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MODUS OPERANDI OF THE
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT SUBCOMMITTEE OF
THE ADVISORY COUNCIL ON THE ENVIRONMENT
Purpose
This paper
sets out the background information about the operation of the
Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Subcommittee of the Advisory
Council on the Environment (ACE) so as to facilitate smooth proceeding of
meetings. This paper supersedes Annex B of ACE Paper 10/2001 on the
subject.
Background
2. The ACE is the Government’s
principal advisory body on matters relating to environmental protection
and nature conservation. ACE Members are appointed by the Chief
Executive. The terms of reference of the ACE are as follows –
- keep under review the state of
the environment in Hong Kong; and
- advise the
Government, through the Secretary for the Environment, on
appropriate measures which might be taken to combat pollution of all
kinds, and to protect and sustain the environment.
Objective
of the EIA Subcommittee
3. The EIA Subcommittee is set up
under the ACE to study EIA reports of major development projects. It also
comments on strategic environmental assessment reports of major planning
projects. The terms of reference of the Subcommittee are as follows –
- to receive and study EIA
reports of major development projects; and
- to report on its deliberations and findings and
make recommendations to the ACE.
EIA
Process
4. The ACE
and the EIA Subcommittee are involved in three main stages of the EIA
process, namely commenting on the project profiles, selection of EIA
reports for submission to ACE and commenting on selected EIA reports. In
accordance with ETWB Technical Circular (Works) No. 13/2003, the
statutory gazetting of a project under the
relevant Ordinances can be done in parallel with the EIA process.
Separately, consultation with District Councils and other relevant
parties may proceed in advance of or in parallel with the submission of
EIA reports to the Subcommittee.
Project
Profile
5. Under
section 5 of the EIA Ordinance, ACE and members of the public may comment
on the project profile of a designated project within 14 days of its
being advertised. The Subcommittee agreed that it was not necessary to
present to the Director of Environmental Protection (DEP) the collective
view of the Subcommittee on project profiles. To ensure that comments on
project profiles, if any, are given to DEP within the statutory time
limit, individual Members would write to DEP directly and, if necessary,
alert other Members and copy his/her comments to the Chairman and Members
for information.
Selection
of EIA reports
6. Not all
project proponents of designated projects are required to make a
submission to the ACE on the EIA study. Members of the Subcommittee will
be asked to select those projects that they consider would require a
presentation by the project proponent. The Subcommittee agreed that only
those projects selected by half or more of the Subcommittee Members will
be selected and the project proponent concerned will be informed to make
a submission to the Subcommittee and send the EIA report to Subcommittee
Members.
7. During
the project selection process, if individual Member has special
concerns/comments on a certain project, he/she could draw the Chairman’s
attention to his/her concerns/comments and the Chairman would consider
the need to review the decision on selection of the EIA report for
submission to the ACE.
8. For projects not selected, the
project proponent will only be required to send the Executive Summary of
the EIA report to the Subcommittee. Members would pass their comments, if
any, to DEP directly within the prescribed public inspection period and
if necessary, copy his/her comments to the Chairman and Members for
information. At the ACE meeting immediately following the issue of the
Executive Summaries, the EIA Subcommittee Chairman would report to the
ACE about the submission of these Executive Summaries for information of
Members and record as projects not selected for discussion.
EIA
Subcommittee Meetings
9. The Subcommittee will agree on a
meeting schedule on a monthly basis at the beginning of the year.
Meetings will be held when there is submission of EIA report(s) or
issue(s) to be discussed.
10. The Subcommittee usually considers
no more than two EIA reports in each meeting. EPD will prepare for the
Subcommittee a paper on each EIA report submitted to the Subcommittee
highlighting the salient points about the EIA study and the public
comments received up to that moment. The project proponent, where
applicable, would provide the Subcommittee with a report on the site
selection process of the project, setting out the alternative sites that
have been considered and the reasons of the selection of the particular
site when such information is not provided in the EIA report. The paper,
the EIA report and the site report, if any, will normally be issued to
Subcommittee Members three Fridays before the scheduled meeting. Members
will be asked to indicate about two weeks before the scheduled meeting
date whether it is necessary for the project proponents to come to the
meeting and discuss the report with them or the report could be
considered by circulation. Project proponents will be informed
accordingly before the scheduled meeting.
11. Members of the Subcommittee may
raise questions in writing on EIA reports before the scheduled meeting
and the project proponent should provide written response to the
Secretariat at least three working days before the meeting.
12. Each discussion item on an EIA
report would include a Presentation Session by the project proponent, a
Question-and-Answer Session and Internal Discussion Sessions. The
Subcommittee would allocate as much time to the Question-and-Answer
Session as possible.
13. The presentation by project
proponent will be brief and covers only the major conclusions and
recommendations of the EIA study.
Criteria
for Assessing EIA Reports
14. EIA reports will be assessed by
the Subcommittee according to the requirements of the Technical
Memorandum on the EIA Process and the study brief of individual project
issued by DEP.
Recommendations to
the Full Council
15. The Subcommittee can make one of
the following recommendations to the full Council –
(i) endorse
the EIA report without condition;
(ii) endorse the EIA report with
condition(s); or
(iii) reject
the EIA report and inform the proponent the right to go to the full
Council.
16. If the Subcommittee cannot reach a
consensus (i.e. if two or more Members do not agree with the conclusion
of the Subcommittee) during the meeting, it may –
(i) ask for
a second submission to the Subcommittee; or
(ii) defer
the decision to the full Council and highlight issues or reasons for not
reaching a consensus for the full Council’s deliberation.
17. Other than the scenario in
paragraph 16 above or the Subcommittee Chairman considers it appropriate,
the recommendations of the Subcommittee will not be discussed in detail
in the full Council.
Other
Rules on EIA Subcommittee Meetings
18. Apart from the procedures
mentioned above, other rules on EIA Subcommittee meetings are as follows
–
(i) the
quorum for Subcommittee meetings should be half of the number of the
Subcommittee Members, including the Chairman;
(ii) Council Members who are not
Subcommittee Members may attend Subcommittee meetings and participate in
the discussion of the meeting but they shall not vote when votes are
taken;
(iii) Council Members and EIA
Subcommittee Members should declare direct and indirect interest before
deliberating on agenda items so that the Chairman could decide whether
they should take part in the discussion or in the case of Subcommittee
Members to vote;
(iv) the confirmed minutes of the
Subcommittee (with Members’ names deleted) are uploaded onto the ACE’s website for public inspection;
(v) the
Presentation Session and Question-and-Answer Session of a discussion item
on EIA report at the EIA Subcommittee meeting requiring the attendance of
the project proponent team will be opened to the public. The opening up
of these sessions is an administrative arrangement only and not a
statutory requirement. The open meeting arrangements are not applicable
to internal discussion sessions of a discussion item on EIA report and
all other sessions of the meetings of the Subcommittee;
(vi) special
meetings may be called to consider urgent items. The Subcommittee will
consider each case individually should there be requests for direct
submissions to the full Council; and
(vii) there
will not be a limit on the number of professionals/experts to be invited
to each Subcommittee meeting for items requiring their assistance. On
those cases and where votes are taken, these professionals/experts shall
not vote.
EIA
Subcommittee Secretariat
July 2009
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