues ,As  a result EIA and CHIA help to avoid inadvertent problems an d their associated cost during project at design.

        generally  EIA an d CHIA are relates, CHIA is a component of EIA, both as aimed to save or to rescuer the archaeological data, sites or features ( cultural remains)like artifacts, features, construction and ecofacts which are located in areas vulnerable to development activities liker dams construction, roads, railways and air  ports.EIA and CHIA is more applicable in developed countries than in developing countries this is due to the different level of technology, capital and the role  of government towards protection of cultural and environment.

REFERENCES

.Black and Veatch, (2006): Drainage improvement in Northern Hong Kong  Island, Hong Kong. China

Glasson J, Therival R and Chadwick A,(2005): Introduction to Environmental Impact. Assessment.Routlidge, London

Mwalyosa R,Hughes R and Hewlett  R,(1999):Introduction  course on Environmental impact, assessment in Tanzania in Petts J,(1999):Handbook  of Environmental Impacts, Assessment,(2volume),Black well, oxford.

Wood C, (2003): Environmental Impact Assessment. A comparative Review (2nd Edition) Prentice Hall, Harlow