faqs

Environment means:

• air, water, land and natural resources;
• all layers of the atmosphere;
• all organic and inorganic matters and living organisms;
• ecosystems and ecological relationships;
• buildings, structures, roads, facilities and works;
• all social and economic conditions affecting community life.
• The inter-relationship of any of the above mentioned factors

Environmental aspect means an organization’s activities or services that can interact with the environment.

Environment audit means a systemic scrutiny of environmental performance of an organization, factory, company or manufacturing and production unit regarding to its operations

Initial Environmental Examination means a preliminary environmental review of the reasonably foreseeable qualitative and quantitative impacts on the environment of a proposed project to determine whether it is likely to cause an adverse environmental effect for requiring preparation of an environmental impact assessment.

Environmental Impact Assessment means an environmental study comprising collection of data, prediction of qualitative and quantitative impacts, comparison of alternatives,  evaluation   of   preventive,  mitigation   and   compensatory   measures, formulation of environmental management and training plans and monitoring arrangements, and framing of recommendations and such other components as may be prescribed.

Environmental Checklist means rapid environmental assessment or environmental screening through a prescribed checklist in respect of projects having least/minimal impacts on the environment.

Environmental Management Plan means a site specific plan developed to ensure that all necessary measures are identified and implemented in order to protect the environment and comply with the environmental legislation.

An analysis of a proposed policy, legislation, plan or programme to determine whether the principles of sustainable development have been integrated therein and to identify its likely environmental effects and such components as require an initial environmental examination or environmental impact assessment.

A substance or mixture of substances, which, by reason of its chemical activity or toxic, explosive, flammable, corrosive, radioactive or other characteristics, causes, or is likely to cause, directly or in combination with other matters an adverse environmental effect.

The adverse environmental effect is:

• Impairment of, or damage to, human health and safety or to biodiversity or property
• Pollution

• Any other adversity to environment as may be specified in the regulations

Pollution means the contamination of air, land or water by the discharge or emission of effluent or wastes or air pollutants or noise or other matter which either directly or indirectly or in combination with other discharges or substances alters unfavorably the chemical, physical, biological, radiation, thermal or radiological or aesthetic properties of the air, land or water or which may, or is likely to make the air, land or water unclean, noxious or impure or injurious, disagreeable or detrimental to the health, safety, welfare or property of persons or harmful to biodiversity.

Noise means the intensity, duration and character of sounds from all sources, and includes vibration.

Waste means any substance or object which has been, is being or is intended to be, discarded or disposed of, and includes liquid waste, solid waste, waste gases, suspended waste, industrial waste, agricultural waste, nuclear waste, municipal waste, hospital waste, used polyethylene bags and residues from the incineration of all types of waste.

Hospital waste means waste which is or which contains a hazardous substance or which may be prescribed as hazardous waste.

Municipal waste includes sewage, refuse, garbage, waste from abattoirs, sludge and human excreta and the likes.

Agricultural waste means waste from farm and agricultural activities including poultry, cattle arming, animal husbandry residues from the use of fertilizers, pesticides and other farm chemicals.

Waste from any nuclear reactor or nuclear plant or other nuclear energy system, whether or not such waste is radioactive.

Ecosystem means a dynamic complex of plant, animal and micro-organism communities and their non-living environment interacting as a functional unit.

Biodiversity or biological diversity means the variability among living organisms from all sources, including inter alia terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems, and the ecological complexes of which they are part, including diversity within species, between species and of ecosystems.

Effluent means any material in solid, liquid or gaseous form or combination thereof being discharged from industrial activity or any other source and includes a slurry, suspension or vapor.

Emission standard means the permissible standards established by the federal agency or a provincial agency for emission of air pollutants and noise and for discharge of effluent and waste.

Industrial activity means any operation or process for manufacturing, making, formulating, synthesizing, altering, repairing, ornamenting, finishing, packing or otherwise treating any article or substance with a view to its use, sale transport, delivery or disposal, or for mining, for oil and gas exploration and development, or for pumping water or sewage, or for generating, transforming or transmitting power or for any other industrial or commercial purpose.

Environmental Protection Order (EPO) is issued when the federal agency or a provincial agency determines that the discharge or emission of any effluent, waste, air pollutant or noise, or the disposal of waste, or the handling of hazardous substances, or any other act or omission is likely to occur, or is occurring, or has occurred, in violation of the provisions of the act, rules or regulations or of the conditions of a license, and is likely to cause, or is causing or has caused an adverse environmental effect, the federal agency or, as the case may be, the provincial agency may, after giving the person responsible for such discharge, emission, disposal, handling, act or omission an opportunity of being heard, by order direct such person to take such measures that the federal agency or provincial agency may consider necessary within such period as may be specified in the order.

Sustainable development means development that meets the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs.

Global warming is the long-term warming of the planet’s overall temperature.

The greenhouse effect is a process that occurs when gases in Earth's atmosphere trap the Sun's heat. This process makes Earth much warmer than it would be without an atmosphere. The greenhouse effect is one of the things that makes Earth a comfortable place to live.

Climate change refers to long-term shifts in temperatures and weather patterns. These shifts may be natural, such as through variations in the solar cycle and may be anthropogenic due to burning fossil fuels like coal, oil and gas.

An environmental management system (EMS) is an approach to identifying the ways that the environment is impacted by work activities.

The projects requiring Environmental Screening (through check list) are listed below:

• Subject to the compliance with concerned zoning laws:
  • Construction of residential and commercial buildings having total covered area from 60,000 sq.feet to 100,000 sq.feet
  • Housing Schemes covering an area from 05 acres to 15 acres.
  • Ware Houses for Non-Hazardous substances having total area from 1000 sq.yards to 5,000 sq.yards
  • Warehouse for Fertilizers
  • Marriage Halls/Banquet/Restaurants/Baking facilities having total area more than 500 sq.yards
  • Motor vehicle workshops/Service Stations having total area of more than 500 sq.yards.
• Construction/Reconstruction/Rehabilitation of roads in urban area from 500 meters to 01 kilometres and in rural area from 500 meters to 05 kilometres.
• Construction of Flyover, underpasses and bridges of length from 100 meters to 500 meters
• On-farm dams and fish farms
• Pulses mills
• Flour Mills
• Lining of existing minor canals and /or water courses.
• Canal cleaning
• Forest harvesting operations
• Rain harvesting projects
• Health care units of less than 50 beds
• BTS Tower
• Lime Kilns
• Ice factories and cold storage.
• Cotton oil mill
• Construction of LPG, CNG, LNG filling station and petrol pumps
• Carpet manufacturing units
• Rain harvesting projects
• Industrial Effluent Treatment Plant
• Sanitary Landfill site up to 500 tons/day

The projects requiring Initial Environmental Examination (IEE) are listed below:

• Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries
• Poultry, livestock, stud and fish farms with total cost more than Rs. 10 million
• Projects involving repacking, formulation or warehousing of agricultural products
• Energy
• Hydroelectric power generation less than 50 MW
• Thermal power generation less than 200 KW
• Transmission lines less than 11 KV, and large distribution projects
• Oil and gas transmission system
• Oil and gas extraction projects including exploration production gathering systems separation and storage
• Waste-to-energy generation project
• Manufacturing and Processing
• Ceramics and glass units with total cost more than Rs. 50 million
• Food processing industries including sugar mills, beverages, milk, and dairy products, with total cost less than Rs. 100 million
• Man-made fibers and resin projects with total cost less than Rs. 100 million
• Manufacturing of apparel, including dyeing and printing, with total cost more than Rs. 25 million
• Wood products with total cost more than Rs. 25 million
• Mining and Mineral Processing
• Commercial extraction of sand, gravel, limestone, clay, sulphur, and other minerals not included in Schedule II with total cost less than Rs. 100 million
• Crushing, grinding and separation processes
• Smelting plants with total cost less than Rs. 50 million
• Transport
• Federal or Provincial highways (except maintenance, rebuilding or reconstruction of existing metaled roads) with total cost less than Rs. 50 million
• Ports and harbor development for ships less than 500 gross ton
• Water Management, Dams, Irrigation and Flood Protection
• Dams and reservoirs with storage volume less than 50 million cubic meters of surface area less than 8 square kilometers
• Irrigation and drainage projects serving less than 15,000 hectares
• Small-scale irrigation systems with total cost less than Rs. 50 million
• Water Supply and Treatment
• Water supply schemes and treatment plants with total cost less than Rs. 25 million
• Waste Disposal
• Waste disposal facility for domestic or industrial wastes, with annual capacity less than 10,000 cubic meters
• Urban Development and Tourism
• Housing Schemes
• Public facilities with significant off-site impacts (e.g. hospital wastes)
• Urban Development Projects
• Other Projects

Any other project for which filling of IEE is required by the federal agency under sub-regulation (2) of Regulation (5)

The projects requiring Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) are listed under:

• Energy
• Hydroelectric power generation over 50 MW
• Thermal power generation over 200 KW
• Transmission lines (11 KV and above) and grid stations
• Nuclear power plants
• Petroleum refiners
• Manufacturing and Processing
• Cement plants
• Chemicals projects
• Fertilizer plants
• Food processing industries including sugar mills, beverages, milk, and dairy products, with total cost of Rs. 100 million and above
• Industrial estates (including export processing zones)
• Man-made fibers and resin projects with total cost of Rs. 100 million and above
• Pesticides (manufacturing or formulation)
• Petrochemicals complex
• Synthetic resins, plastics and man-made paper fibers, paper and paper board, paper pulping, plastic products, textiles (except apparel), printing and publishing, paints and dyes, oils and fats and vegetable ghee projects, with total cost more than Rs. 10 million
• Tanning and leather finishing projects
• Mining and mineral processing
• Mining and processing of coal, gold, copper, sulphur and precious stones
• Mining and processing of major non-ferrous metals, iron and steel rolling
• Smelting plants with total cost of Rs. 50 million and above
• Transport
• Airports
• Federal or Provincial highways or major roads (except maintenance, rebuilding or reconstruction of existing roads) with total cost of Rs. 50 million and above
• Ports and harbor development for ships of 500 gross tons and above
• Railway works
• Water management, dams, irrigation and flood protection
• Dams and reservoirs with storage volume of 50 million cubic meter and above or surface area of 8 square kilometers and above
• Irrigation and drainage projects serving 15,000 hectares and above
• Water supply and treatment
• Water supply schemes and treatment plants with total cost of Rs. 2.5 million and above
• Waste disposal
• Waste disposal and/or storage of hazardous or toxic wastes (including landfill sites, incineration of hospital toxic waste)
• Waste disposal facilities for domestic or industrial wastes, with annual capacity more than 10,000 cubic meters
• Urban Development and Tourism
• Land use studies and urban plans (large cities)
• Large-scale tourism development projects with total cost more than Rs. 50 million
• Environmentally Sensitive Areas
• All projects situated in environmentally sensitive areas
• Other Projects
• Any other project for which filling of an EIA is required by the federal agency under sub-regulation (2) of Regulation 5

Any other project likely to cause an adverse environmental effect

Environmentally sensitive area means a location, large or small, that has significant environmental values that contribute to maintaining biological diversity and integrity, have intrinsic or attributed scientific, historical or cultural heritage value, or are important in providing amenity, harmony or sense of community, ecosystem as declared by Agency.