Environmental impact assessment in Australia: theory and practice (6th edition)

The sixth edition of Environmental Impact Assessment in Australia has been published at a significant time for the practice in Australia, with the federal government planning to delegate its impact assessment responsibilities to state/territory governments. With increasing public focus on the rigour and independence of state/territory processes, this book provides a timely reminder of the purpose and role of environmental impact assessment (EIA) (note that ‘environment’ is generally broadly defined in Australia and includes social and heritage values).

The book has a fivefold purpose. The first is to bring together the many aspects of impact assessment. Chapter 3 describes various types of impact assessment including economic, health and social assessment. The description of each is necessarily brief, and some may argue over the inclusions and exclusions. It is, however, a useful overview and may broaden the thinking of some readers.

Unfortunately, this book was completed before the recent special edition of Impact Assessment and Project Appraisal on integration and scoping, as this would have provided good source material. Australian practice is towards integration but it is questionable how well this is currently done outside the biophysical sciences. Social impact assessment is an improving area despite the book stating that Australian studies are hard to find. The mining sector is one that has many examples. Researcher such as Daniel Franks and Ciaran O'Faircheallaigh have also written on this topic, particularly in the mining sector, but are overlooked. Integration is a topic worth expanding on in future editions.

Another minor criticism, suggesting the need for updating, is the statement that regulatory impact assessment has been adopted by ‘some’ governments in Australia. In fact, this is embedded in the practices of all governments including through the Council of Australian Governments. It is important for the reader to understand which forms of impact assessment are having the most influence on public policy and decision-making.

The second purpose of the book is to establish the context for EIA as undertaken in Australia. This is explicitly and extensively covered in Chapter 2 with topics such as the objectives of EIA, its role in decision-making, the criticisms of EIA as an additional cost and impediment to development, and responsibility for preparing EIA. It also notes that EIA consists of an environmental impact statement (EIS; or similar document) and a government assessment report, a point often overlooked. As a former government regulator, the author would be aware that the assessment report generally has a greater influence on the decision maker than the EIS. There is much covered in this section. Experienced practitioners will find their thinking challenged even if they disagree on some issues.

This section could also do with updating to provide more analysis of contemporary issues and practice. For example, a section on ‘Current directions in EIA’ refers to national approaches and principles developed by the former Australian and New Zealand Environment and Conservation Council in the 1990s. While this work may have informed some current approaches, it is now rarely referred to by practitioners. The almost complete absence of cooperative work between the federal government and state/territory governments on EIA since the late 1990s is more worthy of comment. This is reflected, for example, in very different approaches being adopted across Australia to biodiversity offsets.

Third, the book seeks to illustrate the practice of EIA to assist newcomers to the field. It provides detailed information on EIA procedures across Australia, and an overview of practices around the world, including case studies. This is complemented by a comprehensive analysis of the contents of an EIS. Risk assessment is briefly discussed but could be expanded on in future editions with a case study or two. This is becoming a core component of environmental assessments in Australia.

A chapter is dedicated to determining and presenting impacts. Technically, this covers much useful material. A concern not addressed, however, is that highly technical approaches may be meaningless to the lay public. The environmental assessment of a third runway at Sydney airport in the mid-1990s is a case in point. While the environmental assessment was technically competent, the implications of aircraft noise impacts were not well understood until the runway opened, with considerable public backlash as a result. The federal transport department now promotes an approach that is more meaningful to the public, allowing them to make their own judgement about the acceptability of the expected impacts.

With appropriate caution, the book also notes:

No matter what the writing style, fundamental bias inevitably occurs when data to be included in an EIS is selected and interpreted. It comes as a shock to most people that data, particularly that relating to environmental objectives, is seldom objective; that is, can be interpreted to have different meanings.

Fourth, the book seeks to provide a resource that will give a starting point for anyone seeking more details. It achieves this aim eminently through a text dense with information and examples, and a very extensive reference list.

The final stated purpose of this book is to remind the reader that EIA is a ‘social construct’ relying on value judgements and it has become part of the political process. This point is emphasised throughout the book, and experienced practitioners will have no disagreement with this comment:

EIA is certainly a tool which provides a chance of environmental concerns being given consideration when decisions are made, but it does not constitute a universal law to ensure that the environment is protected. Rather, there has to be a desire to give our environment due respect.

In summary, this is a book written by a practitioner for practitioners. It achieves its five aims competently. It is an excellent introduction for students and new practitioners who would be well advised to complement their reading with a review of recent EISs. There is also much in here for experienced practitioners. As noted earlier, they may find some statements they disagree with, but they will also find new ideas. Competent practitioners, who recognise they do need to keep an open mind and constantly question their approaches to EIA, will enjoy this book.