Enivronment Impact Assessment

1. Introduction

Environment Impact Assessment or EIA can be defined as the study to predict the effect of a proposed activity/project on the environment. A decision making tool, EIA compares various alternatives for a project and seeks to identify the one which represents the best combination of economic and environmental costs and benefits. This process assists in identifying the advantages as well as the disadvantages of any project while making the right decision based on environmental value and the public’s opinion as well.

EIA systematically examines both beneficial and adverse consequences of the project and ensures that these effects are taken into account during project design. It helps to identify possible environmental effects of the proposed project, proposes measures to mitigate adverse effects and predicts whether there will be significant adverse environmental effects, even after the mitigation is implemented. By considering the environmental effects of the project and their mitigation early in the project planning cycle, environmental assessment has many benefits, such as protection of environment, optimum utilisation of resources and saving of time and cost of the project.

2. Different Definitions and Statutes

2.1 Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change

According to the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), “Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is an important managerial tool adopted for proactively managing development projects which seeks to assess the potential impacts of a project on the environment”. In the same manner, EIA incorporates environmental consideration into development planning and, thus, contributes to the achievement of sustainable development.

A beginning in this direction was made in our country with the impact assessment of river valley projects in 1978-79 and the scope has subsequently been enhanced to cover other developmental sectors such as industries, thermal power projects, mining schemes etc. To facilitate collection of environmental data and preparation of management plans, guidelines have been evolved and circulated to the concerned Central and State Government Departments. EIA has now been made mandatory under the Environmental Protection Act, 1986 for 29 categories of developmental activities involving investments of Rs. 50 crores and above.

2.2 Environmental Protection Act, 1986

On 27 January 1994, the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MEF), Government of India, under the Environmental (Protection) Act 1986, promulgated an EIA notification making Environmental Clearance (EC) mandatory for expansion or modernisation of any activity or for setting up new projects listed in Schedule 1 of the notification. Since then there have been 12 amendments made in the EIA notification of 1994.

EIA Notification, 2006

According to the EIA Notification, 2006: - “Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is the overall process of identifying, predicting, evaluating and communicating the biophysical effects of proposed activities on the natural environment”. The EIA process identifies whether a project calls for more detailed environmental assessment before it is given the green light. The purpose of an EIA is to make sure that any environmental effects that might come with a proposed project, are considered from the start.

The EIA Notification of 2006 updated and expanded upon previous regulations:

Mandatory Requirement: EIA has now become compulsory for more than 30 types of projects the investment proposal of which is to be more than ₹50 crores.

Categorization of Projects: Projects are subdivided into Category A (Projects where the DPR prepares a national-level appraisal) and Category B (Projects where no more than state level appraisal is prepared). Category A projects are appraised through Impact Assessment Agency (IAA) and the Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC) while Category B projects are appraised by the State Level Environment Impact Assessment Authorities (SEIAA) and the State Level Expert Appraisal Committees (SEAC).

Process Stages: Principal activities of EIA include the screening, scoping, public hearing, and appraisal stages.

EIA Notification, 2020

In March 2020, the MoEF&CC inserted Appendix IX into the EIA Notification, exempting several types of activities from prior environmental clearance. Among them was Item 6, which allowed the extraction or borrowing of ordinary earth for linear projects, now defined under Appendix-XIV as projects of slurry pipelines, oil and gas transportation pipeline, highways or laying of railway lines, which require extraction or sourcing or borrowing of ordinary earth above the threshold of 20,000 cubic metre and does not require prior environment clearance under this notification

The rationale behind this exemption was ostensibly to ease procedural delays and facilitate swift infrastructure development. However, the language used in the exemption was vague,  “linear projects” was not defined and no thresholds or conditions were placed on the volume or method of earth extraction. It made no distinction between ecologically sensitive areas and degraded lands, nor did it outline whether excavation near wetlands, forests, or water bodies required separate clearance. These gaps have resulted in misuse, as developers have exploited the exemption to circumvent clearance processes, even in areas where significant ecological disruption has occurred.

The March 2025 amendment to the EIA Notification, 2006, introduces a layer of procedural discipline that many developers had grown unaccustomed to since 2020, when the exemption was introduced. Excavation for ordinary earth, once a routine and often unregulated aspect of project execution, must now conform to a defined legal framework with clear environmental safeguards. As a result, developers must reassess project timelines, permitting strategies, and even financial allocations to accommodate these newly formalised requirements.

2.3 Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill, 2023 Report

i) Scope of Applicability: EIA regulations apply to land which was officially classified as forest and registered in government records following October 25 1980. The exclusion applies to areas that transitioned to non-forest utilization by December 12, 19967.

ii) Exemptions: Some projects hold exception status which allows for less stringent EIA requirements. The bill permits strategic linear projects constructed near border areas along with security infrastructure and selected roadside developments and public utility installations. These projects hold exemptions which require compensatory afforestation as one possible condition.

iii) Non-Forest Activities: Under this bill the term "non-forest purpose" now covers additional forest-related conservation activities and management programs which leads to efficient project processing while needing simplified EIA assessments.8

iv) Survey Activities: When considering survey activities the Central Government has authority to establish conditions that determine their status regarding "non-forest purposes" and how it affects the EIA review process.

v) Centralized Oversight: Through the Act's provisions the Central Government received authority to direct implementation practices toward unified EIA procedures.

2.4 National Green Tribunal report

According to this report EIA is the decision making tool that identifies the environment , economic and social impact of the project before its approval. The project involves mining of Building Stone, Khandas & Gitti, Boulder over an area of 2.0 hectares with a production capacity of 20,000 m³ per year.

Environmental Impacts and Mitigation Measures: Regular water sprinkling and plantation activities along roads to reduce dust. Mining will not go beyond the groundwater depth to avoid contamination. Use of well-maintained vehicles and machinery to reduce noise levels. Proper management of topsoil and overburden to prevent erosion.

3. Comparitive analysis and scope in International Law

3.1 Interpretation and History in International Organisations

The international community has recognised the importance of assessing impacts that a range of activities can have on the environment, in order to mitigate these impacts as far as possible. This recognition has increased over time both in scope and depth through the number of references to EIAs and SEAs in different international instruments such as treaties, and decisions by governing bodies of international agreements. The main fora at the global level to discuss EIAs as a key element of an evolving body of environmental law, were the international UN Conferences. These focused first on the Human Environment (Stockholm 1972), then Environment and Development (1992, Rio de Janeiro), and subsequently on Sustainable Development (2002, Johannesburg and 2012, Rio de Janeiro, often referred to as Rio+20).

United Nations Environment Programme

UNEP defines Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) as a tool used to identify the environmental, social and economic impacts of a project prior to decision-making. It aims to predict environmental impacts at an early stage in project planning and design, find ways and means to reduce adverse impacts, shape projects to suit the local environment and present the predictions and options to decision-makers. By using EIA both environmental and economic benefits can be achieved, such as reduced cost and time of project implementation and design, avoided treatment/clean-up costs and impacts of laws and regulations.

The UNEP report provides an overview of the current status of national legislation and institutional arrangements of relevance to EIAs and SEAs across the globe, as well as emerging issues and trends. It does this primarily through providing examples from a wide selection of countries of their EIA/SEA arrangements and in relation to the different steps of the EIA/SEA processes.

World Bank and Multi Development Banks

The Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) were designed to promote political stability and economic growth in the Third World. These Banks lend in excess of twenty-five billion dollars every year, supporting a wide range of infrastructure and export-oriented projects in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Yet, because their lending has focused on economic objectives, the MDBs have neglected to assess the environmental consequences of their projects. Such approach has led to extensive damage to Third World ecosystems, and has placed social and economic burdens on the regions the MDBs were trying to assist. As a result of intense international pressure, the MDBs, and the World Bank in particular, decided to adopt environmental safeguards for their financing programs. The World Bank Report deals with the basic mechanism the MDBs have embraced for this purpose, the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)

The basic task of EIAs is to see how a project might be harmful to that region's environment.8 To achieve this purpose, EIAs make a full inventory of the project's potentially disruptive factors. The main purpose of EIA is predicting and assessing the potential effects of a project on the environment. EIA is a key tool for the promotion of sustainable development through taking into account the environmental, social, and economic aspects of projects. It aims to construct the projects such as dams or irrigation project which have significant invonment issue for more such project the World bank said to required.

The response from the MDBs has been largely positive. The World Bank, the largest and most influential of the MDBs, has published operational memoranda indicating its intention to require EIAs for their future projects. Other development assistance institutions have taken similar steps. It is hoped that by drawing from the extensive experience of domestic courts in the area of EIAs, the MDBs would find efficient ways to implement sound environmental safeguards for their development projects.

3.2 Interpretation in major economic powers

United States of America

On January 1, 1970, the US government signed into law the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) with the intention of establishing a national policy for the “protection, maintenance, and enhancement of the environment” with regard to federal projects. Specifically, federal agencies were to implement consideration of the environment into their decision-making protocol by way of preparation of an environmental statement that assessed both the potential impacts of a proposed project and those of reasonable project alternatives. NEPA also established the range of topics for analysis, the agencies that were expected to provide feedback into the process and the body that would oversee this effort.

NEPA was, and continues to be, broad level guidance that affects only a subset of projects (generally those funded by federal agencies). As such, many states have taken to implementing more restrictive environmental regulations. For example, the state of California implemented the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). While retaining the general principles of NEPA, CEQA introduced a legal requirement for all public and private planning applications go through a screening process and established more detailed thresholds by which to determine impact significance.

The 1985 Directive has since been amended to: increase the type of projects that require EIA; establish screening criteria and the type of information required in EIA; and to bring the analytical standards more in line with the EU., Many of these changes have been paralleled by amendments to NEPA in the US. While still similar to NEPA, one notable difference in EU and UK EIA legislation is that there does not exist a single agency to oversee the EIA process, as well as the multiple and varied directives.

Similar to the way in which the EIA Directive was initially based on NEPA, it appears that the most recent draft of the proposed revised EIA Directive is closing in on the example set by CEQA by trying to create more practical and informative EIA documents.

This is particularly true with regard to:

• the range of projects that require screening;
• the need for project scoping and consultation, as well as established timeframes;
• the need to renew EIA requirements with ever-changing infrastructure, technology, and social pressures; and
• the quality of data considered necessary in an EIA.

At its root, EIA is as much a public information process as it is one to identify and mitigate the potential environmental impacts of development. However, it is often difficult to measure in a meaningful way if legislation has been transformed in a manner that advances both ideals evenly.

People's Republic of China

It has been nearly 20 years since the Law of the People's Republic of China on Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) formally came into effect in 2003. The development of China's EIA system has gone through the stages of exploration, practice and reform. The evaluation objects have expanded from construction projects to planning, and then to policies, forming an EIA system with Chinese characteristics.

China introduced the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) system in the 1970s. In 2003, China formally promulgated the EIA Law, which established the legal status of the EIA system and, for the first time, set out clear provisions for planning EIA. Since then, China has started to build up its EIA system around project EIA and planning EIA. Unlike some European countries which included Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) in the early stage of the establishment of the EIA system, SEA in China has gone through a process of starting from scratch. Since 2003, SEA in China mainly includes planning EIA, and its concept is also proposed relative to project EIA. It was not until 2015 that policy EIA was included in the scope of SEA in China. In the 20 years since the promulgation of the EIA Law, the EIA system has effectively improved the quality of China's ecological environment by giving full play to its characteristics of preventing ecological damage and environmental pollution at the source.

China has reformed the EIA system by revising the EIA Law twice and improving the supporting technical guidelines for EIA for the betterment of both management system and technical system. By continuously consolidating and enhancing the status of the EIA system in China's environmental management system and making full use of its advantages in preventing pollution at source, China gives full play to the role of the EIA system in balancing high-quality economic development and high-standard protection of the ecological environment.

European Union

The EIA procedure guarantees environmental protection and transparency with regard to the decision-making process for several public and private projects. With its wide scope and broad purpose, the EIA ensures that environmental concerns are considered from the very beginning of new building or development projects, or their changes or extensions. It allows the public to actively engage in the EIA procedure. In 2012 the Commission adopted a proposal to amend Directive 2011/92/EU based on a thorough impact assessment. The aim was to lighten unnecessary administrative burdens, reinforce the decision-making process and make it easier to assess potential impacts without weakening existing environmental safeguards. Following amendments introduced by the European Parliament and the Council, the revised Directive entered into force on 15 May 2014. Member States had 3 years to transpose the Directive. The Commission drafted an informal checklist to help Member States when transposing the Directive. Under the EIA Directive, EU Member States must provide statistics to the Commission on how the Directive is implemented in their countries every six years. This includes the numbers of projects assessed under the two annexes of the Directive, average length of time the EIA process takes, and the costs involved. An EIA is required for the various projects such as

• nuclear power stations
• long-distance railways
• motorways
• express roads
• waste disposal installations for hazardous waste
• dams of a certain capacity

For other projects, including urban or industrial development projects, roads, tourism development and canalisation and flood relief works, it is up to individual EU Member States to decide if there will be an EIA on a case-by-case basis or by setting specific criteria (such as the location, size or type of project). There are also strict rules about how the public is informed of the project and the fact that it is subject to an EIA procedure and how those affected can participate in the decision-making process. The public is also informed of the decision afterwards and can then challenge before the courts.

4. Process of conducting Environment Impact Assessment

4.1 Stages and Application

(1) Screening: This stage provides a basis for establishing whether or not a project requires additional environmental assessments.  

Project are based on their size and potential environmental impact For instance:

Category A projects (e.g., major thermal power plants) require central-level clearance.

Category B projects (e.g., small industrial units) are assessed at the state level.

It ensures that only significant projects undergo detailed scrutiny, resource and saving time.

(2) Scoping: It refers to the process undertaken by:

The Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC) for Category ‘A’ projects or activities, and

The State-level Expert Appraisal Committee (SEAC) for Category ‘B1’ projects or activities.

This process includes applications for:

Expansion and modernization, and/or the product mix of established projects or activities undergoes analysis for change. The main objective requires developing complete Terms of Reference (TOR) documentation that addresses environmental concerns for creating Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) Reports. All projects and activities illustrating environmental strengths need to complete this step before obtaining a green light for beginning work.

4.2 Process for Determining Terms of Reference (TOR):

The EAC or SEAC will determine the TOR based on:

i) The prescribed application Form 1/Form 1A provides information needed for the assessment together with the terms of reference proposed by the applicant.

- A subgroup of EAC or SEAC members conducts site visits if necessary.

- An additional Terms of Reference (TOR) submitted by the applicant serves as the basis.

- Any additional information available with the EAC or SEAC.

ii) Public Consultation: During Public Consultation stakeholders and those impacted by environmental effects have the opportunity to make their concerns about projects known during planning stages. This applies to Category 'A' and 'B1' projects, with certain exemptions like:

- Modernization of irrigation projects.

- The development of industrial estates or parks can qualify for such projects.

- Road expansions without land acquisition.

- Maintenance dredging within port limits.

- Category 'B2' projects.

- Defense, security, or strategic projects.

- Process Components:

iii) Public Consultation:

SPCB/UTPCC carries out this hearing process at or near the project site according to Appendix IV's format. The authorized body receives approved proceedings of the hearing within 45 days.

Written Responses:

The SPCB/UTPCC website together with other designated methods functions as the channel for stakeholder participation. State agencies keep secret project information protected from general access.

Special Arrangements:

In case SPCB/UTPCC does not carry out the hearing within specified time limits the regulatory authority possesses the right to choose another organization. Under challenging circumstances the regulatory authority can bypass the requirement to organize a hearing.

Post-Consultation:

All applicants need to resolve found issues following consultations before updating their Draft EIA and EMP. The regulatory authority finalizes the Revised documents that initially come from public hearings. When additional concerns arise the regulatory authority allows parties to present supplementary reports instead of updates to the Draft EIA and EMP.

iv) Appraisal

At this stage a Expert Appraisal Committee or State Level Expert Appraisal Committee examines the application and the final EIA report and public hearing and consultation. This EIA process is done on even new projects, if not, on expansion or even on the modernization of a certain project.

Steps of the Appraisal Process:

1. Transparent Scrutiny:

EAC/SEAC evaluates applications through assessment of supporting documentation which incorporates the Final EIA report together with public consultation results. The responsible representative of the applicant can join the process to deliver explanations.

2. Recommendations:

3. Approval: Grant EC with specific conditions.

4. Rejection: Clearly state the reasons.

Timelines:

Appraisal completion: The completion of EIA appraisal takes 60 days after obtaining the final EIA report and documentation.

Competent authority decision: 15 days post-recommendation.

Categories of Appraisal:

With EIA/Public Consultation: A detailed examination examines EIA reports together with public hearings and submitted documents.

Exempt from EIA/Public Consultation: This category requires evaluation from Form 1, Form 1A, validated data alongside site visits (when required).

Expansion or Modernization (7(ii)) applies to:

Expansion plans which entail higher production volumes or larger lease territory subscription.

Process or technology upgrades.

Changes made to product mixes that exceed pre-established limitations.

The review of Form I applications takes 60 days to analyze EIA reports together with public consultations when needed.

5. Case Laws

1. T.N. Godavarman Thirumulpad v. Union of India

The Supreme Court ruled on forest conservation matters in Indian legal systems. According to the Supreme Court decision all forests must fall under the rules of the Forest (Conservation) Act 1980 without regard to ownership or classification. The court established various recommendations for forest resource preservation through sustainable management by prohibiting unauthorized non-forest operations in protected areas.

Scientists acknowledged that forest conservation operations are essential for environmental sustainability goals. The court declared that all forest modifications requiring approval must undergo environmental clearances first. The court established innovative protocols for the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) framework which improved surveillance over building projects with the goal to protect forests and biodiversity.

2. Vellore Citizens Welfare Forum v. Union of India

The Supreme Court addressed environmental pollution created by tanneries alongside other industrial operations across Tamil Nadu. According to Indian environmental law the Supreme Court adopted both "Precautionary Principle" and "Polluter Pays Principle" while instructing polluting industries to implement remedies against pollution.

EIA requirements developed as vital environmental assessments which industrial developments must undergo to avoid environmental damage during implementation. EIA applications received strengthened support to determine and reduce industrial development's harmful effects. The organisation led the development of monitoring systems to track compliance with environmental standards.

6. Related terms

1. EIS (Environmental Impact Statement)
2. SEA (Strategic Environmental Assessment)
3. Risk (Risk Assessment)
4. EC (Environmental Clearance)
5. EMP (Environmental Management Plan
6. Participation (Public Participation)
7. Appraisal (Environmental Appraisal)
8. Consultant (Accredited Consultant)
9. Eco-sensitivity (Eco-Sensitive Areas)