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Sustainable Development Series: Policy and Legislation
The Role of Cummulative Effects Assessment in
Regional Planning and Land Use Studies
by Waterose
The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), which was legislated and implemented in the 1970’s, has evolved to reflect the need for more effective land use planning. Consequently, the Cumulative Effects Assessments (CEA) were legislated in 1995 under the federal Canadian Environmental Assessment Act. In British Columbia, the Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations (B.C. Reg. 330/81) are legislated under the Environment Management Act and the reviewable projects are legislated under the Environmental Assessment Act (S.B.C. 1994 c.35, amended by S.B.C. 1994, c. 41, ss. 242, 242.1). The key to note is that the requirements for review of the potential environmental impacts of activities are legislated at both the federal and the provincial level. Furthermore, the requirements are broadening.
The CEA process incorporates a cumulative effects approach to the potential environmental impacts of activities. Furthermore, CEA’s can be undertaken for either a specific project or for a regional planning or land use study.
There are five essential steps to complete a CEA for a project which are similar to the EIA steps. A broad description of the CEA steps include scoping, analysis, mitigation, significance, and follow-up.
The scoping process identifies: the regional issues of concern; the stakeholders whom have a vested interest in the process; the spatial and temporal boundaries; the valued ecosystem components; and the past, present, and future actions.
The analysis process: compiles reliable baseline data for the issues identified in the scoping process; applies the most appropriate quantifiable analytical model; assesses additive or synergistic effects and their relevant pathways; and relates certainty estimates relative to the appropriate temporal scale.
The mitigation process: attempts to devise plans on a broader regional scope that minimise the combined cumulative effects of a number of projects; co-ordinates efforts of multi-stakeholders and multi-jurisdictions to protect large land tracts and corridors; and shares the burden of long term monitoring.
The significance process: strives to determine the significance of residual effects after mitigation procedures are in place; attempts to predict what potential adverse effects are likely; and most importantly, predicts the thresholds based upon available information.
The follow-up process: monitors to verify the accuracy of the CEA; determines the effectiveness of the mitigation process; and alleviates uncertainty predictions.
The key differences between a single project CEA and a regional land use CEA are the number of stakeholders and the size of the CEA. Typically, the regional CEA’s: cover a broader land base region; involve multi-stakeholders and multi-jurisdictions; require longer periods of time to complete; occur before single project proposals; and establish long-term thresholds for change in the region. Furthermore, the data for a regional CEA is broader and more general compared to a single project CEA. Ideally, the regional CEA compiles reliable baseline data from single project CEA’s to assess the cumulative impacts across a broader scope.
The responsibilities for implementing a CEA are shared amongst the participants. The proponents of individual projects are responsible to conduct a CEA relative to spatial and temporal boundaries of their project. Similarly, the regional CEA is responsible to compile the information from the individual proponents or jurisdictions within the broader scope.
Two examples of broad regional land use plans include the Commission of Resources and the Environment (CORE) (Burrows, 1994) in British Columbia and the Land Use Commission Office (LUCO) (Bones, 1998) for Vancouver Island.
The role of CEA’s in regional land use planning is likely to increase in significance and accuracy as each individual CEA adds to the scientific baseline of knowledge. Regional CEA’s are a positive proactive approach to effectively mitigate the cumulative effects of impacts on the landscape.
References:
British Columbia Environmental Law Statutes 1997. Ed. by M. Doherty. Carswell Thompson Publishing. Scarborough, Ontario. Pp 534.
Burrows, M. 1994. "Dealing with Conflicts between Different World Views and Special Interests in Creating Social Change." in Perspectives on the Environment: Creating a Sustainable Society. Part I. Compiled by Schaefer for Douglas College. Compiled for Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks. Vancouver, B.C. Pp. 66-95.
Cumulative Effects Assessment Working Group and Axys Environmental Consulting Ltd. Cumulative Environmental Assessment Agency. 1997. "Cumulative Effects Assessment Practitioners Guide - A Draft for Discussion." Available at Internet URL: http://www.eis.ca/ceaa98/15December/cumulative_effects/ceaugui~1.html
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