The Landmark Practice has uploaded new content to IEMA’s EIA Quality Mark website. IEMA launched the EIA Quality Mark in 2011, to establish a new standard for member organisations such as TLP that co-ordinate environmental impact assessments.
The EIA Quality Mark is based around a set of EIA Commitments, which organisations registered to the scheme agree to comply with. IEMA operates the EIA Quality Mark and undertakes an independent review of an organisation’s compliance with its EIA commitments both during the application process and, once registered, through an annual review process. As such EIA Quality Mark provides registrants with a benchmark for their EIA activities.
As a registrant to the EIA Quality Mark scheme, TLP is committed to delivering high quality assessments and reports for our clients. We achieved an overall Pass Grade following the 2011 EIA Quality Mark Registration Review and we continue to actively work to improve practice. The use of short case studies and articles to share knowledge and learning are key tools in this process.
Our recent Case Study, which looked at The Bristol Port Company Renewable Energy Project, focussed on the need for a clear and accurate evidence base to inform assessment of the impact wind turbines have on the natural environment. Without robust data gathered from the earliest stages of project inception, it is simply not possible to assess potential development effects, design any mitigation required to offset predicted impacts, or interpret long term monitoring of biophysical changes.
Lyndon Roberts’ article in the IEMA journal, The Environmentalist Online, considers the highs and lows of Interdisciplinary Working in EIA. Bringing together his considerable experience of working on complex EIA developments, Lyndon points to some important lessons for EIA managers to deliver robust and cost effective EIAs.
