public participation in eia possible in the mekong?
TRANSCRIPT
Case studies on “Public Par2cipa2on in EIA in Other Countries Outside the Mekong Region” and “Public
Par2cipa2on in Various Domains”
Is Meaningful Public Par1cipa1on in EIA Possible in the Mekong Region?
2015 Greater Mekong Forum on Water, Food, and Energy 21 – 23 October 2015, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
AECEN Secretariat/Mekong Partnership for the Environment
1
Why Focus on Public Par2cipa2on?
Key questions: • What is the optimal level of public participation in
Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)?
• Does increased public participation in decision making through the EIA process lead to improved project outcomes?
2
What is Public Par2cipa2on? “involving those who are affected by a decision in the decision-making process. It promotes sustainable decisions by providing participants with the information they need to be involved in a meaningful way, and it communicates to participants how their input affects the decision.”
International Association for Public Participation 3
Who is the public?
4
How much public par2cipa2on is enough? Inform Consult Involve Collaborate Empower P u b l i c par1cipa1on goal
To provide the public with balanced and objec2ve informa2on to assist it in understanding the problem, alterna2ves, opportuni2es, and/or solu2ons
To obtain public feedback on analysis, alterna2ves, and/or decisions
To work directly with the public throughout the process to ensure that public concerns and aspira2ons are consistently understood and considered
To partner with the public in each aspect of the decision including the development of alterna2ves and the iden2fica2on of the preferred solu2on
To place final decision-‐making in the hands of the public
5
In the EIA process, should public participation: inform stakeholders, consult with affected people, involve the community in finding solutions, collaborate with the public to identify acceptable alternatives, or empower the public to make the final decisions? Perhaps some examples of public participation in other domains might provide an answer on how much public participation should be expected in the EIA process.
Public Par2cipa2on in Health Sector Canadian Blood Services – after a series of scandals regarding tainted blood, the public was involved through standing committees of external stakeholders, open board meetings, consultations, roundtables, advisory committees, consensus conferences, and public polling. As a result “trust in the blood system has grown from 56% in 1998 to 82% in 2010”.
6
Public Par2cipa2on in Educa2on Sector Australia’s Stakeholder Engagement Framework for the education sector states that “to achieve a high-quality, coherent, birth-through-adulthood learning and development system, the Department must work collaboratively and form and maintain inclusive relationships with its stakeholders.” Principles for engaging with stakeholders are (i) responsive & reciprocal; (ii) inclusive; (iii) impartial & objective; (iv) open, transparent & trusting; and (v) respectful. Such engagement was critical in ensuring the success of the smarter schools partnership.
7
Public Par2cipa2on in Waste Management In Cape Town, South Africa, public participation was used as part of a legal review of the city’s waste management strategy, in the face of organized labor and alienated hostile civic groups. Participation plans had in-depth stakeholder analysis and strategic clustering of stakeholder groups, followed by customized communication and outreach tools for each stakeholder cluster. A comprehensive range of communication tools ensured better buy-in, information sharing, and feedback from the stakeholder clusters.
8
Public Par2cipa2on in the Mining Sector
On traditional lands, international law requires indigenous participation in decision making. Companies are increasingly finding participatory models that facilitate operations. For example: (i) participation agreements between a mining company and aboriginal people in Canada; (ii) local agreements between the Flambeau open pit mine in the US and government and community representatives; (iii) future act agreements between a mining company and aboriginal people in Australia; and (iv) corporate social investment in South Africa.
9
Public Par2cipa2on in Urban Development
For Calgary Transit in Canada’s 30 year strategic plan, public participation involved a twitter town hall, customer-to-customer world café, public engagement bus, surveys, website, blog, online commenting, online budget allocation tool, crowdsourced mobile engagement, community events, and staff and citizen engagement. More than 4,000 face-to-face engagements and over 1,000 online submissions. Stakeholder input drove the development of the strategic plan, transit networking decisions, urban transit corridors, and customer experience programs.
10
What can we learn from public par2cipa2on in other domains?
• Agencies which provide “more” public participation tend to have more successful outcomes, but care needs to be taken that scarce public resources are not being wasted;
• Agencies that ask the “right” questions about where participation is really needed, how it will be used, and how involvement is best structured, tend to have greater success;
• Agencies that genuinely value public participation (and avoid tokenism) tend to have greater success;
• Agencies that are more open and transparent and make all information easily accessible (and understood) tend to have more success; and
• Agencies that understand, partner with, and empower communities will have greater success.
11
Turning Our AUen2on to EIA
12
What is the op2mal level of public par2cipa2on in EIA?
13
• Tokenism is the most common form of public participation in EIA – typically no more than informing and consulting, and sometimes placation after the damage is done.
• Leading companies and project
proponents are beginning to realize that participation at the EIA stage is the first step in building a lasting, cooperative partnership with the project affected community.
What are the Benefits of Public Par2cipa2on in the EIA Process
14
• Fewer conflicts and delays improves profitability for investors;
• Governments improve decision making and secure greater transparency and accountability;
• Public agencies and NGOs gain credibility;
• Affected people influence the project to reduce adverse impacts, maximize benefits, and ensure appropriate compensation;
• Vulnerable groups given special attention, equity issues considered, needs of the poor receive priority;
• Environmental management plans are more effective.
Barriers to Effec2ve Public Par2cipa2on in EIA Process
• Lack of clear regulations • Late involvement of the public • Lack of responsiveness towards participants • Provision of unsuitable information • No room for discussion between public, decision-makers and
proponent • Attitude of participants • Lack of capacity on the part of participants • Lack of institutional capacity of government agencies • Poor environmental awareness of officials and proponents • Lack of commitment to EIA and public involvement among
government officials and proponents • Political pressure and interference • Lack of trust in government institutions 15
Best Prac2ce Checklist Value adding Approach public participation so that it adds value to the
environmental impact assessment
Inclusivity Include all relevant stakeholders in the process Accessibility Give stakeholders easy access to the process Early engagement
Give stakeholders the opportunity to participate from the earliest stage possible
Transparency Make sure the process is transparent and gives access to information Fairness Treat all stakeholders in a fair and unbiased way Accountability Be accountable and seek accountability from all stakeholders Cooperative Seek to manage conflict Equity & justice Seek to redress inequity and injustice through the process Capacity development Seek to develop the capacity of all stakeholders in the process
Flexibility Design and implement process to adapt to changing needs, conditions
Excellence Strive to constantly reflect on and improve the public participation process 16
Final Words • Public participation in EIA is believed to improve project outcomes,
but often not in developing countries. • In strong participatory democracies, public participation has been
shown to improve project quality and sustainability. • Major donors also show improved project outcomes from mandatory
public participation rules. • In developing countries, public participation requirements have often
been initiated by donors, an approach not matched by domestic demands for improved environmental outcomes from major development projects.
• Barriers for effective public participation in developing countries are numerous and, to over-simplify, public participation can be characterized as tokenism rather than a genuine commitment to empower the public in decision-making.
• A regional guideline on public participation in EIA should be a useful tool to help overcome these barriers. 17
18
THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION