Participation, presentation and review - Introduction to Environmental Impact Assessment - page 176

From this it is clear that in the UK the requirements for public participation have been
implemented half-heartedly at best, and developers and the competent authorities have in
turn generally limited themselves to the minimal legal requirements. An environmental
consultant suggests:
On the one hand assessment may be seen as a process in which all should
participate; which involves the whole community in the design process
and in which the statement merely becomes the statutory document
required at the time the planning application is submitted. On the other
hand assessment may be seen as a process in which the statement forms a
critical milestone, the point at which the developer unveils his plans and
gives his account of their likely environmental impacts. Discussion and
debate ensue.
Both models…are valid. The first may be seen as an ideal where a
public spirited developer has the time, resources and ability to initiate a
wide ranging programme of participation. It requires all participants to
take a lively and rational interest in the proposal and preferably not take
up an entrenched position at the outset. It would seem most suited to
public sector projects, projects initiated by the not-for-profit sector and
proposals which are unlikely to provoke much opposition in
principle…relatively few projects requiring assessment will fulfil the last
criterion. The second model is more suited to the private sector developer
wrestling with the problems of commercial confidentiality and time
constraints. Its acceptability appears to be endorsed by the latest
[government guidelines on EIA] which, whilst emphasizing the value of
scoping and the need for early consultation with the LPA and statutory
consultees, acknowledges the possible need for confidentiality. The
guidance on public participation is similarly cautious, balancing the
desirability and potential benefits of early disclosure with commercial
concerns. (McNab 1997)
6.3 Consultation with statutory consultees
Some of the most useful inputs to project decision-making are comments by statutory and
other relevant consultees (Wende 2002, Wood & Jones 1997). The statutory consultees
have accumulated a wide range of knowledge about environmental conditions in various
parts of the country. They can give valuable feedback on the appropriateness of a project
and its likely impacts. However, the consultees may have their own priorities, which may
prejudice their response to the EIS.
Article 6(1) of Directive 85/337 (as amended) states:
Member States shall take the measures necessary to ensure that the
authorities likely to be concerned by the project by reasons of their
specific environmental responsibilities are given an opportunity to express
their opinion on the information supplied by the developer and other