STAKEHOLDER INVOLVEMENT AND

PUBLIC COMMUNICATION DURING

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT

ASSESSMENT (EIA) PROCESS IN

NIGERIA

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BACKGROUND: NIGERIA

Nigeria is a country located on the West of

the African Continent, made up of 36 states

and the federal capital territory with a

Population of 178.5 million ( NBS, December

2014). It Lies approximately between 4oN and

14oN, and between 3oE and 15oE and with a

land cover of 923,768sq km.

• The country has a tropical climate with sharp

regional variability; largely tropical in nature

with arable land of 68 million hectares, fresh

water covering 12 million hectares, and about

960 kilometers of coastline.

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OVERVIEW OF THE ORGANISATION

In line with section 20 of the constitution of the Federal

Republic of Nigeria which states that “the State shall protect and

improve the Environment and Safeguard the Water, air, land

forests and Wildlife” the Federal Ministry of Environment was

established as the apex national body with the mandate for

sustainable management of natural resources and

Environmental Protection. The Federal Ministry of Environment

has Six Technical Departments. One of which is the Department

of Environmental Assessment that is Implementing the

provisions of the EIA Act.

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ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT (EIA) PROCESS IN NIGERIA

EIA Defined: EIA is an activity defined to • Identify • Predict • Interpret • Communicate Information about the impact of an action on human health and well-being, including the well-being of ecosystems upon which human survival depends. EIA involves some of the following steps:

• Registration & EIA Initiation. • Project proposal / ToR Review • Screening, scoping and Categorization. • EIA Study • Disclosure/ Stakeholders, Public & Experts Review • Decision – making EIA approval/ Disapproval. • EIA Certification. • Follow –up Programs

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FEDERAL MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT PROCESS FLOW CHART

Registration

Screening stage

Scoping stage

By FMEnv registered Consultant.

Include:

- In house review

- Public review (21 days display)

- Panel Review.

Project Implementation commences IF

Approves and draft EIA is revised

Compliance with Mitigation Measures are ensured.

FMEnv issues the EIS and the Certificate.

TOR – Terms of Reference

EIS – Environmental Impact Statements

Submission of application letter /Project Proposal

and the TOR for EIA Study by the Proponent to

FMEnv

Impact Mitigation Monitoring by

FMEnv, State Env, & LGAs.

Submission of Draft EIA Report

Preparation of the Project’s EIA draft report

Proponent submits the Final EIA Report to

FMEnv

Initial Environmental Evaluation

which includes Site Verification by

FMEnv

Approval of EIA Report by FMEnv

Either Approval or Disapproval will be issued

Review of Draft EIA Report by FMEnv

Approval of TOR by FMEnv

Review/confirmation of the Scope

of TOR submitted by FMEnv

Environmental Audit

WHAT IS PARTICIPATION? Participation is defined as a “a process through which stakeholders influence

and share control over development initiatives and the decisions and

resources which affect them.

• Participation is necessary because it provides the much needed local

knowledge and indigenous know-how which should be integrated into the

project design to foster goodwill, success and conflicts – free project

implementation. Participation could include debates on the following

among others :

• Desirability or otherwise of project

• Alternative sites

• Technology options & relative impacts

• Risks minimisation strategies

• Indicators for project monitoring e.tc.

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STAKEHOLDER INVOLVEMENT & PUBLIC COMMUNICATION

• Stakeholders are defined as “all those individuals or groups who might, for

whatever reason, have an interest in, or might wish to influence, activities of

projects, policy, plan and programme”. They may also be referred to as

“interested parties” The most frequently employed categories of stakeholder

are primary and secondary.

• Stakeholders include: Government Agencies, International & National NGOs,

Community-Based Organisations, Trade Associations and Peer Companies,

Universities and Research Institution, Local Communities and Traditional

Authorities, Donor Agencies and Financial Institutions and Media etc.

• Three levels of Stakeholder involvement are information dissemination

(Level 1), Consultation (Level 2) and Participation (Level 3).

• The ultimate beneficiary of the EIA process and Sustainable Environmental

Management is man himself i.e. the general Public.

• The idea of the Public being the focus of the EIA process is firmly grounded

in the globally accepted principle of Participation. It requires that decisions

should be inclusive as much as possible and be made by the affected Parties

or on their behalf by the authorities closest to them after due consultation.

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PROVISIONS FOR STAKEHOLDERS CONSULTATION IN THE EIA PROCESS

• There are provisions for Public participation / Stakeholders

consultation in the EIA Act and the National Policy on the

Environment. The Importance of Public participation is enshrined in

Sections 7 and 12 of the EIA Act No 86 of 1992 which states as

follows:

• “Before the Ministry gives a decision on an activity to which an

Environmental Assessment has been produced, the Ministry shall

give opportunities to government agencies, members of the public,

experts in any relevant discipline and interested groups to make

comments on Environmental Impact Assessment of the activity”

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PROVISIONS (Continued)

• The EIA Act further provides that:

• The Ministry shall not give a decision as to

whether a proposed activity should be authorized or

undertaken until appropriate period has elapsed to

consider comments pursuant to sections 7 and 12 of

this Act.

• The Ministry’s decisions on any proposed activity subject to environmental impact assessment shall:

i. be in writing;

ii. state the reason therefore;

iii. include the provisions, if any, to prevent, reduce or instigate damage to the environment;

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PROVISIONS OF EIA ACT …..

• The report / recommendation of the Ministry shall be made

available to interested person or group

• If no interested person or group requested for the report, it

shall be the duty of the Ministry to publish its decision in a

manner by which members of the public or persons interested

in the activity shall be notified.

• The Ministry may determine an appropriate method in

which the decision of the Ministry shall be published so as to

reach interested persons or groups, in particular the originators

or persons interested in the activity subject of the decision.

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MODE OF PUBLIC PARTICIPATION AND COMMUNICATION

Public participation can be effected in several ways:

• Community Contact

• Stakeholder Consultations/ Fora

• Public Displays

• Panel /Technical / Public Review/Meetings.

• Mediation

• Field trips and site visits

• Material for mass media

• Response to public inquiries

• Operating field offices

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Reasons To Consult The Public

• To get the public informed and involved.

• To ensure public or different viewpoint of the proposed

project are discussed / resolved amicably.

• The concerns/ risks aroused by the project identified and

mitigated to a large extent.

• Potential areas of conflict are pinpointed and resolved.

• Goodwill, trust and mutual respect are fostered.

• The comfort level of decision –makers is raised.

• The sustainability of projects are assured.

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REGULATORY PROVISIONS • Guidelines on EIA includes sectoral Guidelines on Oil & Gas,

Manufacturing, Nuclear Power Plants among others

• About 3,000 EIA of development projects have been registered

across sector of the economy but no single nuclear power

plants.

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EXPERIENCES WITH STAKEHOLDERS

• Nuclear activities are emerging issues in Nigeria. One of the major stakeholders in the

Environmental Impact Assessment of Nuclear Power Plant Project in Nigeria is the Nuclear

Regulatory body – Nigerian Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NNRA) was established in 2001 with

Nuclear Safe and Radiation Protection Act 19 of 1995 (The Act) and charged with the responsibility for

Nuclear Safety and Radiological Protection Regulation in Nigeria. The Act also mandates the NNRA

with the fundamental safety objective of protection of life, health, property and the environment

from harmful effects o ionizing.

• Since the Federal Government of Nigeria declared its intension to generate electricity through nuclear

technology in 2005, several regulatory framework for both non-radiological environmental impact

assessment in the country has been developed by the NNRA in line with the above mandate and

Section 7 of EIA guidelines of FMEnv to address basic requirements nuclear facilities and activities

prior to sitting, construction, operation and decommissioning.

• The Ministry intend to collaborate with major stakeholders in the EIA of Nuclear power plant; the

Nigerian Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NNRA), Atomic Energy Agency of Nigeria, United Nation

Environment Programme (UNEP), International Association for Impact Assessment (IAIA),

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and Development partners.

• The awareness level, Participation in EIA & Environmental Management activities are high.

• Sometimes the Public/ stakeholders take laws into their hands.

• Socio- economic issues are over emphasised at the expense of technical feasibility/ sustainability 14

Key Requirements of Good Partnership

• “Public” means enormous array of individuals and groups

• Mutual trust and respect among all partners.

• The diversity of good understanding of common values, goals

and objectives.

• Individual and collective responsible behaviour.

• Mutual recognition and acceptable of others rights, interests and

aspirations.

• Development and implementation of mutually agreed rules and

procedures for conducting public consultations.

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TYPES & TIMING OF PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT

Stages of Project Development:

• Preliminary assessment of project concept

• Formulation of alternatives

• Evaluation of impacts and alternatives

• Project implementation

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EXPERIENCES ON THE STAKEHOLDERS’

INVOLVEMENT & PUBLIC COMMUNICATION FOR

EIAS

Purechem Mini Cement Plant and Limestone Mining by

Purechem Industries Ltd.

Eko Atlantic Shoreline protection and reclamation of 900

Hectares of land at the Lagos Bar-Beach, Lagos

Badagry Port and Free Zone Development by APM Terminals

Construction of Petroleum Tank Farm, Apapa, Lagos.

Calabar 260Km Super Highway

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CHALLENGES • Communities today demand to know not only the details of

project planned in their areas but to be actively involved in the

decision making process

• Consultations with the public are often difficult and frustrating

as opinion expressed in a public forum may differ and contradict

each other.

• Public discussion of any issue often loses focus and relevance.

• Some segments of the public may introduce issues and concerns

which are not related to the proposal under review or which

cannot be dealt with by that particular proponent

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CHALLENGES (Contd.) • The public has become more vocal and cases of

communities taking the law into their hands by closing

down Telecommunication Base Transceiver Stations (BTS),

Oil production facilities (Flow station, Loading terminals

etc.) has become a common occurrences.

• Public consultation is seen as an opportunity for personal

benefits and about sharing of political ideas

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WAY FORWARD

• Technical collaboration---Capacity building

• More awareness campaign

• Information sharing

• Long term Community benefits should override short term personal benefits/interest.

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THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR KIND ATTENTION

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