An Environmental Impact Assessment (usually known as an 'EIA') is needed for planning applications for development that are likely to have significant environmental impacts. These impacts include possible effects on plants, animals and people. The requirement results from a European Directive that has been 'transposed' (or translated) into United Kingdom planning legislation.
Certain types of proposed development must have an EIA. Other types of proposed development may need an EIA. Your planning authority will be able to tell you if it thinks an EIA is needed for a particular planning application. It is worth noting that less than one per cent of all planning applications submitted each year in Wales need an EIA.
A quick guide
The following types of development (known as 'Schedule 1' proposals) must have an EIA:
- Oil refineries
- Large power stations (including nuclear)
- Nuclear reprocessing plants, storage and disposal sites
- Iron and steel works
- Asbestos processing plants
- Chemical plants
- Motorways and major roads
- Railways
- Airports
- Inland waterways
- Ports
- Waste disposal incineration and chemical treatment plants
- Major water abstraction, treatment works and water transfer facilities
- Commercial petrol and gas extraction
- Large dams and large diameter pipelines
- Large factory farms
- Pulp and paper works
- Large quarries and open-cast mines
- Large petrol and chemical storage sites
In all these cases an Environmental Statement has to be submitted with the planning application. The Statement is a public document, which means that any comments made on it can be taken into account in the assessment of possible environmental impacts.
Other types of proposed development are known as 'Schedule 2' proposals. These include a wide range of developments that may need an EIA, but usually only if the development will cover a large area of land. In these cases, the planning authority takes a decision on whether EIA is required (called 'screening'). If it is, the authority will ask for an Environmental Statement to be submitted, and this will be made public for people to comment on.
If an authority decides that an Environmental Statement is needed, the person putting in the planning application (the 'applicant') can ask for a 'scoping opinion'. This means the planning authority will say what should be included in the Statement. If the applicant is not satisfied with this, they can ask the Welsh Assembly Government for a 'Screening Direction' or a 'Scoping Direction'.
More information about Environmental Impact Assessment
More detailed information about Environmental Impact Assessment can be found in Welsh Office Circular 11/99 - click here to see it.
