Part 1: The policy affecting EIA and how it is conducted – Environment Act, EIA reform and changing policy
09:30 to
11:35
Chair’s welcome and opening remarks
09:30 to
09:55
- An update on IEMA's upcoming projects
- Identifying future challenges to EIA
- Further changes expected in the Planning Bill
Speaker:
Dr Rufus Howard.
Chief Advisor – Impact Assessment.
IEMA.
Panel discussion: Is EIA fit for purpose or are further changes needed?
09:55 to
10:45
- Does current legislation do enough to support the process?
- Updated environmental targets and the changes needed to meet them
- Introduction of an EIA regulatory body – would this bring more scrutiny to projects or encourage them to implement more guidance?
Speakers:
Luke Strickland.
Environment Team Lead.
Mott MacDonald.
Vicky Schlottmann.
Environmental Assessment Team Leader.
Natural Resources Wales.
Andrew Fraser-Urquhart QC.
Francis Taylor Building.
Conducting EIA alongside wider project development: stages and timelines for EIA development
10:45 to
11:05
- What needs to be included in your EIA and when in project development this should be completed
- Best practice for project development
- Common delays to avoid when conducting your EIA
- Timeline for the EIA process how this varies for different types of projects
Speaker:
Neil Burke.
Senior Planning, Consents and Permits Manager.
Bradwell Power Generations Company Limited.
Part 2: Practical strategies to increase biodiversity net gain and meet climate change targets for your project
11:35 to
13:50
The impact of net zero and climate change considerations: what are the requirements and how to meet these
11:35 to
12:00
- Current requirements to address greenhouse gas emissions in EIA
- Examples of how these have been reflected in recent practice
- Moving towards closer alignment with the net zero agenda
Speaker:
Joanna Wright.
Director of Environmental Planning.
LUC.
Measuring biodiversity net gain - the impact of updated requirements on project applications
12:00 to
12:25
- Latest legislative requirements for biodiversity net gain
- Economic benefits of incorporating BNG into your application
- Understanding the DEFRA metric as a standardised measurement for BNG
- Engaging with Natural England throughout EIA
Speaker:
Nick White.
Principal Advisor – Net Gain.
Natural England.
Practical strategies to successfully include biodiversity net gain in your application
12:25 to
12:50
- Practical strategies to achieve net gain in areas of low biodiversity
- How the relationship between biodiversity net gain and natural capital assessment can improve EIA
- Preventing the cumulative ecological impact of a project from extending outside its area of assessment
Speaker:
Stuart Wilson.
Technical Director – Ecology.
SLR Consulting.
Part 3: Methods improving the efficiency of the EIA process and stakeholder engagement
13:50 to
15:05
The two pillars of proportionate EIA
13:50 to
14:15
- Good scoping: purpose and importance
- Obstacles to achieving it
- Steps to success
- Good reporting: the proportional Environmental Statement
- Prioritising the product
Speaker:
Nick Giesler.
Director – Head of Environmental Assessment and Consents.
WSP.
How can stakeholder engagement deliver better health outcomes? Improving the accessibility and quality of EIA data for stakeholders
14:15 to
14:35
- How infrastructure can affect health and wellbeing
- Benefits of thorough and early engagement and who to talk to
- Improving how health outcomes can be articulated (scoping reports, non-technical statements (NTS)
- The importance of listening, enhancements and mitigation
Speaker:
Howard Waples.
Technical Director.
Temple Group.
Part 4: Improving how EIA is conducted for future projects – lessons learnt, guidance to promoters and reviewing the success of digital EIA
15:05 to
16:05
Reviewing digital EIA and its place within project development
15:05 to
15:25
- How digital EIA is being used
- The benefits of converting EIA into a digital process
- Current challenges facing digital EIA
- Differences between digital EIA and the digitalisation of information
Speaker:
Alistair Walker.
Associate.
Quod.
Panel discussion: Learning from the process – the current challenges facing projects and overcoming these issues
15:25 to
16:05
- The current barriers to conducting EIA and the solutions available to overcome these challenges
- Comparing the challenges faced by different types of projects conducting EIA including marine, offshore wind, onshore
- The shifting focus of EIAs from damage limitation to area improvement
- Lessons learnt and guidance to promoters
Speakers:
Chris Leach.
Environmental Planning Director.
Stantec.
Elin Fradgley.
Director.
Quod.
Howard Waples.
Technical Director.
Temple Group.