Information Exchange |
policies and legislation - see Resource Manual for the Protocol on SEA |
For help with SEA, see the Resource Manual.
Hint: Use your web browser's Find function (Ctrl+F) to search for information by other keywords, e.g. for a particular country (e.g. France) or type of activity (e.g. railway).
Disclaimer: The following informal guidance is provided for information only and does not constitute formal legal or other professional advice. The authors assume no liability for actions undertaken in reliance on the information contained in this guidance.
Where can I get help on biodiversity issues?
Convention on Biological Diversity
Article 14. Impact Assessment and Minimizing Adverse Impacts
1. Each Contracting Party, as far as possible and as appropriate, shall:
(a) Introduce appropriate procedures requiring environmental impact assessment of its proposed projects that are likely to have significant adverse effects on biological diversity with a view to avoiding or minimizing such effects and, where appropriate, allow for public participation in such procedures;
(b) Introduce appropriate arrangements to ensure that the environmental consequences of its programmes and policies that are likely to have significant adverse impacts on biological diversity are duly taken into account;
(c) Promote, on the basis of reciprocity, notification, exchange of information and consultation on activities under their jurisdiction or control which are likely to significantly affect adversely the biological diversity of other States or areas beyond the limits of national jurisdiction, by encouraging the conclusion of bilateral, regional or multilateral arrangements, as appropriate;
(d) In the case of imminent or grave danger or damage, originating under its jurisdiction or control, to biological diversity within the area under jurisdiction of other States or in areas beyond the limits of national jurisdiction, notify immediately the potentially affected States of such danger or damage, as well as initiate action to prevent or minimize such danger or damage; and
(e) Promote national arrangements for emergency responses to activities or events, whether caused naturally or otherwise, which present a grave and imminent danger to biological diversity and encourage international cooperation to supplement such national efforts and, where appropriate and agreed by the States or regional economic integration organizations concerned, to establish joint contingency plans.
2. The Conference of the Parties shall examine, on the basis of studies to be carried out, the issue of liability and redress, including restoration and compensation, for damage to biological diversity, except where such liability is a purely internal matter.
COP 8 Decision VIII/28
The following references are very similar:
| Decision VIII/28 of the 8th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, on Impact assessment: Voluntary guidelines on biodiversity-inclusive impact assessment - Convention on Biological Diversity | ENG | FRE | SPA | |
| Decision VI/7 of the 6th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (regarding incorporation of biodiversity into EIA & SEA) (342kB) | ENG | - | - | |
| Resolution VIII.9 of the 8th Meeting of the Conference of the Contracting Parties to the Convention on Wetlands, 'Guidelines for incorporating biodiversity-related issues into environmental impact assessment legislation and/or processes and in strategic environmental assessment' adopted by the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), and their relevance to the Ramsar Convention - Ramsar Convention on Wetlands | ENG | FRE | SPA | |
| Resolution 7.2 of the Conference of the Parties at its Seventh Meeting, 'Impact Assessment and migratory species' - Convention on Migratory Species | ENG | FRE | SPA |
Additionally:
| A Guide on Biodiversity and Environmental Assessment (April 1996), Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency | ENG | FRE | - | |
| Biodiversity in Impact Assessment - Best Practice Principles by the International Association for Impact Assessment | ENG | FRE | SPA |
Where can I get help on climate change issues?
| Incorporating Climate Change Considerations in Environmental Assessment: General Guidance for Practitioners (November 2003), Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency | ENG | FRE | - |
Where can I get help on cultural heritage?
| Reference Guide: Assessing Environmental Effects on Physical and Cultural Heritage Resources (April 1996), Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency | ENG | FRE | - | |
| Guidance for the Environmental Assessment of the impacts of certain plans, programmes or projects upon the heritage value of historical areas, in order to contribute to their long-term sustainability - from the SUIT project | ENG | - | - |
Where can I get help on cumulative and indirect effects?
| Operational Policy Statement: Addressing Cumulative Environmental Effects under the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, Original: March 1999, Update: November 2007, Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency | ENG | FRE | ||
| Guidelines on the Assessment of Indirect and Cumulative Impacts as well as Impact interactions, and Study on the Assessment of Indirect and Cumulative Impacts as well as Impact interactions, European Commission (DG Environment ) | ENG |
Where can I get help on geological issues?
| Advice Document to the European Commission on EIA Implementation and Practice, May 2003, European Federation of Geologists | ENG | - | - |
Where can I get help on health issues?
Introductory information on health in the Convention and Protocol available here. And see the EIA & SEA links page for Health Impact Assessment Centres.
Additional resources:
| Final report of (IMP)3 - "IMProving the IMPlementation of Environmental IMPact Assessment" on Health Aspects in EIA (2MB) | ENG | |||
| European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies : Effectiveness of HIA (2007) | ENG | |||
| The Merseyside Guidelines for Health Impact Assessment (2001) | ENG | |||
| Guide pour l'analyse du volet sanitaire des études d'impact (2000) - Institut de Veille Sanitaire (France) | - | FRE | ||
| THE PEP: the Transport, Health and Environment Pan-European Programme (UNECE & WHO/Europe). | ENG | - | RUS | |
| WHO - World Health Organization - Health Impact Assessment | ENG |
Where can I get help on public participation?
Introductory information on public participation in the Convention and Protocol is available here.
Guidance on public participation in transboundary EIA, adopted by the Parties to the Convention (June 2004) - available here.
Other resources include:
| Public Participation - Best Practice Principles, by the International Association for Impact Assessment (IAIA ) |
| FRE | ||||
| A One Stop Participation Guide: A Handbook for Public Participation in Environmental Assessment In Southern Africa | ENG | |||||
| - and other products of the Calabash project (with Southern African Institute for Environmental Assessment ) | ENG | |||||
| Methods and Tools for Practical Application of the Espoo Convention in Romania and Bulgaria, a brochure on public participation in transboundary EIA, by Environmental Experts Association of Romania and Institute for Ecological Modernisation of Bulgaria | ENG | |||||
| - cover | ENG | |||||
| Proceedings of International Workshop on Public Participation and Health Aspects in Strategic Environmental Assessment (Convened to support the development of the UNECE Protocol on Strategic Environmental Assessment to the Espoo Convention), published by the Regional Environmental Center for Central and Eastern Europe (the REC ) and edited by Jiri Dusik, 147 pages, November 2001, ISBN 963 8454 99 7 (1.3 MByte) |
| |||||
| UNECE Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters (the Aarhus Convention) | ENG | |||||
| - and its clearing house | ENG | |||||
| Handbook of Good practices in Public Participation at the Local Level arising from an Aarhus Convention workshop in Newcastle Upon Tyne (United Kingdom), 6-7 December 1999 (Article 7 case studies include examples for public participation in SEA) | ENG |
Where can I get help on reviewing?
| EIA Review Check List, 2001, European Commission (DG Environment ) | ENG |
Where can I get help on scoping?
| Environmental Assessment Projects Committee: Interim Approach for Determining Scope of Project for Major Development Proposals with Specific Regulatory Triggers under the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency | ENG | FRE | ||
| EIA - guidance on scoping, 2001, European Commission (DG Environment ) | ENG |
Where can I get help on screening?
| EIA - guidance on screening, 2001, European Commission (DG Environment ) | ENG |
Where can I get help on sectoral impacts?
- The Convention has developed, as a result of an informal study undertaken in 1995, sectoral checklists for transboundary EIA, available here. (More recent and complete checklists are provided in the World Bank Environmental Assessment Sourcebook.)
For highways, dams and wind farms:
| Application of EIA: Highways and Dams, UNECE, 1987, Environmental Series No. 1 ECE/ENV/50 (14MB) | ENG | ||
| Guidance on EIA for wind farms, Belgrade, June 2010 (UNDP's West Balkans Environment Programme) | ENG |
Where can I get help on significance?
| Reference Guide: Determining Whether A Project is Likely to Cause Significant Adverse Environmental Effects (November 1994), Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency | ENG | FRE | ||
| Specific Methodologies and Criteria to Determine the Significance of Adverse Transboundary Impact (1995) CEP/WG.3/R.6 | ENG | FRE | RUS | |
| ENG |