Summary: Guidelines on the information to be contained in Environmental Impact Assessment Reports (EIAR) are available for download below. The Guidelines are primarily intended to be an authoritative reference to those preparing Environmental Impact Assessment Reports (EIARs) for projects covered by the EIA Directive.
Section 72 of the EPA Act 1992 as amended, provides for the preparation by the Agency of guidelines on the information to be contained in Environmental Impact Assessment Reports. Originally published in 2002, and subsequently revised and in draft since August 2017, these Guidelines are now formally adopted and published replacing all previous versions and take account of the transposition of the amending EIA Directive (2014/52/EU). They also include lessons learned and experience gained from EU and Irish case law.
The preparation of these Guidelines has involved extensive consultation commencing in 2014. A Technical Working Group with membership drawn from a broad range of external stakeholders was established to monitor, progress and guide the different phases of the work on these Guidelines. A public consultation process took place between September and October 2015.
The Guidelines are a statutory document that should be regarded by those preparing EIARs and the decision makers considering the EIARs as part of the EIA process.
The existing Advice Notes on Current Practice (in the preparation of Environmental Impact Statements) dated 2003 will be updated to follow the Guidelines.
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