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Environmental Impact Assessment and Environmental Auditing in The Pulp and Paper Industry
Environmental Impact Assessment and Environmental Auditing in The Pulp and Paper Industry
Title:Environmentalimpactassessmentandenvironmentalauditinginthepulpand...
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2.EnvironmentalImpactAssessment(EIA)andEnvironmentalAuditing(EA)
2.1GoalsofEIAandEA
EIAgoals
EnvironmentalImpactAssessmentisatooldesignedtoidentifyandpredicttheimpactofaprojectonthebiogeophysicalenvironmentandonman'shealthand
wellbeing,tointerpretandcommunicateinformationabouttheimpact,toanalyzesiteandprocessalternativesandprovidesolutionstosiftout,orabate/mitigate
thenegativeconsequencesonmanandtheenvironment.
EIAisalwaysnecessaryforapulpandpaperproject(whetheritisanewmillortheexpansionofanexistingfacility),asforanyindustrialprojectofimportance.
TheEIAisameansofavoidingenvironmentaldisturbancesthatarealwaysmuchmoreexpensivetocorrectaftertheiroccurrencethanbefore.Itisalso
importanttounderlinethatveryfewprojectshavebeendeemednotviablemerelybecauseofthecostofpollutioncontrolandthatmodernenvironmental
control,inanewplant,islessthan3%oftheinitialinvestment.
Today,thereisworldwideevidencethatmancannotignorethequalityoftheenvironment.Thusenvironmentalissuesmustbeaddressedassoonaspossible
duringprojectplanning.Thereshouldnotbeanyhesitationinabandoningaprojectoraprocessatanearlystage,orinproposingalternativestoanyproject
whichwouldhaveverydetrimentalimpactontheenvironment,asisthecaseforprojectswhicharenoteconomicallyorfinanciallyviable.Inthesamewayas
economic,financial,institutional,ortechnicalanalyses,EIAisanintegralpartoftheproject.
Awareofthisnecessity,numerouscountrieshaveimplementedEIAregulations.Internationalagenciesgenerallyalsolendtheirassistancetoanyindustrial
projectofimportanceimplementinganEIA,includingpulpandpaperindustries.
EAgoals
EnvironmentalAuditing(orAudit)isamanagementtoolusedbyindustrytoevaluateitsenvironmentalperformance.ContrarytoEIA,anEAisonlyimplemented
inprocessingsites.
ThedefinitionoftheEAdescribespreciselythegoalsofthisenvironmentaltool.AswrittenintheEnvironmentalAuditingTechnicalReportofUNEP/IEO,an
EAis:Amanagementtoolcomprisingasystematic,documented,periodicandobjectiveevaluationofhowwellenvironmentalorganization,managementand
equipmentareperformingintheaimofhelpingtosafeguardtheenvironmentby:
Facilitatingmanagementandcontrolofenvironmentalpractices,
Assessingcompliancewithcompanypolicies,whichwouldincludemeetingregulatoryrequirements.
UNEP/IEOadd,insummary,EAshouldprovideanswerstothefollowingquestionsraisedbycompanymanagers:
Whatarewedoing?Inparticular,areweincompliancewithgovernmentregulations,guidelines,codesofpractice,permitsconditions?
Canwedoitbetter?Inparticular,aretherenonregulatedareaswhereoperationscanbeimprovedtominimizetheimpactontheenvironment?
Canwedoitmorecheaply?
Whatmoreshouldwedo?
ItisalsoimportanttonotethatanEAcannotstandaloneandmustbeintegratedinanoverallmanagementsystemandmustincludedialoguebetweentheplant
managerandpeoplelivinginthevicinity.
2.2ContentsofanEIA
1.Executivesummary:
Inafewpagesitallowsanyone(specialistornot)tounderstandthedifferentrepercussionsoftheproject(ontheenvironment,humanwellbeingand
safety)andtobeinformedofthealternativeschosenandthemitigatingmeasuresthathavetobeimplemented.
2.Projectdescription,andlegalandadministrativeframework:
Abriefdescriptionoftheprojectisnecessarywithalloffsiteextensionsandtheirinteractionwithnaturalandsocialcomponents.Alltheregulations
implementedwithintheEIAmustbedetailedhere.
3.Scopingandscreening:
Itisimportantthatpeopleinchargeoftheprotectionoftheenvironment(ministries,borrowers,donors,NGOs,associations,inhabitants)canoutlineto
theinvestorthelimitsoftheEIA,intime,spaceandthetypeofimpacttobeaddressed(aswellasthewayofevaluatingthem),andidentifythe
alternatives.
4.Descriptionoftheexistingenvironment:
Precisedatarelevanttothesiteisrequired,describing:intendeduses,quality,physical,biological,social,andeconomicconditions.Thisdescriptionmust
includeotherexistingorproposeddevelopments.Theuseofmaps,graphs,drawingsisveryimportantforabetterunderstandingofthesituation.Key
datagapsanduncertaintiesmustbeidentifiedhere.
5.Analysisofalternativesandbasisfortheselectionofthealternativeproposed:
Theprojectdescription(seeparagraph2above)iscompletedbyaprecisedescriptionofthedifferentchoicesconcerningprocesses,siteandall
alternativesthattheinvestorhasexaminedforabetterprotectionoftheenvironmentandpopulationsconcerned.Acomparisonofthesedifferent
alternatives,intermoftheirpotentialimpactandcost/benefitanalysis,isrequired.Thebasisonwhicheachalternativeischosenmustbestated.
6.Environmentalissuesoftheproject:
Oncetheprojectisdefinedandallalternativesthoroughlystudied,thissectionpresentstheenvironmentalissuesaroundthefinalproject.Eachareaof
positiveornegativeimpactmustbedefinedintermsofitsmagnitude,reversibility,periodofoccurrenceandnature(primary,secondary).Atthisstageit
isimportanttooutlineindetailthedifferentphasesoftheprojectandtoaddressalltheenvironmentalrepercussionslinkedwitheachphase.Allthe
drasticallynegativerepercussionsthatcannotbeeliminatedmustbeidentifiedandmitigatingmeasuresmustbeproposedinthenextchapter.
7.Mitigatingmeasures:
Forallremainingnegativerepercussions,mitigatingmeasureshavetobeproposed(andmustbeundertakenassoonastheprojectstarts).These
measuresmustberealisticbothtechnicallyandeconomically.Theefficiencyofeachmeasureinreducingsignificantnegativeeffectstoanacceptablelevel
mustbeassessed.Anestimationoftherequiredinvestmentisnecessaryatthisstagetoverifythefeasibilityoftheproposedmeasures.
8.Environmentalmanagementandtrainingandenvironmentalmonitoringplan:
Inordertotryandpreventenvironmentalaccidents,itisnecessarytoprepareadocumenttodefinetheroleofeachpersonorgroupintheenvironmental
managementteamofthefuturecompanyandthemonitoringandtrainingproceduresundertakentoenhancethecapabilitiesofthestaffandworkers.
Thesedocumentswillnaturallybeupdatedoncetheplantisbuilt.
9.Appendices:
Alldocumentsneededforunderstandingthechosenmethodology,thereferences,themeetingswithministries,scientists,managers,affectedgroups,the
namesandqualificationsoftheauthorsofthestudy,needtoappearunderthisheading.
2.3ContentsofanEnvironmentalAuditing
Therearemanykindsofauditwhichcanbeconductedaloneornot.Theauditcanbeconcentratedonorganization,emission,compliancewithstandardsand
regulation,maintenance,security,materialbalance,training,outsidecontractors
TheInternationalChamberofCommercepresentsthedifferentstepsofanEAasfollows:
1.Preauditactivities:whichinclude:
Selectionandschedulingoffacilitytoaudit,
Selectionofauditteam,
Contactwithfacilityandplanningoftheaudit.
2.Siteactivities:whicharedividedinto5steps:
Firstunderstandingofinternalcontrols,
Assessmentofinternalcontrols,
Gatheringofauditevidence,
Evaluationofauditfindings,
Reportoffindingstofacility.
3.Postauditactivities:whichinclude:
Productionofadraftreport,
Productionofafinalreport,
Preparationandimplementationofanactionplan,
Monitoringofactionplan.
Figure6showsthedetailsofeachstep.
Itisimportanttonoticethattheauditsystemisacycle.Itsperiodicityhastobedefinedpreviouslyandthesitecontrolphaseperiodicitymustnotexceed3years.
2.4PlaceoftheEIAandEAintheProjectCycle
TheEIAtakesplaceassoonaspossibleintheprojectdevelopment,andatthelatestduringthefeasibilitystudy.Thedifferentdevelopmentpossibilitiesandthe
EIAbecomemoreandmorepreciseastheprojectproceeds.WhentheprojectdesigniscompletetheEIAcanbeproducedandsubmittedinitsfinalversion.
TheEAisconductedonlyinoperatingsites.
Figure2showstheplaceofeachtoolintheprojectcycle.
Figure2:ProjectcycleandtimingoftheEIAandEA(Source:Brche)
2.5TheEIACycle
TheEIAfollowstheprojectbutithasitsownrequirements.Figure3showstheEIAcycleanditsconception.Chapter3proposesaprecisedescriptionofeach
phaseofanEIAforapulpandpaperproject.
Figure3:EnvironmentalImpactAssessmentcycle(SourceBRECHE)
2.6MethodologiesforPredictingImpactinanEIA
ThecontentsoftheEIAandtherangeofstudiestobeimplemented,inordertomakepredictionsonenvironmentalissues,aredirectlylinkedtothesizeofthe
projectandtothesensitivityoftheareawhereitistobeerected.TheEIAmustprovidethedecisionmakersandthepopulationwithallthenecessaryanalytical
data,fortheirinformationandawareness.Assuperfluousdetailsareunprofitable,theassessmenthastopinpointtheimportantparameterstobestudied,the
othersareonlymentioned.Forthesemajorparameters,itisoftennecessarytofollowsomeguidelinesinordertohaveasobjectiveathinkingaspossible.
ThoughthismaynotbenecessaryforsmallprojectswheregoodpracticeofEIAandcommonsensecanbesufficient,itisanecessityforlargescaleprojects
principallywhentheyincludeintegratedforestdevelopment.TherearevariousmethodsavailabletoguidetheEIAauthor.Threearebedetailedhere:
ThechecklistmethodortheEIAtype,
Thematrixmethod,
TheBattelleenvironmentalevaluationsystem.
2.6.1ChecklistsorEIAtypemethods
Variouschecklists,orEIAtypemethods,areavailableworldwide.GenerallychecklistsaremorewidelyusedindevelopingcountrieswhileEIAtypemethods
areoftenusedindevelopedcountriesbyauthoritiestoguidetheEIAauthorsintheirthinking.
TheprincipleofthesetwomethodsistogiveaframeworktoEIAauthorssothattheydonotforgetanyimportantpoint.Checklists,orEIAtypemethods,are
goodtoolsbuttheycannottakeintoconsiderationallparticularcasesthatcanbemetduringanEIA.However,theyaregenerallysufficientforsmallscale
projects.Thesemethodscanbecombinedwiththeuseofenvironmentalguidelines,widelyproposedbyauthoritiesordonorsagencies.
WhileEIAtypemethodsareavailablefordifferentactivities,checklistsareprovidedbothforvarioussectorsofactivity(industries,forestry,agriculture)andfor
thedifferenttypesofareasaffected(wetlands,tropicalforests,coastalzones).
SomeexamplesofchecklistsareprovidedbothintheappendicesandinthenextchapterdedicatedtoEIAinthepulpandpaperindustry.
2.6.2Matrixmethod
TheLeopoldmatrixisthebestknownmatrixmethodologyavailableforpredictingtheimpactofaprojectontheenvironment.
Itisatwodimensionalmatrixcrossreferencing:
theactivitieslinkedtotheprojectthataresupposedtohaveanimpactonmanandtheenvironment.
theexistingenvironmentalandsocialconditionsthatcouldpossiblybeaffectedbytheproject.
Theactivitieslinkedtotheprojectarelistedononeaxis:rawmaterialproduction,buildingconstruction,watersupply,energysupply,rawmaterialpreparation,
pulpandpapermillsprocessing,gaseousemissions,liquideffluents,coolingwaterdischarges,noise,solidwastestreatmentanddisposal,transportation.
Theenvironmentalandsocialconditionsarelistedontheotheraxis,anddividedinthreemajorgroups:
physicalconditions:soil,water,air,
biologicalconditions:fauna,flora,ecosystems,
socialandculturalconditions:landuse,historicalandculturalissues,populations,economy
TheLeopoldmatrixproposesathreestepprocesstoestimatetheimpact:
Firststep:
foralltheinteractionsconsideredsignificantbytheauthors,thefirststepistomarkthecorrespondingboxesinthematrixwithadiagonalline.
Secondstep:
oncetheboxeswithsupposedsignificantinteractionsareslashed,theauthorevaluateseachboxbyapplyinganumberfrom1to10(1isthe
minimumand10themaximum)toregisterthemagnitudeoftheinteraction.Thisnumberistransferredtotheupperlefthandcorner.Itrepresents
thescaleoftheactionanditstheoreticalextent.
Thirdstep:
thefinalstepforthismethodistomark(from1to10),inthelowerrighthandcorner,therealimportanceofthephenomenonforthegivenproject.It
thengivesanevaluationoftheextentoftheenvironmentalimpactaccordingtotheassessor'sjudgement.
OncethematrixisestablishedtheEIAgivesaprecisedescriptionofeachimportantimpactinthematrix(withthelargernumericalvaluesformagnitudeand
importance).Thediscussionmustalsoaddresscolumnsandrowswithlargenumbersofinteractions.Theyshowactivities,orelements,inconnectionwiththe
environmentwhichareparticularlysignificantorsensitive.
TheLeopoldmatrixproposesaframeworkforalldevelopersbut,ononehand,itistoodetailedforpulpandpaperprojects,andontheothernotpreciseenough
forsuchprojects.Itisgenerallymoreefficienttoaccommodateitasneededandtodevelopacustomizedmatrixfortheproject.Anexampleofapossiblematrix
forthepulpandpaperindustryisgiveninfigure4.
Figure4:Exampleofmatrixforthepulpandpaperindustry(Leopoldmethod).
Evaluationmethod ACTION
RAW RAW
BUILDING WATER ENERGY INDUSTRIAL GASEOUS
MATERIAL MATERIAL
OPERATIONS SUPPLY SUPPLY PROCESSES EMISSIONS
PRODUCTION PREPARATION
ENVIRONMENTAL BIRDS
/SOCIAL FISH
CONDITIONS
OTHERS
VERTEBRATES
INVERTEBRATES
ECOSYSTEMS ECOSYSTEMSQUALITY
ECOSYSTEMS
DESTRUCTION
SOCIAL LANDUSES RURAL
FISHERIES
URBAN
INDUSTRIAL
RECREATIONALUSES
PATRIMONY LANDSCAPE
HISTORICAL/CULTURAL
HERITAGE
WILDERNESSQUALITY
SOCIAL POPULATIONDENSITY
EMPLOYMENT
HAZARDS
TOTAL
2.6.3TheBatellemethod
Firstdesignedforwaterresourcedevelopment,theBattellemethodcaneasilybeusedinotherprojects.Theprincipleliesinsplittingtheenvironmentalimpacts
infourmajorcategories:ecology,pollution,aestheticsandhumaninterest.Thesecategoriesaredividedintothematicdataasshown:
Ecology
Speciesandpopulations,
Habitatsandcommunities,
Ecosystems.
Pollution
Waterpollution,
Airpollution,
Landpollution,
Noisepollution.
Aesthetics
Land,
Air,
Water,
Biota,
Manmadeobjects,
Composition.
Humaninterest
Educational/scientificpackages,
Historicalpackages,
Cultures,
Mood/atmosphere,
Lifepatterns,
Composition.
Thesethematicdataaredividedintoenvironmentalindicators.Forexampleinthepulpandpaperindustry,waterpollutioncouldberepresentedby:BOD,
dissolvedoxygen,faecalcoliforms,inorganiccarbon,pH,temperature,totaldissolvedsolids,turbidity,etc.
Oncetheenvironmentalindicatorsarechosen,themethodfollowsthreesteps:
Firststep:
atthisstage,thegoalofthemethodistotransformenvironmentalindicatorsintoenvironmentalquality.Thenotationtabledefinesanumberfrom
0to1(0forpoorqualityand1forgoodquality).Thusitispossibletoquantifyevolutionbothinthewrongorrightdirection(environmental
deteriorationorimprovement).
Secondstep:
atotalofa1,000points(orParameterImportanceUnits:PIU)aresharedamongtheindicatorsbytheauthorsoftheEIA.Theyreflecttherelative
importanceofeachparameter.
Thirdstep:
thecomparisonbetweenthesituationwithandwithouttheprojectisdoneinEnvironmentalImpactUnits(EIU).Itcanevenreflectbenefitsorlosses
intermsofenvironmentalconditions.
Where:
(Vi)1environmentalqualityforindicatoriintheprojectconditions,
(Vi)2environmentalqualityforindicatoriwithouttheproject,
wirelativeweightoftheindicatori(PIU),
mtotalnumberofindicators.
Theprincipaladvantageofthismethodisthatitgivesacomparativeanalysisbetweenseveralsituations,thusitisparticularlyefficientwheneffectingchoices
betweenalternatives.
2.6.4Software
Somesoftwareisavailabletohelpinforecastingtheimpactofdevelopmentprojects.FAOproposesasoftwarepackageEcozonewhichisnotspecifictothe
pulpandpaperindustrybutincludestheanalysisofpossibleimpactsofaprojectfor6typesofecozones:
Uplandhumid, Uplandarid,
Lowlandhumid, Lowlandarid,
Coastalhumid, Coastalarid.
forfivegroupsofactivities:agriculture,aquaculture,forestry,livestockandwaterresources.
Thesoftwareisapackagewhichconsistsofthefollowingprogrammes:
EcozoneImpacts.Containspreprogrammedrulesandfactsabouttheenvironmentalimpactofdevelopmentprojects,andmaybeusedtoindicatethe
majorpotentialenvironmentalimpactofcertaindevelopmentactivitiesindifferentregionsofthetropics.Inaddition,anencyclopaediaoftextualinformation
aboutregions,sectors,activities,andenvironmentalimpactofactivitiesisprovided.
EcozoneWorkshop.Containsfactsinitstextualdatabase,butdoesnotholdanyrulesaboutenvironmentalimpactandprojects.Itwasdesignedforuse
inspecifictrainingsituation,wheregroupsoftraineesentertheirownrulesabouttheenvironmentalimpactofactivitiesindifferentsectors.The
programmeautomaticallycombinestherulesofthedifferentgroups,allowingtherulesofallthegroupstointeract.Inthiswayitispossibletoshowhow
anactivitycanhavenegativeorpositiveimpactswhichmayaffectotheractivities.
EcozoneControlandEmptybook.EcozoneEmptybookcontainsnofactsorrules,itisanemptyshelloftheEcozoneImpactsystem.Itspurposeisto
allowveryexperienceduserstoenternewrulesandfactsabout,forexample,aparticularcountry,regionoractivity.EcozoneControlbooksimplyallows
userstocreateandaccessnewEmptybooks.
EcozoneImpactsallowstodetermineautomaticallythemajorimpactsofadevelopmentproject.Theimpactsareclassifiedintermsofprimaryorhigherorder
impacts.Forexample:Deforestationincreasesrunoffwhichinducessoilerosionwhichleadstoincreasedsedimentation,etc.
EcozoneWorkshopallowsustodeterminetheimpactofaprojectalone.ItisgenerallybettertobegintheexperiencebyfillingEcozoneWorkshopandthento
comparetheresultswiththoseofEcozonesImpacts.
EcozoneEmptybookallowstocreateitsowndatabaseofprojects:forexamplepulpandpaperprojects.
2.7TheEnvironmentalAuditingCycle
Thischapterwillshowtheorganizationofenvironmentalmanagementinanyindustry.Thefirstcycle(figure5)toconsideristhecycleoftherelationship
betweenindustryandenvironment,andbetweenenvironmentalmanagementandindustry.
Figure5:Industryandenvironmentrelationship.(Source:EnvironmentalauditingatCibaGeigy)
EnvironmentalAuditingtakesplaceinthethirdphaseofthecycleandleadstothefourthphasetoadapttheactivitytoenvironmentalrequirements.
AccordingtotheInternationalChamberofCommerceEAcanhavemanybenefitssuchas:
Facilitatingcomparisonandinterchangeofinformationbetweenoperationorplants,
Increasingemployeeawarenessofenvironmentalpoliciesandresponsibilities,
Identifyingcostsavingsincludingthoseresultingfromwasteminimization,
Evaluatingtrainingprogrammesandprovidingdatatoassistintrainingpersonnel,
Providinganinformationbaseforuseinemergencyresponsearrangements,
Assuringanadequate,uptodateenvironmentaldatabaseforinternalmanagementawarenessanddecisionmakinginrelationtoplantmodifications,new
plans,etc.,
Enablingmanagementtogivecreditforgoodenvironmentalperformance,
Helpingtoassistrelationswithauthoritiesbyconvincingthemthatcompleteandeffectiveauditsarebeingundertaken,byinformingthemofthetypeof
procedureadopted,
Facilitatingtheobtainingofinsurancecoverageforenvironmentalimpairmentliability.
Toleadtothosebenefitsaprecisemethodologyhastobefollowed.Wereproducehere(Figure6)theproposedmethodologyoftheInternationalChamberof
CommerceinthetechnicalreportofUNEP/IEO:EnvironmentalAuditing.
Figure6:BASICSTEPSOFANENVIRONMENTALAUDITING(SOURCEINTERNATIONALCHAMBEROFCOMMERCEINUNEP/IEOTECHNICAL
REPORT).
EAcanalsobeintegratedinanoverallenvironmentalmanagementsystem(EMS).Figure7synthesizestheEMSproposedbyEuropeanUnion.
Figure7:ENVIRONMENTALMANAGEMENTSYSTEM(SOURCE:METHODEUROPEANUNION,DRAWINGBRECHE)