Public engagement key to impact assessment reports

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Director and founder of the Law and Policy of Sustainable Development Research Centre (LPSD) Tran Thi Huong Giang said it is unreasonable to claim that public consultation in assessing projects’ environmental impacts would prolong their timetables.

Trang cited studies by the Institute for Industrial Policy and Strategy under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, conducted in diverse locations nationwide including Ho Chi Minh City, Dong Nai, Thai Nguyen, Hung Yen and Danang, which showed that pollution violations at industrial parks were mostly discovered by local people.

These people did not assess pollution based on common indicators, but rather on their perception of a project’s impact on their health and life.

“Local communities have the right to raise questions and to require a project developer or authority to take into account their concerns before approving a project,” she added.

She continued by saying: “In appraising a project’s environmental impacts, the public often analyses potential impacts on their life, health and the environment, but not on its technical aspects. When there is need for such technical assessments, this is the work of professional experts.”

She went on to say that, “Stakeholder communities have the right to express their concerns and require a developer or judging panel to make changes. They are also accountable for supervising and overseeing a project’s implementation to ensure the developer keeps their environmental commitments as per their EIA [Environmental Impact Assessment] report.”

In respect to business concerns that the process of public consultation would slow projects down, deputy head of the Internal Affairs division under An Giang province’s Party Committee and deputy head of the Central Steering Committee on Judicial Reform Nguyen Hanh said there was always a give and take, but that public consultation was necessary as the environment directly impacts people first.

“Some businesses have voiced concerns that local residents might reject a project because they don’t understand it. In that case, the project’s developer should educate people on the importance and quality of the project,” Hanh added.

One expert in the field said that in fact there might be cases where local people conducted poor assessments due to low qualifications. But public input on projects’ EIA reports would be later reviewed and appraised by a judging panel, so these outliers would have little effect.

“It would be better if people and organisations directly affected by a project are well informed about it, that way the judging panel will not be reviewing a below par EIA report and sending it on to a higher authority for approval,” said the expert.

In fact, not every project needs community consultation. The draft  amended LEP stipulates that investment projects making their production, business or services development plans that have already had their EIA reports approved in the original stages will not need to seek community consultation anew. 

Trang noted that the amended LEP also sets aside a suitable timeline for related parties to handle their rights and obligations. The developers, therefore, need to work out a suitable timeframe to balance the different responsibilities in setting up projects.