EIA FOLLOW-UP IN SOUTH AFRICA: CURRENT STATUS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
EIA is widely used as a tool to aid environmental decision making and through the processes of assessment, mitigation and public participation should contribute to sound environmental management and promote sustainable development. However, EIA often places greatest emphasis on the stages leading up to the Record of Decision, with little concern for the subsequent monitoring and auditing of impacts. In this paper, the status of EIA follow-up in South Africa is assessed through interviews with environmental practitioners and regulatory authorities. Their understanding of EIA follow-up and views on its enforcement, together with an assessment of current practices, have provided a useful background for the development of various models of EIA follow-up. Four models, which represent different approaches to EIA follow-up, are discussed. They are termed the legally-based approach, the partnership approach, the self-regulatory and the incentive/disincentive approaches. An evaluation of each in terms of its contribution to environmental sustainability principles is given and recommendations made for the inclusion of EIA follow-up as a standard component of the EIA process.