hia methodology for an oil drilling and development project in california lindsay mccallum, kathleen...
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HIA Methodology for an Oil Drilling and Development Project in CaliforniaLindsay McCallum, Kathleen Souweine, Mary McDaniel, Chris Ollson
National HIA Meeting
June 2015
Location: Coastal Los Angeles, California
Population = 20,000; Land area = 1.43 square miles
Highly educated, affluent community with relatively young demographic
Average house price >$1 Million USD
Hermosa Beach“The best little beach city”
THE PROJECT: the proposed E&B Oil Development Project consists of drilling 30 oil wells on a 1.3-acre site located on the current City Maintenance Yard property.
THE ISSUE: election held to allow City of Hermosa Beach residents to decide whether to repeal the existing ban on oil drilling.
Hermosa Beach HIA
Scoping the HIA
Through consultation with community members, the HIA identified six major categories and 17 determinants of health in relation to the proposed Project: Air Quality Water and Soil Quality Upset Conditions Noise and Light Emissions Traffic Community Livability
Steps of an HIA
Key Objectives
Consistent Approach
Transparent Decision-making
Evidence Based
Community Input
Peer Review
Reproducible
Well Defined Matrix
HIA Evaluation Matrix
Magnitude
Adaptability
Likelihood
MEDIUM
Health Determinant
HIGHLOW
H M L
U P R U P R U P R U P R U P R U P RU P RU P RU P R
H M L H M L
No Substantial Effect (Neutral) Positive/Negative Neutral/Positive Positive/Negative
Directional outcomeNon-directional outcome
H = high; M = medium; L = low; U = unlikely; P = possible; R = probable
Decision Making Framework
How does it work? (Example: Noise)After conducting a thorough evidence-based assessment using available noise data and noise/health thresholds from the literature and reputable international agencies, noise impacts (pipeline construction phase) were classified as:
Then use the decision-making framework to determine the ‘post-mitigation’ health effect (i.e., positive, negative, neutral)
Magnitude
Adaptability
Likelihood
MEDIUM
Health Determinant
HIGHLOW
H M L
U P R U P R U P R U P R U P R U P RU P RU P RU P R
H M L H M L
No Substantial Effect (Neutral) Positive/Negative Neutral/Positive Positive/Negative
Directional outcomeNon-directional outcome
H = high; M = medium; L = low; U = unlikely; P = possible; R = probable
How does it work? (Example: Noise)
HIA Results Health Determinant
Potential Health Outcome
Geographic Extent
Vulnerable Populations
Magnitude Adaptability Likelihood
Post-Mitigation
Health Effect
Soil Particles Varying degrees of human health risk
Localized Children Unknown Unknown Unlikely No substantial effect
Upset Scenarios
Crude Oil Spill
Acute health symptoms and psychological effects including stress
Localized People in immediate vicinity
Medium Medium Unlikely No substantial effect
Well Blowout Injuries and/or fatalities and psychological effects including stress
Localized People in immediate vicinity
High Low Unlikely Negative
Well Blowout Injuries and/or fatalities and psychological effects including stress
Localized People in immediate vicinity
High Low Unlikely Negative
Noise and Lighting
Noise Emissions
Annoyance, stress, sleep disturbance and hypertension and cognitive impairment at very high sound pressure levels
Phase 1-4: Localized (Project Site and truck /pipeline routes)
Residents and schoolchildren in proximity to pipeline route
Phase 1,2,3a,4: Low Phase 3b: Medium
Phase 1,2,3a,4: Phase 3b: Medium
Phase 1,2,3a,4: Possible Phase 3b: Probable
Phase 1,2,3a,4: No substantial effect Phase 3b: Negative
Light Emissions
Annoyance, stress and possible disturbance of typical sleep cycles
Localized People with a direct line-of-site of the lit side of electric drill rig at night
Low High Unlikely No substantial effect
Traffic
Traffic Safety Potential increase in number of pedestrian, bicycle or other injuries
Localized Pedestrians and cyclists (Children and the elderly)
High Medium Unlikely No substantial effect
Perceived traffic hazards
Decrease in active transportation
Localized Pedestrians and cyclists (Children)
Medium Medium Unlikely No substantial effect
Overall Conclusion “Based on the proposed mitigation measures in the EIR and
additional recommendations provided in the HIA, we do not believe that the Project will have a substantial effect on community health
in Hermosa Beach.” - Final HIA (September 2014)
Outcome of the Vote???
Lindsay McCallum, Ph.D. (Candidate)
Environmental Health Scientist
Intrinsik Environmental Sciences Inc.
University of Toronto
Co-authors:
Kathleen Souweine
Mary McDaniel
Chris Ollson
THANK YOU!