Biodiversity - a GRI Reporting Resource - Global Reporting Initiative

and proposed mitigation measures occur
as defined in the EMP and to verify the
compliance with the EMP, to ensure that
unpredicted impacts or failed mitigation
measures are identified and addressed in
a timely fashion.
The guidelines consider for each stage how
biodiversity issues can be incorporated as
follows:
Sub a. Screening
Biodiversity criteria should be included in
screening criteria or else there is a risk of
screening out proposals with a potentially
significant impact on biodiversity.
Biodiversity-inclusive screening criteria may
relate to:
• categories of activities that are known
to cause biodiversity impacts, including
thresholds with respect to the size of
the intervention area and/or magnitude,
duration, and frequency of the activity;
• the magnitude of biophysical change
resulting from the activity; or
• maps indicating areas important for
biodiversity, with their legal status if
applicable.
Sub b. Scoping
If the project screening identifies a potential
negative impact on biodiversity resulting from
the proposed activity, the following aspects
could be addressed (in order to derive the
terms of reference of an impact study):
• Description of the type of project, e.g.,
its nature, magnitude, location, timing,
duration, and frequency;
• Identification of possible alternatives in
relation to scale, layout, siting, location,
and/or technology (it could be that
alternatives are not readily identifiable
prior to going through the impact study);
• Description of expected biophysical
changes (in soil, water, air, flora, fauna)
resulting from proposed activities or
induced by socio-economic changes
deriving from these changes;
• Determination of the spatial and temporal
scale of influence of each biophysical
change;
• Description of ecosystems and land-use
types lying within the range of influence of
biophysical changes;
• Assessment, for each of the ecosystems
and land use types, of the potential
negative impact on biodiversity due to
the biophysical changes;
• Gathering of information on baseline
conditions of the affected areas and any
anticipated trends in biodiversity in the
absence of the proposed activities;
• In consultation with stakeholders, identification
of the current and potential ecosystem
services generated by the affected
ecosystems or land use types and determination
of the values they represent for
society;
• Determination of the ecosystem services
that will be significantly affected by the
proposed activities;
• Identification of possible measures to
enhance biodiversity or to avoid, minimize,
or compensate for significant damage to
biodiversity and/or ecosystem services;
• In consultation with stakeholders, assessment
of the importance of expected impacts
for the various alternatives considered;
• Identification of necessary surveys to
collect information required to support
decision making as well as important gaps
in knowledge; and
• Providing details on required methodology
and timescale.
Sub c. Assessment and evaluation of impacts
and development of alternatives
This stage in the EIA involves assessing
impacts and re-designing alternatives. Tasks
may include:
• Refinement of the understanding of the
nature of the potential impacts identified
during the two previous stages of the EIA,
including the identification of indirect and
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