Quality of the guidelines for preparation and review of environmental impact assessment reports in Pakistan

Figures & data

Table 1. Gender and experience of interviewees.

Interviewee number	Gender	Year of experience	No. of EIAs conducted
1	Male	40	45
2	Male	30	60
3	Male	20	250
4	Female	19	32
5	Male	15	140
6	Male	15	32
7	Male	15	56
8	Male	14	25
9	Female	12	35
10	Male	12	90
11	Female	10	20
12	Male	9	56
13	Male	8	25
14	Male	8	5
15	Female	8	18
16	Female	5	7
17	Female	5	21
18	Male	5	50
19	Female	4	28
20	Male	3	3
21	Male	3	3
22	Male	3	12

Source: Interviews with EIA consultants in Pakistan

Table 2. Views on the usage, role and effectiveness of guidelines (% of respondents).

Usage, roleand effectiveness of the guidelines	Agree %	Indifferent %	Disagree %
Views on usage of guidelines
Guidelines are generally followed by consultants as far as applicable	59	0	41
Guidelines are followed only occasionally by consultants	41	0	59
Guidelines are never followed by consultants	0	0	100
The difference various guidelines make in the quality of EIA report
The guidelines for preparation and review of EIA report make difference in improving quality of EIA report	86	5	9
The guidelines for major roads make difference in improving quality of EIA report in roads sector project	73	18	9
In general, all the guidelines make difference in improving quality of EIA report	77	18	5
EIA report prepared after completely following the requirements of:
Guidelines for preparation and review of EIA report would contribute towards better management of environmental impacts of project during operational stage.	95	5	0
Guidelines for major roads would contribute towards better management of environmental impacts of roads sector projects during operational stage.	68	18	14
Guidelines for other sectors would contribute towards better management of environmental impacts of relevant project during operational stage.	73	23	4

Source: Interviews with EIA consultants in Pakistan

Box 1: Good aspects of various guidelines.

General guidelines for preparation and review of EIA report

Provide general/basic framework of EIA report

Suggest maintaining public hearing record

Comprehensive and addresses most of the aspects of EIA report

Serve as a key for conducting a successful EIA study

Guidelines for major roads

Provide general/basic framework of EIA report

Easy to understand and follow

Suggest EIA requirements before execution of project

Guidelines for other sectors

Suggest project specific requirements

Provide generic terms of reference of what should be addressed at the minimum

Source: Interviews with EIA consultants in Pakistan

Table 3. Possible expectations from the general and sectoral guidelines (% of respondents).

Nature of expectations as asked from them	Agree %	Indifferent %	Disagree %
Should advocate best practices	91	0	9
Should emphasize the need to respect master plan provisions for site location and compatibility with neighbouring land uses	64	9	27
Should make reference to the need for considering cumulative impacts keeping in view existing projects near the proposed project site	77	5	18
Should make reference to the need for considering requirements of national/provincial/local policies of relevant agencies	91	0	9
Should make reference to the need for considering requirements of international agreements/conventions	73	9	18

Source: Interviews with EIA consultants in Pakistan

Box 2: Key omissions in various guidelines.

General guidelines for preparation and review of EIA

Lacking in detail with respect to variety of projects

Weak specification of impacts that should be considered for different phases of project

No emphasis on quality and quantity of material to be used for construction

Inadequate coverage of biodiversity and ecological hot spots

Weakly defined mechanism for the post decision follow-up and monitoring

Guidelines for major roads

Inadequate coverage of social issues, impacts and modes of compensation

Do not include environmental budgeting and audit

Do not suggest consideration of project alternatives with respect to environmental and social impacts at the design stage

No emphasis on use of non-renewable resources in the construction and operation phase

Weakly defined mechanism for the post decision follow-up and monitoring

Guidelines for other sectors

Less emphasis on consultation with local people

No criteria given in the guidelines for industrial estates for exclusion of the site in terms of distance from major settlements

Impacts and mitigation section is not comprehensive

Source: Interviews with EIA consultants in Pakistan

Figure 1. Perception about contents of guidelines for preparation and review of EIA reports.

Source: Interviews with EIA consultants in Pakistan

Explanation of categories:

Easy to follow: Feel no difficulty while fulfilling the requirements given in the guidelines.

Inadequate: Some aspects are missing or these requirements are not self-explanatory.

Stringent: Difficult to fulfil the requirements given in the guidelines, since these are very strict. Indifferent: The respondent was uncertain or did not respond to this question.

Any other: There were other reasons (e.g. practically did not follow the requirements of scoping).

Table 4. Perception about contents of guidelines for major roads (% of respondents).

Various aspects of the guidelines for major roads	Adequate %	Inadequate %	Stringent %	Indifferent %
Potential environmental impacts of road sector projects to be considered in EIA preparation as discussed in the guidelines.	18	59	0	23
Requirements for environmental management plan as prescribed in the guidelines.	27	50	5	18
Requirements for monitoring of road projects as prescribed in the guidelines.	9	41	5	45

Source: Interviews with EIA consultants in Pakistan

Box 3: Key factors in improving the quality of EIA report.

Revision of guidelines in the light of the rising problems Registration of environmental consulting firms Adequate qualification and experiences of EIA team members Understanding of the project area with specific focus on biodiversity and the society involving interaction with local people Adequate allocation of budget/resources timeframe Availability of mechanism for baseline data collection Good communication among concerned professionals, incorporation of current legislation and technology Consultation with key stakeholders and holding public hearing Use of GIS mapping and advanced impact assessment matrices Precision of impact prediction, monitoring and implementation of EMP Results based on real time scenario and actual monitoring of sites Complete scrutiny and timely approval of EIA report

Source: Interviews with EIA consultants in Pakistan

Table 5. Views on the legal status and need for updating the guidelines (% of respondents).

	Agree %	Indifferent %	Disagree %
What should be the legal status of the guidelines?
Should be followed compulsorily	73	4	23
Should be followed to the extent possible as the current practice advocates so	23	4	73
Is there any need to update the guidelines?	82	4	14
How frequently the guidelines should be updated?
After 5 years	59	9	32
After 10 years	9	9	82
As when needed	32	9	59

Source: Interviews with EIA consultants in Pakistan