Environmental impact assessment (EIA) practitioners from around the UK came together on 4 October to debate challenges and share best practice at the first EIA Quality Mark forum
Hosted by Josh Fothergill, IEMA’s senior adviser on environmental assessment, the day-long event saw 50 delegates from registrants on the EIA scheme discuss the potential impacts of the changes to planning policy on EIA practice and how better communication may help to enhance EIA’s reputation.
Three workshops throughout the day offered the participants an insight into an Environment Agency tool for capturing the value of EIA, a preview of a forthcoming IEMA briefing on how to integrate ecosystems services into EIA and a chance to learn more about the work of the Infrastructure Planning Commission, which will become part of the Planning Inspectorate in April 2012.
Those attending the event included Rachel Harper and Sian Thomas from Dulas, the latest company to join the EIA Quality Mark.
Dulas works with the renewables sector offering site finding, feasibility, monitoring and resource assessment, EIA and planning services for wind farm, hydro and solar PV developments.
It is the first new applicant to be awarded the EIA Quality Mark since the scheme’s launch last April.
Claire Kirk, IEMA’s professional standards manager, welcomed Dulas to the programme. “In joining the scheme, Dulas, like all of the other EIA Quality Mark registrants, has made an important commitment to ensuring its EIA activities continue to maintain their existing high quality,” she said.
“It is especially significant that Dulas has volunteered to have its commitment independently verified by IEMA, an important step in improving EIA practice.”
The EIA Quality Mark is a stamp of approval awarded by IEMA to successful registrants. It assesses quality across the registered organisations’ EIA activities, including management processes and approaches.
The scheme provides registrants with a benchmark for their EIA work and allows them to demonstrate their commitment to effective practice.
For further details on the EIA Quality Mark and how your company can get involved in the scheme, visit iema.net/qmark.
To find out more about Dulas, visit dulas.org.uk.
