New biodiversity impact assessment guidelines launched

The leopard cat (top) and the Malayan porcupine, wildlife species found in the region. The new guidelines set out criteria to help identify sites of high conservation priority. PHOTOS: NORMAN LIM, NICK BAKER
The leopard cat (above) and the Malayan porcupine, wildlife species found in the region. The new guidelines set out criteria to help identify sites of high conservation priority. PHOTOS: NORMAN LIM, NICK BAKER
The leopard cat (top) and the Malayan porcupine, wildlife species found in the region. The new guidelines set out criteria to help identify sites of high conservation priority. PHOTOS: NORMAN LIM, NICK BAKER
The leopard cat and the Malayan porcupine (above), wildlife species found in the region. The new guidelines set out criteria to help identify sites of high conservation priority.

New guidelines for assessing the impact of development works on wildlife have been introduced, under changes to the environmental impact assessment (EIA) framework.

The new biodiversity impact assessment guidelines will also set out the methodologies that can be used in conducting wildlife surveys in an area marked for development.

Developed by the National Parks Board (NParks) in consultation with experts, they will provide greater clarity when it comes to using certain terms. For instance, they set out three different impact assessment methodologies and recommendations for when they should be used.

One method is deemed more comprehensive and recommended for EIAs while two are recommended for preliminary studies. The one NParks recommends for EIAs involves assigning an "environmental score" that takes into consideration factors like the permanence of the change and the importance of the species, meaning whether it is locally or globally endangered. These scores are then pegged to a band and labelled using such terms as "moderate negative change" or "major positive change".

A spokesman for consultancy Camphora explained that every EIA has three components. They involve detailing the plants and animals in an area, an assessment of how the works could impact the wildlife, and providing recommendations for environmental management and monitoring plans.

While the methodologies set out could still be subjective, NParks has addressed this by spelling out minimum baseline efforts for EIAs. They include detailing of animal groups to be included in baseline surveys and the equipment that should be used.

EIAs are a tool used around the world to inform decisions on how to modify development activity to reduce environmental impact. The new biodiversity impact guidelines will ensure that Singapore's circumstances are taken into account when consultants assess the conservation value of a site.

For example, the 89-page document sets out descriptors for main habitat types, from primary forest to abandoned kampungs and plantations. The guidelines also set out criteria to help identify sites of high conservation priority. They include considerations of whether an area is home to locally and globally endangered species, and if it supports globally significant concentrations of migratory species.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on October 26, 2020, with the headline New biodiversity impact assessment guidelines launched. Subscribe