Evaluating public participation in Chinese EIA. An integrated Public Participation Index and its application to the case of the New Beijing Airport

Journal Article · Sun Jan 15 04:00:00 EST 2017 · Environmental Impact Assessment Review

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/J.EIAR.2016.07.001· OSTI ID:22687964

Brombal, Daniele ^[1]; Moriggi, Angela ^[1]; Marcomini, Antonio ^[2]

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1. Department of Asian and North African Studies, University Ca' Foscari Venice (Italy)
2. Department of Environmental Sciences, Informatics and Statistics, University Ca' Foscari Venice (Italy)

In recent years, China's government authorities have devoted increasing attention to the role of public participation processes in Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). The capacity of these processes to influence decision-making remains widely debated. This paper aims at appraising the institutional rationale informing the implementation of public participation in China's EIA, benchmarking it against three conceptualisations: (1) Normative, based on objectives of empowerment and democratisation; (2) Substantive, where participation is pursued mainly to improve quality of decisions; (3) Instrumental, seeking participation as an instrument to legitimise decision-making processes. The appraisal is carried out by means of a new integrated index (Public Participation Index, PPI), which is applied to a case study representative of latest advancements in EIA public participation practices in China, namely the “New Beijing Airport Project”. Located 46 km south of downtown Beijing, the project was approved in 2014 and it is currently under construction. Results of the PPI application to this case study indicate that, despite progress made in recent years, the implementation of public participation in Chinese EIA still largely responds to an instrumental rationale, with limited capacity for the public to affect decisions. - Highlights: • In recent years China has strengthened EIA public participation (PP) legislation. • Despite progress, implementation of PP remains informed by an instrumental rationale. • A large gap exists between principles enunciated in regulations and implementation. • The Public Participation Index can be used to monitor China's EIA PP development.

• OSTI ID: 22687964
• Journal Information: Environmental Impact Assessment Review, Journal Name: Environmental Impact Assessment Review Vol. 62; ISSN 0195-9255; ISSN EIARDK
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
AIRPORTS
COST ESTIMATION
DECISION MAKING
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENTS
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS
IMPLEMENTATION
LEGISLATION
REGULATIONS