Environmental impact assessment in Sri Lanka: A progress report

Technical Report · Fri Dec 01 04:00:00 EST 1995

OSTI ID:125921

Butler, J W ^[1]

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1. International Resources Group, Ltd., Washington, DC (United States)

The paper reports on progress by the Government of Sri Lanka in the implementation of a formal environmental impact assessment (EIA) requirement. The authors have recently conducted several activities in Sri Lanka intended to improve the analytical quality of EIA documents and the utility of the EIA process in government decisionmaking, with particular attention to the use of programmatic or sectoral EIAs. The U.S. Agency for International Development established a 5-year project, the Natural Resources and Environmental Policy Project (NAREPP), to provide training and technical assistance in EIA and related disiplines for the Central Environmental Authority (CEA), several other Sri Lanka government agencies, and the private sector. This activity has involved efforts to expand the technical expertise within Sri Lanka for conducting EIA, which include developing EIA courses and materials in cooperation with several universities and conducting intensive training programs for both government and private-sector environmental professionals. This EIA will focus on the selection of government-approved industrial estates throughout the country, on which most new industrial development projects are to be located. Further training programs in the use of current analytical methodologies for EIA were also developed and conducted. The effectiveness of these activities can be assessed by evaluating changes in the content and quality of subsequent EIA documents and in the extent to which such documents affect environmental decisionmaking in Sri Lanka. The authors discuss the role of the programmatic EIA in the industrial development program of Sri Lanka, remaining constraints on the EIA process, and recommendations for further improvement.

• Research Organization: National Association of Environmental Professionals, Washington, DC (United States)
• OSTI ID: 125921
• Report Number(s): CONF-9506115--
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENTS
ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY
EVALUATION
INFORMATION NEEDS
SRI LANKA