Mitigation and Adaptation through Environmental Impact Assessment Litigation: Rethinking the Prospect of Climate Change Litigation in China

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-27
Author(s):  
Xiangbai He
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Impact Assessment ◽  
Environmental Impact Assessment ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
Special Focus ◽  
Mitigation And Adaptation ◽  
Regulatory Effects ◽  
The Government ◽  
Legal Barriers

Abstract There are two general pathways towards climate change litigation in China: tort-based litigation to hold carbon emitters accountable in civil law, and administrative litigation against the government to demand better climate regulation. While the first pathway is gaining momentum among Chinese scholars, this article argues that legal barriers to applying tort-based rules to climate change should be fairly acknowledged. The article argues that China's legal framework for environmental impact assessment (EIA) provides more openness and flexibility for the resolution of climate change disputes. Therefore, EIA-based climate lawsuits, which challenge environmental authorities for not adequately taking climate change factors into account in decision-making processes, encounter relatively fewer legal barriers, require less radical legal or institutional reform, and have greater potential to maintain existing legal orders. The regulatory effects produced by EIA-based litigation suggest that the scholarship on climate change litigation in China should take such litigation seriously because it could influence both governments and emitters in undertaking more proactive efforts. This China-based study, with a special focus on judicial practice in the largest developing country, will shine a light on China's contribution to transnational climate litigation.

scholarly journals Environmental Impact Assessment in Areas beyond National Jurisdiction

2012 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 449-480 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alex G. Oude Elferink
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Impact Assessment ◽  
Environmental Impact Assessment ◽  
Present Report ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
International Debate ◽  
National Jurisdiction ◽  
Specific Activities ◽  
Negative Impacts ◽  
And Control

Abstract Environmental impact assessment (EIA) has become widely accepted as an indispensable instrument to manage and control negative impacts of human activities on the environment. The present report analyzes the general legal framework for EIA in maritime areas beyond national jurisdiction (ABNJ) and also considers the regime for assessments in respect of specific activities in ABNJ. The report concludes that these existing frameworks will have to be taken into account if it were to be decided to develop a global instrument on EIA for all activities in ABNJ. The report provides a number of suggestions to move the current international debate on EIA in ABNJ forward.

scholarly journals Promoting the Participation of Indigenous Peoples in Environmental Impact Assessment: Effectiveness of Akwé: Kon Guidelines in Finland

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (20) ◽  
pp. 30
Author(s):  
Vincent Onyango ◽  
Henri Wiman
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Management ◽  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Impact Assessment ◽  
Environmental Impact Assessment ◽  
Indigenous Peoples ◽  
Self Determination ◽  
Special Focus ◽  
Policy And Practice ◽  
Questionnaire Surveys ◽  
Policy And Planning

Indigenous peoples’ participation in public policy and planning is ascribed in numerous international and national legal instruments as essential to the realisation of their self-determination. This study examines how the Akwé: Kon guidelines (AK) can promote effective indigenous peoples participation in environmental management, especially during environmental impact assessment (EIA). Special focus is drawn on the Finnish context, home of the Sámi indigenous people. The study applies an effectiveness review package by Lee and Colley (1999), supplemented by interview and questionnaire surveys, to analyse how effective the AK have been. It was found that although they were useful in promoting further interaction of the Sámi with authorities, the AK did not address their most fundamental political and legal grievances. This leaves room for EIA policy and practice, in Finland and all other jurisdictions with indigenous peoples, to consider how they can more effectively harness the potentialities in AK.

Does the Current State of Environmental Impact Assessment in Armenia Pose a Challenge for the Future?

2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (02) ◽  
pp. 1950004
Author(s):  
Sophya Geghamyan ◽  
Katarina Pavlickova
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Impact Assessment ◽  
Environmental Impact Assessment ◽  
Former Soviet Union ◽  
Public Involvement ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
Assessment System ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Current State

Many post-Soviet countries are still improving their Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) systems, and Armenia is no exception. In recent years, approximation to and harmonisation with the laws of the European Union has seen Armenia increasingly adopt and apply EU regulations and directives, and this process was supported by adoption of the new law on EIA and Expertise in 2014. The main objectives of this study are to review and analyse the current state of the Armenian EIA system and to assess its legal framework. We applied a method divided into two parts: review and analysis of the legislative aspects of the EIA system in Armenia and the circulation of a survey-questionnaire to EIA experts to establish current practices. The findings of this research provided positive and negative factors which can both be used to improve the assessment system in Armenia. While the most significant EIA strength combines the existence of a systematic law and public involvement in this process, the law has weaknesses in its monitoring, informative and quality control provisions. Moreover, public participation has many weaknesses in practice, including the definition of stakeholders and the lack of guidelines and manuals which challenges expert action. Finally, this paper has explored the major positives and negatives of the Armenian EIA system in practice, and we consider that this should help other Former Soviet Union (FSU) countries define and combat the challenges of their EIA systems.

scholarly journals Use of Benchmark Methodology in Environmental Impact Assessment

2010 ◽  
Vol 4 (-1) ◽  
pp. 91-96
Author(s):  
Jelena Pubule ◽  
Dagnija Blumberga
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Impact Assessment ◽  
Environmental Impact Assessment ◽  
Screening Method ◽  
Mineral Resources ◽  
Initial Assessment ◽  
Industrial Activity

Use of Benchmark Methodology in Environmental Impact Assessment Every industrial activity and procedure influences the environment and climate change. This impact has to be assessed and therefore the procedure of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) including the application of a benchmark methodology has been developed. The developed benchmark methodology can be used in the initial assessment as a screening method. The article surveys the developed benchmark methodology for impact assessment of the projects providing extraction of dolomite in the deposits of mineral resources. The benchmark methodology developed makes it possible to assess the impacts caused by the provided activity by objective considerations, to conduct comparison of different projects and evaluate whether the provided activity corresponds to the principles of sustainable development.

scholarly journals Tender Environmental Impact Assessment Extra Discharge Capacity Afsluitdijk

2011 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 102
Author(s):  
Stan Van Veenendaal ◽  
Wiebe Witteveen
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Impact Assessment ◽  
Environmental Impact Assessment ◽  
Discharge Capacity ◽  
Lower Cost ◽  
Limited Liability ◽  
Time Schedule ◽  
Best Value ◽  
Engineering Services

The project Extra Discharge Capacity Afsluitdijk (EDCA) of Rijkswaterstaat aims to enlarge the capacity of the discharge sluices by building new sluices, necessary because of the climate change. Rijkswaterstaat has decided to outsource the responsibility to write the Environmental Impact Report to an engineering firm. Specific problems in the outsourcing of engineering jobs involve the limited liability of the engineering firms as well as how they receive little or no feedback from the design and build phase. This paper tests the hypothesis that BVP can also be successful in the area of engineering services. The result shows that BVP can be successful in the procurement of engineering services. The application of BVP at EDCA was very distinguishing in selecting the best value vendor. It identified a vendor at a lower cost, shorter time schedule, and with more innovative ideas than the Rijkswaterstaat project team.

The study of the environmental impact assessment process for water resources development in Taiwan

1995 ◽  
Vol 32 (5-6) ◽  
pp. 117-123 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. P. Chang ◽  
C. G. Wen
Keyword(s):  
Water Resources ◽  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Impact Assessment ◽  
Environmental Impact Assessment ◽  
Assessment Process ◽  
Final Report ◽  
Development Projects ◽  
Water Resource Development ◽  
The Government ◽  
Water Resources Projects

Since 1983, The R.O.C. government in Taiwan has actively promoted the environmental impact assessment (EIA) system. More than 15 EIAs of water resource development projects have been conducted. Up to December 1994, seven pieces of relevant legislation for water resources projects, including two laws (amendments) and five regulations, were completed. The government is pushing forward the legislation of EIAs. Basically, the EIA review will include the following written statements: an initial environmental examination (IEE), the draft of an EIA report and the EIA final report.

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