Strategic Environmental Assessment

(Temporary Translation)

The European Directive 85/337/EEC on Environmental Impact Assessment (known as the EIA Directive) is aimed only to certain categories of projects. The approach has therefore the precise limits because intervenes only when decisions harmful to the environment may have already been taken at strategic level.

The concept of Strategic Assessment was born in the context of regional studies and planning. In 1981 the Housing and Urban Development Department in the U.S. published the Manual for Impact Assessment wide area, which is considered the progenitor of the methodology of strategic assessment. In Europe Convention on Environmental Impact Studies in Contexts Transfrontalieri, the so-called Convention ESPOO, has created the conditions for the introduction of SEA, which took place in 1991.

The European Directive on SEA (2001/42/EC) required for all EU member states ratify the Directive into national legislation by July 21, 2004. Many Member States have begun to implement the Directive from the issues more closely related to spatial planning, and then extend the approach to all policies with significant effects on the environment. The European Directive 2001/42/EC on "the assessment of the effects of certain plans and programmes on the environment," cosìddetta SEA Directive, which entered into force on July 21, 2001, represents an important step forward in the context of European environmental law. At the national level Directive 2001/42 was still not transposed, while the regulatory framework for implementation at regional level reveals that only some regions were enacted provisions concerning the procedure strategic environmental assessment with regard to the Community Directive. It 'been carried out in this respect an analysis of regional comparison of such acts, through specific benchmarks, to identify the common elements and discrepancies in the implementation of EU directive in the absence of a national decree.
The EU directive 2001/42/EC seeks to ensure a high level of protection and identifies the strategic environmental assessment tool for the integration of environmental considerations when drafting and adopting plans and programmes to promote sustainable development. In this way ensures that the environmental effects arising from the implementation of certain plans and programmes (Article 3), are taken into account and assessed during their preparation and before their adoption.
The Strategic Environmental Assessment, therefore, is shaping up as a systematic process for assessing the environmental consequences of proposed actions - policies, plans or initiatives of national, regional and local-so that they are included and addressed, equal considerations of economic and social, from the earliest stages (strategic) decision-making.
In other words, the Strategic Environmental Assessment fulfilling the task of checking the consistency of policy proposals and planning with the objectives of sustainability, unlike the EIA, which applies to individual projects works.
The development of procedures identified in the Directive 2001/42/EC is an instrument of support for both the proposer and for the decision to train with the guidelines and planning choices by providing alternative options with respect to achieving an objective means of determining the likely impacts of the actions envisaged.
In essence, the SEA becomes for the Plan / Programme, element:

constructive
evaluation
management
monitoring

This monitoring function is one of the innovative aspects introduced by the Directive, which aims to monitor and counter the negative effects arising from unexpected of a plan or programme and take corrective process in place
Among other innovations introduced by the Directive include:

the criterion of broad participation, protection of legitimate interests and transparency in decision-making that takes place through the involvement and consultation at all stages of the evaluation process of authority "that, by reason of their specific environmental, may be concerned by the effects on 'Environment due to application of plans and programmes "and the public that somehow is concerned dall'iter decisions;
cross-border consultations with other countries if it considers that the implementation of a plan or programme in preparation may have significant effects across borders.
On the directive follows the general approach of the UNECE Convention on Environmental Impact Assessment in a Transboundary Context (ESPOO Convention), signed on February 26, 1991 and entered into force on September 10, 1997, which encourages the parties to implement the its principles even in policies, plans and programmes.

In addition, during the fifth Ministerial Conference "Environment for Europe" held in Kiev (Ukraine) May 21, 2003 was adopted the text of the Protocol to the Convention (Strategic Environmental Assessment) concerning the strategic environmental assessment across borders in where most of its substantive provisions coincide with the obligations established by the Directive with the exception of Article 13 of programming and legislation, not finding reflected in the Directive and the European Commission is planning to implementation through assessment procedures introduced by communication on the assessment d 'Impact (COM (2002) 276 final.), And able to consider in an integrated assessment of the economic, social and environmental aspects of sustainable development.

The Directive 2001/42 leaves open several issues to deploy with the implementation by Member States, such as: definition and identification of competent authorities and / or environmental and their respective roles and responsibilities; definition of the screening of Plans and Programs to be Guest. The Directive is restricted to prescribe the manner in which member states must fulfil the selection of P / P (art.3, par.5) in Annex 2 and to identify the criteria that inspire the verification (criteria of significance).

Guido Bissanti