Impact Assessment
One of the key families of tools and approaches to environmental mainstreaming is impact assessment. Over the past 25 years, Barry Dalal-Clayton has played a key international role in research, advocacy and awareness-raising, and practice to promote and improve and develop improved approaches to impact assessment.
Environmental impact assessment (EIA)
Initially, in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the practice was mainly concerned with environment impact assessment (EIA) which focuses at the project level. During this time, Professor Dalal-Clayton provided technical support to DFID (then ODA) for project environmental screening, He worked to influence a refocusing of EIA away from mainly assessing biophysical impacts to also consider social and economic concerns in an integrated manner - so that it better addressed sustainability issues. This more integrated approach was successful applied in several EIAs undertaken for donors and international organisations, eg EIAs of IFAD-funded projects in India and Pakistan (1990), and an EIA of a proposed Commonwealth Development Corporation hardwood project in southern Tanzania (1992).
As the use of EIA gained momentum around the world, at IIED, Barry Dalal-Clayton engaged in developing an approach to assess the influence and effectiveness of EIA in assisting developing country governments to implement sustainable development objectives. This work was initiated in parallel to an international study on the effectiveness of environmental assessment which had a mainly developed country focus. It involved a pilot study of performance of EIA in Tanzania, funded by DANIDA and was later successfully used in other countries.
During the 1990s, Professor Dalal-Clayton led a team that developed two acclaimed directories of impact assessment guidelines, covering countries, agencies and sectors. He has also been a very active members of and contributor to the work of the International Association for Impact Assessment and served as the first Chair of IAIA’s International Committee.
Strategic environmental assessment (SEA)
In the early 1990s, it became clear that EIA, as a tool designed for the project level, was not suited to addressing the impacts of policies, strategies, plans and programmes. Barry Dalal-Clayton led work to address what approach would be more appropriate at such strategic levels. His initial work at such a higher level was focused through a programme, funded by the Norwegian MFA, to assess the environmental aspects of the Bangladesh Flood Action Plan. Subsequently, he worked, with others, to pioneer the application of what is now termed strategic environmental assessment (SEA) which focuses upstream of projects at the level of policies, plans and programmes.
In 2005, following an extensive review of international experience of SEA with Barry Sadler, he co-authored a sourcebook examining practice in many countries and organisations. This much referenced book has provided a baseline for many practitioners and for many countries to consider the SEA approach most suited to their context and needs.
From 2004 to 2013, he provided a Technical Secretariat to the OECD DAC Task Team on SEA, coordinating work which developed OECD Guidance on SEA, a range of advisory notes linking SEA to key issues such as climate change, biofuels, ecosystem services, disaster risk reduction and post-conflict situations.
Addressing OECD SEA Workshop, Zambia, 2013
The Task Team has also undertaken much SEA awareness-raising work, developed and delivered training in many countries (led by GIZ). For the Task Team, Professor Dalal-Clayton conducted periodic surveys of donor activities on SEA and organmised several workshops and conferences on SEA. As part of support to the OECD DAC SEA Task Team, in 2009, he co-developed a methodology for the review of SEA quality. This has been adopted for voluntary application by donors. He tested this approach successfully in 2010 in undertaking an independent review of an SEA of Uranium Mining in Namibia. The methodology was adapted for reviewing EC SEAs. In 2013-14, Professor Dalal-Clayton has used the methodology to review a suite of Namibian SEAs to support the country’s development of SEA regulations, and has pioneered, with Peter Tarr, a rapid SEA approach, applying it to the National Development Plans of both Namibia (click here for report) and Botswana.
(i) Uranium mine in Namibia. (ii) Range of SEAs reviewed in Namibia
Professor Dalal-Clayton is now in demand to both conduct and review SEAs. In 2013-14, he led an international team in undertaking a Strategic Environmental and Social Assessment (SESA) of Nepal’s Strategy to Reduce Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+).
(i) Nepal SESA report, and (ii) Rhododendron forest in Nepal
Nepalese people are highly dependent on forests and forest products to fulfill energy demands and for timber for construction and maintenance of houses and buildings. The main reasons for the conversion of forest areas are encroachment for resettlement/agriculture, and acquisition of forest area for infrastructure development including road expansion.
The deforestation and degradation of forest accounts for a significant amount of carbon dioxide released to the atmosphere through the combustion of forest biomass and decomposition of remaining plant materials and soil carbon. Research carried out by the IPCC has revealed that almost 20% of carbon dioxide released to the atmosphere comes from global forest degradation and deforestation. As a result, attention has focused on the need to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation, popularly known as REDD.
In September 2013, the REDD Forestry and Climate Change Cell (REDD Cell) of the Government of Nepal’s Ministry of Forest and Soil Conservation (MFSC) commissioned a Strategic Environmental and Social Assessment (SESA) of the REDD+ Strategy together with an accompanying Environmental and Social Management Framework (ESMF). It was undertaken by IIED in collaboration with the International Centre for Environmental Management (ICEM) and the School of Environmental Science and Management (SchEMS), Nepal. The work was conducted by an international team led by IIED’s Barry Dalal-Clayton and also included IIED’s Simon Milledge and Isilda Nhantumbo.
The overall objective of this integrated assessment was to identify opportunities to mitigate environmental and socioeconomic risks under the implementation of a REDD+ mechanism in Nepal. The SESA was also to identify where REDD+ could improve development activities and other environmental measures adopted to combat climate change.
The following SESA and ESMF reports can be downloaded:
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Reducing Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Nepal: An Environmental and Social Management Framework. Click here
Barry Dalal-Clayton has also focused on the role of SEA in supporting the transition to a green economy, publishing a review of SEA’s potential in this regard (2013).
His latest assignments (2015-2016) have been:
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Stocktaking of SEA experience in Nepal (lead consultant to World Bank) (2024)
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Developing Guidance for SEA of Renewable Energy (consultant to the International Association for Impact Assessment) (2022-2024)
to access, click here -
SESA of Mauritania's Hydrocarbon Sector (consultant to Ciera Group, Canada) (2023)
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Coordinating country-level SESAs for Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM) in Indonesia and Philippines (consultant to Asian Development Bank (2022-2024)
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Regional scoping for SESA of Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM) in South East Asia (consultant to Asian Development Bank) (2022)
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SEA of South-West Bangladesh, including the Sundarbans (consultant to Forest Department Bangladesh (2020-2021)
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SEA of Kosrae State, Federated States of Micronesia, to support revision of Land Use Plan (consultant to UNDP) (2020)
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Assessment of Philippines Country Environmental and Social Safeguards Framework (consultant to World Bank) (2019-2020)
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SEA of Pohnpei State. Federated States of Micronesia, and preparation of integrated environmental management plan to support integrated land and marine management (consultant to UNDP) (2018-2020)
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Revision of Environmental Management Act, and development of regulations for EIA and SEA, Namibia (consultant to GIZ) (2016-2017)
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Development of SEA guidelines, training and leading preliminary SEA of Southern East-West Corridor Highway, Bhutan (consultant to Asian Development Bank) (2015-2016)
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Integrating sustainable development int development planning in Botswana (consultant to UNDP) (2015-2016)
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Review of the World Bank's Environmental and Social Safeguards Policies - development of an adaptive risk-based approach for use with ESF use of borrower frameworks (consultant to World Bank) (2015-2016)
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SEA Experience (full) (04 Nov 2024).docx Size : 52.562 Kb Type : docx |