METHODS OF ENVRONMENT IMPACT
IDENTIFICATION
❖ Ad hoc method
❖ Checklists
❖ Matrices
❖ Overlays
❖ Networks
Cost benefit analysis
EIA Methodology: selection
Criteria
Each technique and method used for EIA should have the following features
• It should be systematic in approach and should be able to gather and
organize and summarize large amount of data coming from different
sources
• It should have good and reliable predictive ability and should be able to
quantify the impact
• It should be simple so that even with limited manpower available, with
can be adopted without much difficulty
• It should identify specific parameters which are likely to have significant
impact and should be comprehensive enough to contain all possible
options and alternatives for proper decision making
Types of Impact
• Impacts on environment due to the project are
broadly classified as:
• 1. Positive impact
• 2. Negative impact
• Further these impacts are classified as
• 1. Short term impact
• 2. Long term impact
• 3. Reversible impact
• 4. Irreversible impact
• 5. Local impact
1. Ad hoc Method
❖ Simple method based on subjective environment impacts on broad
aspects.
❖ Ad hoc method is useful when time constraints and lack of
information require that the EIA must rely exclusively on expert
opinion.
❖ A good example of an ad hoc method is a team of experts
assembled for a short time to conduct an EIA. Each expert's
conclusions are based on a unique combination of experience,
training and intuition.
[Link] hoc Method
❖ It provides minimal guidance for total impact assessment while
suggesting the broad areas of possible impacts and the general
nature of these possible impacts.
❖ Eg. Impact on plant and animal life may be stated as minimal but
adverse,
whereas, socio-economic impact may be stated as significant but
extremely beneficial.
❖ The criteria used to evaluate impacts are not comparable, the
relative weights of various impacts cannot be compared;
❖ When more scientific methods are available, it is not
recommended.
Ad hoc method:-
ADVANTAGE DISADVANTAGE
❖ Specialists on a particular ❖ It require expert, difficult
area will provide guidance. to get the panel of experts
for each assessment.
❖ Short/long term impact
are merely examined on
guess basis.
❖ Identification , prediction
and interpretation of
impacts are quite poor
[Link] Method
❖ Checklist means a listing of potential Environmental Impacts.
❖ Checklists are standard lists of the types of impacts associated with a
particular type of project.
❖ They are more formalized version of ad hoc approaches ---
specific areas of impact are listed i.e. environmental, social and economic
and instructions are supplied for impact identification and evaluation.
❖ Checklists methods are primarily for organizing information or ensuring
that no potential impact is overlooked.
❖ This method is done to assess the nature of the impacts i.e. its type such
as adverse /beneficial , short term or long term , no effect or significant
impact , reversible or irreversible etc
Types of Checklists Method:-
❖Simple Lists.
❖Descriptive Checklists.
❖Scaling Checklists.
❖Scaling Weighting Checklist.
Types of Checklists Method
❖ Simple Checklist: a list of environmental parameters
with no guidelines on how they are to be measured
and interpreted.
❖ Descriptive Checklist: includes an identification of
environmental parameters and guidelines on how to
measure data on particular parameters.
❖ Scaling Checklist: similar to a descriptive checklist, but
with additional information on subjective scaling of
the parameters.
❖ Scaling Weighting Checklist: similar to a scaling
checklist, with additional information for the
subjective evaluation of each parameter with respect
to all the other parameters.
Page-9
Checklists
ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES
❖Simple to ❖Do not distinguish
understand and use. between direct and
❖Good for site indirect impacts.
selection and ❖Sometime it is a
priority setting. cumbersome task.
3. Matrices
❖Matrix and its variants provide us a
framework of interaction of different actions
/activities of a project with potential
Environmental Impacts caused by them.
❖They incorporate a list of project activities
with a checklist of environmental components
that might be affected by these activities
3. Matrices
❖It was pioneer by Leopold et al(1971).
❖It lists about 100 project actions and about 88
environmental characteristic and condition.
❖Each activity and its potential for impact is
noted where interaction is anticipated its
magnitude(M) and importance(I) are also
indicated.
Matrix Method
Impact identification matrix
(example)
Matrices Method :-
ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES
❖Link action to impact❖Difficult to
distinguish direct
❖Good method for and indirect impacts
displaying EIA results
❖ focus on first order
impact i.e. impact
from proposed
action on particular
env. component
❖Qualitative
❖No cause-effect
relationship
4. Network method
❖Shown in the form of tree called as
Relevance/Impact tree/Sequence diagram.
❖Identification of direct ,indirect /short and
long term environment impact is a crucial and
intact basic step of making Impact tree.
❖Used to identify cause-effect linkages
❖Visual description of linkages
Network Method
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Networks Method
ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES
❖Link action to ❖Can become overly
impact complex if used
❖Useful in simplified beyond simplified
form in checking version
for second order ❖Qualitative
impacts
❖Handles direct and
indirect impacts
5. Overlays
❖ Rely on a set of maps of a project
area’s environmental
characteristics covering physical ,
social, ecological, aesthetic
aspects.
❖ By overlaying these maps, area
possessing a preferred
combination of these variables
can be identified within the
project area boundaries, the
impacted areas and their relative
geographical location.
Overlay Method
Overlay Method
❖Older Technique: environmental features are
mapped on transparent plastic in different
colors.
❖Newer Technique: Geographic Information
Systems (GIS).
Overlay Method
Overlays Method:-
ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGE
❖Easy to understand ❖Address only direct
and use impacts
❖Good display ❖Do not address
method impact duration or
❖Good for site probability
selection setting
Cost Benefits Analysis
• Cost effectiveness involves selecting an option
that achieves a goal at the least cost.
• A cost-benefit analysis consists of several
stages such as project definition, identification
and enumeration of costs and benefits,
evaluation of costs and benefits, discounting
and presentation of results, etc.