Comparative review of EIA in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations

Linkage of sustainability to environmental impact assessment using ecosystem services concept; lessons from Thailand

“…The concept of audit criteria was adopted and included three main contents, namely; the su cient data of EIA, the linkage data to ES, the data which directly support ES outcome (Table 3). A variety of bibliographic sources [2,[5][6]9,21,26,28,[44][45][46][47][48][49][50] were used.…”

“…Although the target of the EIA is to support sustainable development in the project implementation, it remains imperfect [21]. One reason for this is that, at all stages of the EIA, it depends on legal enforcement in each country and region.…”

“…Currently, ES are stipulated in the 12 th National Economic and Social Development Plan 2017-2021 to enhance the ecosystem approach and generate income from conservation, according to the principles of ES [33]. Although the EIA in Thailand are very advanced, the promotion of ES for legal purposes is still at an early stage [21]. In contrast, EIA, as one of the Environmental Assessment (EA) approaches considered at project level, has been strengthened in all authority hierarchies.…”

“…However, most such studies have been conducted in developed countries. Thailand, as developing country, although both legal and organizational progress in EIAs is being made, the outcomes still do not meet the target of sustainable development [21]. To ensure a sustainable target in EA, integration of ES in environmental impact studies is one of the crucial approaches.…”

Evolution or revolution? Reflecting on IA effectiveness in Thailand

“…Overall picture of IA effectiveness in the Thai context (according to the current findings of effectiveness assessment) reflected and allocated into the most recent IA effectiveness categories based on the findings of relevant past-evaluation of IAs in Thailand(Baird and Frankel 2015, Chanchitpricha 2012, Chanchitpricha and Bond 2018, Chanchitpricha, Morrison-Saunders and Bond 2019, Fakkum 2013, Swangjang 2018, Wangwongwattana, Sano and King 2015 and relevant legislation for IA practice Remarks: Yes = IA is likely to fully achieve effectiveness criteria; Partially = IA partial1y achieve effectiveness criteria; No = IA is unlikely to achieve effectiveness criteria; ? = unclear or not enough evidence to justify; * = effectiveness and legitimacy of IA assessed in this paper based on the relevant findings obtained from the published works/ past IA evaluations as cited, and it is not yet formerly assessed based on this criteria framework formerlyProcedural effectivenessThe findings suggest that procedural effectiveness is delivered through the provision of EIA/EHIA legislation providing a framework for: project screening; EIA/EHIA procedures; the IA review process and subsequent approval; broad guidelines…”