Environmental Impact Assessment Directive Research Articles

Redressing the late Implementation of the Environmental Impact Assessment Directive

Journal Article Redressing the late Implementation of the Environmental Impact Assessment Directive: Wychavon District Council v Secretary of State for the Environment and Velcourt Limited Get access Barry Fitzpatrick Barry Fitzpatrick Newcastle Law School Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Journal of Environmental Law, Volume 6, Issue 2, 1994, Pages 351–368, https://doi.org/10.1093/jel/6.2.351 Published: 01 November 1994

Sizewell B and environmental assessment

The Central Electricity Generating Board (CEGB) won ministerial consent for a pressurised water reactor (PWR) following the Sizewell B public inquiry, but it failed to convince the inspector of its case for a new access road adjacent to an important wetland. The board was also criticised for its handling of local environmental and community impacts. In advance of the implementation of the European Community Environmental Impact Assessment Directive, the Sizewell B experience provides important lessons regarding the need for comprehensive environmental appraisal of major projects. The structure of future big public inquiries should be modified to take these lessons into account as well as to establish adequate local consultative arrangements. Most of the revenue provided by the Board via local rates cannot be spent by the local authorities concerned. The matter of ensuring that some at least of local rates paid by the CEGB is channelled back to the communities most in need of extra revenue, also requires u...

EC Environment Policy, Land use Planning and Pollution Control

In March, 1985, the Environment Council of the European Communities adopted a ‘Directive concerning the assessment of the environmental effects of certain public and private projects’ after many years of deliberation. This directive, also referred to as the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Directive, represents a major step forward in implementing community environment policy, and is the first example of Community land use planning legislation to be incorporated into national physical planning systems (Luxembourg, 1985). This paper discusses the rationale and scope of the Community environment policy and the place of the EIA directive within it; outlines the provisions of the directive itself and the changes resulting from the long period of negotiations prior to adoption; and discusses the process of incorporation into national planning legislation and potential impact of the directive. There is no reference to an environment policy in the Treaty of Rome, but a Community environment policy has been in operation since 1973.