Assessing the Assessments: Improving Methodologies for Impact Assessment in Transboundary Watercourses

Abstract

Transboundary impact assessment (TIA) has become an important environmental management tool, particularly where a project may have transboundary impacts. With the growing practice of TIA, it becomes important to consider the accuracy of the transboundary impact assessments that are being conducted. If TIA is a planning tool designed to provide a basis for making an informed decision, does it actually provide the necessary information? This paper summarizes lessons learned in pilot testing a methodology to assess the accuracy of TIAs.

Acknowledgements

¹ The research for this paper was funded by UNEP, the New Research Initiatives in Humanities and Social Sciences of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS), and by the Core Research for Evolutional Science and Technology (CREST) of the Japan Science and Technology Agency.

Notes

1. Within the East African Community, Uganda, Kenya, and Tanzania have signed a Protocol on Environment and Natural Resources Management and developed Environmental Assessment Guidelines for Shared Ecosystems of East Africa, both of which await ratification by each of the three EAC Member States. In 2003, the countries adopted a Protocol for Sustainable Development of Lake Victoria Basin, which promotes EIA and public participation in planning and decision-making activities.