Understanding why impact assessment fails; a case study of theory and practice from Wafi-Golpu, Papua New Guinea

Roche, Charles; Brueckner, Martin; Walim, Nawasio; Sindana, Howard; John, Eugene

doi:10.1016/j.eiar.2021.106582

Cited by 8 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 48 publications

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“…The interrelationship between Indigenous wellbeing, cultural heritage and the environment is not a new one and there is a body of literature illustrating these connections (see, for instance, Bawaka Country et al 2013;Rose 1996). However, an awareness of these intrinsic interconnections does not form part of the EIA process (Roche et al 2021), and is likewise very rarely accounted for in closure processes. Sutton et al (2013) describe the emotional distress they witnessed by Indigenous custodians as a feeling of disempowerment during the EIS process.…”

Section: Australian Literature: Cia Through the Lens Of Cultural Heri...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This initial ESIA is typically undertaken by the proponent as a compliance measure and, as a result, from an instrumental or management perspective, it is a process of identifying impacts, finding solutions and achieving project approval (per Roche et al 2021). It is hardly surprising that the expectations of Indigenous groups will differ from the proponents, as they will be focusing on individual and collective impacts, and often from an intergenerational perspective that is rarely accounted for (see Holcombe 2021;Roche et al 2021).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Cumulative impact assessment, Indigenous Peoples and the extractive sector: literature review and potential methods

Holcombe¹

2022

Proceedings of the International Conference on Mine Closure

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In the context of Indigenous Australia, cumulative impact assessment (CIA) is a nascent field both in terms of state and territory regulation and in practice. Likewise, relative to the science of environmental and social impact assessment (ESIA), this nomenclature of CIA is recent, and its application to Indigenous interests even more so. This paper briefly reviews the available literature -internationally and within Australia -on CIA, Indigenous peoples and the extractives sector. In the Australian context, the limited CIA literature reveals a focus on the impacts to Indigenous tangible cultural heritage. The issue of cumulative impacts to Indigenous cultural landscapes is especially heightened in mining regions, and came to the attention of the wider public in relation to the Juukan Gorge site destruction in May 2020 in the Pilbara mining region. The subsequent parliamentary inquiry and 172 submissions served to focus attention on the cumulative impacts of the industry across both space and time for the impacted Indigenous customary landholders. This paper condenses the findings from a specific component of a larger project entitled 'Towards a Framework for Regional Cumulative Impact Assessment', under the auspices of the Cooperative Research Centre for Transformations in Mining Economies (CRC TiME). As the focus is on application and informing industry and regulators, this focus on Indigenous CIA also reviewed current Australian practice and methods, finding that there has not been a specific methodology developed for Indigenous CIA in relation to the extractives sector. There are, however, a range of methodologies that are more useful and relevant than others, as they begin to address Indigenous-specific interests. A fundamental element in developing an effective Indigenous CIA method is to ensure that it is able to identify what the specific interests are in terms of 'values' and 'significance'. This can only be done in collaboration with the Indigenous groups and knowledge holders, and requires qualitative and quantitative methods. The question of the relationship between mine closure and cumulative impacts for affected Indigenous groups will also be briefly explored, with the caveat that there are few examples of large-scale mines relinquished back to the Indigenous estate -indeed, none that this author is aware of. Nevertheless, many of the conceptual and practical aspects of CIA are heightened in closure -with additional risks and opportunities. This consideration of closure and the interface with Indigenous CIA in this paper builds upon the CRC TiME research.

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Section: Australian Literature: Cia Through the Lens Of Cultural Heri...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cumulative impact assessment, Indigenous Peoples and the extractive sector: literature review and potential methods

Holcombe¹

2022

Proceedings of the International Conference on Mine Closure

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“…As an instrument, EIA is a process to evaluate and analyze the potential impacts of human activities on the environment using the precautionary principle and find actions required to prevent environmental degradation and loss of natural resources [7,9] and facilitate decision-making for project approval. However, from the perspective of the affected community, EIA may be about living endlessly with impacts [10] . On the other hand, EIA professionals, expected to be knowledgeable about risks to physicochemical, ecological, and social environments are obligated to the project proponents.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Despite ample theoretical and practical experience, apprehensions are expressed about the EIA meeting its objectives [11] . Moreover, in practice, EIA has grown into a complex, technocratic, and interdependent system and a time-consuming process that can frustrate project proponents, communities, and regulators alike [10,11] . A continuous evolution [12] including improvements, simplification, and refinements of the EIA process is witnessed through global experience sharing and efforts aimed at boosting the effectiveness, efficiency, and participatory nature of the EIA process and its potential role in realizing sustainable development [8,13] .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pursuing the Distilled Good Practices to Improve the Quality of Environmental Impact Assessment Reports and Hence Enhance the EIA Effectiveness and Help Address the Concerns of Project Proponents: An Indian Context

Rathi

2023

macro. manag. & public. polic.

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Despite a wealth of literature on the different facets of the EIA, and copious theoretical knowledge and practical experience, the general agreement is eluding definitions of EIA effectiveness, quality, and good practices. There are apprehensions about EIA meeting its basic objectives while project proponents continue to treat EIA as an impediment to development. Governments tend to adopt a “practical” approach, sacrificing pillars of EIA and overlooking the prime objective of environmental protection. Based on an extensive literature study and the author’s long EIA-related experience, some key workable practices for the EIA process are elaborated. Meticulous scoping using different sets of lenses, spotlighting significant impacts to determine the breadth and depth of EIA reports for focussed EIAs, robust EIA review and decision-making, commitment from the regulators for environmental protection, and use of strategic planning, strategic environmental assessment, and tiering practices are expected to address scholars’ apprehensions and project proponents’ concerns.

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“…Cumulative impact assessment (CIA) along with community‐based, regional and participatory impact assessment is hailed as a solution the shortcomings of existing regulatory impact assessment processes (Bice 2020; Roche et al . 2021).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Handbook of Cumulative Impact Assessment Edited by BlakleyJill A.E. and Daniel M.Franks. Research Handbooks on Impact Assessment Series. Published by Edward Elgar Publishing, Cheltenham, UK/Northampton, USA, 2021, ISBN: 978 1 78347 401 1, £166.50 (Hardcover), £48 (eBook) https://doi.org/10.4337/9781783474028.

Sinclair

Kragt

2022

Aus J Agri & Res Econ

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Understanding why impact assessment fails; a case study of theory and practice from Wafi-Golpu, Papua New Guinea

Cited by 8 publications

References 48 publications

Cumulative impact assessment, Indigenous Peoples and the extractive sector: literature review and potential methods

Cumulative impact assessment, Indigenous Peoples and the extractive sector: literature review and potential methods

Pursuing the Distilled Good Practices to Improve the Quality of Environmental Impact Assessment Reports and Hence Enhance the EIA Effectiveness and Help Address the Concerns of Project Proponents: An Indian Context

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