Notification on Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of developmental projects 1994 under the provisions of Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 making EIA mandatory for 29 categories of developmental projects. One more item was added to the list in January, 2000. environmental impact assessment statutory for 30 activities
Environment Impact Assessment Notification of 2006 has categorized the developmental projects in two categories, i.e., Category A and Category B
‘Category A’ projects are appraised at national level by expert appraisal committee
India has constituted the State Level Environment Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA) and State Level Expert Appraisal Committee (SEAC) to decentralize the environmental clearance process
The objective of EIA is to foresee and address potential environmental problems/ concerns at an early stage of project planning and design.
The EIA notification establishes four stages for obtaining Environmental Clearance.
- Screening
- Scoping and consideration of alternatives Baseline data collection
- Impact prediction
- Assessment of alternatives, delineation of mitigation measures and environmental impact statement
- Public hearing
- Environment Management Plan Decision making
- Monitoring the clearance conditions
Screening- It is only for Categories B
Screening Criteria are based upon:
- Scales of investment; • Type of development; and, • Location of development
B1 Categories project require Environmental Impact Assessment while B2 category projects are exempted from EIA.
State Level Expert Appraisal Committee determine about project categories