J48716 Willend EIA ResearchReport V4 FINAL - Flipbook - Page 4
1. Researching Digital EIA in Nigeria
1.1 | Context
The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)
process is used to evaluate the likely positive and
negative consequence to the environment of a
future project that will seek consent / funding
in order to progress. EIA’s legislative origins
are in the USA in the late 1960’s through the
National Environmental Protection Act, which
aimed to provide a voice for the environment in
Government decision-making related to future
infrastructure projects. EIA has subsequently
been adopted into national legislative across the
globe and expanded into the international finance
field as a key tool to identify both environmental
and social risks related to projects seeking
funding, where it is known as Environmental
and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA).
In its early days, through the 1970’s, 80’s and
early 90’s the relatively new EIA process was
somewhat of a leader in the use of developments
in technology. With practice developing alongside
the emergence of workplace computers and
word processing, the Environmental Statement
(ES) reports produced as a result of an EIA often
included far more visualisations and diagrams
than engineering and other project related
documents of the time. However, as global EIA
practice became more established the uptake of
new technologies became less ‘early adopter’ and
more oriented to adopting proven approaches that
had demonstrated value in other fields. As such,
the significant advances in digital approaches and
technologies – often termed the fourth industrial
revolution – that are increasingly key to the
function of many modern industries and across
society are not, yet, well reflected in EIA practice.
In 2015, the International Association for Impact
Assessment (IAIA) – the collaborative body for
those working in IA across the globe – focussed its
annual conference on Digital Impact Assessment
(IA). With over a thousand EIA practitioners
enthused about the opportunity digital
approaches and technology could offer to improve
the effectiveness of EIA, there has been a growing
focus on advancing this area of practice over the
past 8 years. This emergence of experimentation
and application of digital EIA across the globe is
usefully summarised in the IAIA’s 2021 report: The
State of Digital Impact Assessment Practice 1.
The report demonstrates that interest and
application of digital approaches and technology in
IA is occurring across the globe (see Figure 1.1), and
it also provides a useful definition of Digital EIA:
“The use of advances in digital technologies and
their applications in the pursuit of enabling more
effective IA practice.” IAIA, 2021
Definition of Digital EIA:
“The use of advances in digital technologies and
their applications in the pursuit of enabling more
effective IA practice.” IAIA, 2021
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The State of Digital Impact Assessment Practice - Fothergill, J. and Murphy, J. (2021) International Association for Impact Assessment
(IAIA), accessible here: https://www.iaia.org/uploads/pdf/State%20of%20Digital%20IA%20Practice_converted.pdf
Willend Associates and FothergillTC Ltd – Research: Enabling Digital EIA in Nigeria
