Environmental impact assessment: Learn about the definition

Learn about the definition, history, methods and applications of environmental impact assessment (EIA), a tool of environmental management for project approval and decision-making. Compare EIA with strategic environmental assessment (SEA) and explore the EIA framework in Australia. Learn about the meaning, evolution, objectives, components, and process of EIA in India and globally. EIA is a tool to evaluate the environmental, social, and economic impacts of a proposed project or development before decision-making. ABOUT THE COURSE : Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is a process of evaluating the likely environmental impacts of a proposed project or development, taking into account inter-related socio-economic, cultural and human-health impacts, both beneficial and adverse. EIA is basically a tool used to assess the positive and negative environmental, economic and social impacts of a project. This is used to predict the environmental impacts of a project in the pre-planning stage itself so that ... Background facts EIA was first introduced in the USA under the Environmental Policy Act (1969). Since then it has evolved and a variety of offshoot assessment techniques have emerged (focusing, for example on social, biodiversity, environmental health and cumulative effects and risk) acting as a broader impact assessment toolkit. Most countries have now introduced formal EIA systems, usually under dedicated environmental legislation, and have introduced EIA regulations (and often regulatory ...