Environmental Impact Study

The environmental impact study (UVS) - also known as environmental impact assessment (UVU) or UVP report - is part of the environmental impact assessment required by law for certain major projects . The environmental impact study contains the methodological procedure and the results of the investigation of projects, the implementation of which is likely to result in significant environmental damage. According to Section 2 of the EIA Act, the UVS deals with the following items of protection potentially affected by the respective project : “People, in particular human health, animals, plants and biological diversity, area, soil, water, air, climate and landscape, cultural heritage and other material goods as well as the interaction between the aforementioned protected goods. "

The study of the environmental impact of projects forms the core of every environmental impact assessment (EIA), but is not to be equated with it. The EIA, as a cross-media instrument for decision-making, also includes the systematic participation of the public and the specialist authorities affected by the project.

Purpose and content of the UVS

According to the EIA administrative regulation, the determination and description of the environmental impacts “determine the decisive facts for the fulfillment of statutory environmental requirements”. The subject of the UVS is "all environmental impacts that are relevant to the decision and which can be caused in particular by the construction or normal operation of a system or other project, furthermore by operational disruptions or by incidents and accidents ...".

A kind of "rough version" of the UVS is the investigation report, which (according to §16 EIA Act) the sponsor of the project has to present the responsible authority at the beginning of the EIA procedure. These decision-relevant documents on the environmental impact of the project must contain at least the following information:

1. Description of the project (information on the location, type and extent of the area claimed),
2. Description of the expected changes in the protected assets directly and indirectly affected by the project (see above),
3. Description of the measures with which significant negative effects on the environment are avoided, reduced and compensated for,
4. Description of the expected significant effects of the project on the environment (based on general knowledge and using generally recognized test methods).
   For certain types of projects, the following information is also required:
5. Description of the main features of the technical processes used,
6. Overview of the most important project alternatives examined by the project sponsor and details of the main reasons for selection, taking into account the environmental impact of the project,
7. References to difficulties that occurred when compiling the information (e.g. technical gaps or lack of knowledge).

The future development of the environment is based on the inventory of the protected assets at the site (current state of the environment)

a) without measures or alternatives,

b) with measures - during construction, operation, decommissioning or demolition - and

c) with every single alternative

to forecast . This includes not only the direct, but also “any indirect, cumulative, short, medium and long-term effects” of the measure (of the project) and other solutions (cf. Annex III of the EC EIA Directive).

The next step is the assessment of the environmental impact. The project and its alternatives are compared with one another with regard to their likely consequences for the environment. The comparison leads to a ranking of the individual options for action: from the best from an environmental perspective to the worst.

After its completion, the investigation report submitted by the developer (the "rough version" of the UVS) is subjected to a critical review by the responsible testing and decision-making authority. Other affected authorities (with their experts) and the public ( citizens' initiatives , environmental associations , individuals) are involved. After the appropriate "rework", the finished UVS is available, with which the decision-making authority is able to independently assess the environmental impact of the project - independently of the investigation report.

Value judgments and the importance of transparency

This “examination of the examination” is also necessary because the investigation report on the effects of a project on the environment is not just an “objective” representation of facts. Rather, “every environmental report also contains a large number of value judgments , some of which are not particularly important in themselves, but of course in their entirety are always decisive for its result.” Even if the evaluations are based on recognized benchmarks or standards, they can be subjective Do not avoid value statements from the report authors. “The problem with the value statements, however, is less their subjectivity than the fact that many evaluations can be 'hidden' in pseudo-objective representations.” The project executing agency is interested in realizing its planning intentions with as few additional costs as possible. Therefore, there is the "danger that his report is more or less colored due to interests, ie it has gaps, incorrect representations or one-sided evaluations."

One way of discovering any deficits in the report is to ensure complete transparency of the investigation steps of an EIA. Information and assessments that are brought up by the public involved and the relevant specialist authorities can minimize the risk of interest-related deficiencies.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b} Law on Environmental Impact Assessment (UVPG)
2. ^ Bunge, T .: Commentary on the UVPG, In: Handbook of Environmental Impact Assessment (HdUVP), Ed. Storm / Bunge. Cape. 0600
3. ↑ General administrative regulation for the implementation of the law on environmental impact assessment (UVPVwV), in: Manual of environmental impact assessment (HdUVP), ed. Storm / Bunge. Cape. 7505
4. ↑ Bunge, T .: Purpose, content and procedure of environmental impact studies. In: Handbook of Environmental Impact Assessment (HdUVP), ed. Storm / Bunge. Cape. 0100