International Symposium on Mitigative Measures against Snow ...

<strong>International</strong> <strong>Symposium</strong> on Mitigative Measures against Snow Avalanches
Egilsstaðir, Iceland, March 11–14, 2008
Environmental impact assessment of mitigative measures
Stefán Thors
National Planning Agency of Iceland, Laugavegur 166, IS-150 Reykjavík, ICELAND
e-mail: stefan (at) skipulag.is
ABSTRACT
Out of 79 local authorities in Iceland 9 municipalities have 17 densely populated areas with
hazard zoning confirmed by the Minister for the Environment. In a research survey by the Icelandic
Meteorological Institute in 2006, 98 densely populated areas in addition were studied
and 8 of them in 8 municipalities were pointed out to be better looked at to be able to define
the risk of snow avalanches and landslides and the need for hazard zoning. This means that
over 20% of the local authorities have to take hazard zoning and restrictions on land use that
follows into consideration in the planning process. Dams and other protective structures have
already been built above a few of the threatened settled areas and others are under
preparation.
Risk for snow avalanches exists not only in densely populated areas but also in agricultural
areas in valleys and near high mountains all around Iceland. The history of snow avalanches
may be known in hills next to the existing farmhouses but when it comes to planning and
building areas for summer houses, an increasing form of land use, questions have to asked
about the safety for those who are going to be living in the houses because summer houses are
in use all year round.
Laws and regulations to deal with planning and building of mitigative measures, such as dams
and supporting structures, against snow avalanches are relatively recent in Iceland. There is a
regulation from year 2000 on hazard zoning due to snow- and landslides, classification and
utilisation of hazard zones and preparation of provisional hazard zoning. The Planning and
Building Act nr. 73/1997 defines compulsory planning and the planning stages from national
to local planning. According to the Act, every local authority has to prepare a municipal land
use plan for all areas within the municipality. According to paragraph 21 in Annex 1 in the
Environmental Impact Assessment Act no. 106/2000, quarries where planned extraction disturbs
a surface area of 50,000 m 2 or more or amounts to 150,000 m 3 or more have to go
through an EIA process. This includes building of dams to protect settled areas. In 2006, the
Strategic Environmental Assessment Act no. 105/2006 was implemented in Iceland which
means that every plan that includes a project listed in Annex 1 or Annex 2 in the EIA Act is
subject to the SEA. Therefore, an environmental report has to be a part of the plan.
It is already evident that mitigative measures in the form of dams, walls and supporting
structures can have a considerable impact on the environment. It is therefore of utmost
importance that mitigative measures are well prepared and that the process of environmental
impact assessment includes public participation. Environmental impacts can differ from site
to site but when it comes to building, for example a colossal 15 m high and 600 m long dam
in a hillside just above a densely populated area, it is clear that visual and social impacts are
the most important and at the same time the most difficult environmental impacts to assess.
Thors 187