Introduction

Pipeline R Us Ltd is a limited company registered under the laws of the United Kingdom. It specializes in the construction of drinking water pipelines for supply of water to the residents. The company has the jurisdiction of laying pipelines in the country to supply water to the people at a fee. Recently, the company is working on a project of installing a proposed drinking water pipeline. The project is approximately fourteen kilometers long and involves the laying of steel pipes. The dimensions of the pipes are 200mm in diameter and stretch over a length of 14 kilometers. The construction is occasioned by the corrosion of the existing pipeline which has continued to deteriorate since it was first laid down. The plan is to connect the new system once completed and abandon the old section that is corroded.

In the process of laying the pipeline, standard industry practices will be used including the open trench method of opening up the ground. The dug out trench has dimensions of 500mm in width and 1500mm in depth. These dimensions are adequate in covering the width of the pipes while maintain them at significant depths below the ground. In addition to the width of the trenches, the construction team will require a working area 20 meters in depth. The conceptual design stage has been completed and a suitable map for the plan established. In choosing the route, certain environmental, geological and economic factors were considered and the route with the least constraints adopted. The project has been found to require a full EIA process owing to its magnitude and the sensitivity of the route that it takes.

Is an EIA likely?

An EIA is an exercise of collecting information carried out by the developer of a certain project with an aim of presenting the Local Planning Authority with facts on the project. The presentation of these facts is then used to gauge whether the project will be approved to commence or not. In the United Kingdom, the EIA derives from the European law basis Directive 85/337. The Directive focuses on the assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects on the environment. In addition, the Directive is mainly implemented through the Town and Country Planning Regulations of 1999.  The legislation is generally referred to as the EIA regulations. In addition, the Directive requires that all developments that have significant impact ion the environment be taken through the EIA process.

The project must go through an EIA process because of its magnitude and the impact that it has on the environment. Although the project does not fall under Schedule I of the legislation, it falls within the second Schedule and satisfies the requirements set for a full EIA process. This assertion is due to the fact that the project’s nature, size and location are bound to have significant impact on the environment. In essence, the area covered by the project is 14v kilometers in length and with a uniform width of more than 20 meters. This area by far exceeds the set requirement which is above 1 hectare. Therefore, by virtue of the size of the project, it is required in law that the project undergoes through an EIA process. The law stipulates that a project should undergo an EIA if it satisfies one or all the set thresholds.

Moreover, the project is in an area that has a variety of natural reserves and is therefore bound to have significant environmental impacts on the same. Brighton city boasts of more than ten local natural reserves that serve as habitats for a variety of plants and animals. Any development in the city would therefore set in an imbalance on the different ecosystems leading to negative impacts on the environment. In particular, the pipeline passes through Withdean Woods which is a valuable wildlife corridor situated in an urban setting. In addition, the local nature reserve has a wide array of tree species including large beech, holly and yew. It is one of the only reserves to boast of diversity of woodland bird as well as plant species.

The nature of the project dictates that a full EIA be taken due to the volume of imbalance that the excavation will result to the soil organisms. In addition, this will result in the displacement of plant cover can have negative impacts on the environment. The scope of the project entails the fencing off of a 20 meter wide working area on which materials for the project will be stored. The type equipment used may also result in negative environmental as well as health impacts. Moreover, the abolishment of the existing pipeline means that it may have negative effects on the surrounding as it is being excavated. However, if it is to be abandoned, then more negative impacts would be borne by the environment. Ideally, the conditions of the project dictate that it undergoes a full EIA study.

Possible Environmental Constraints

One of the main impacts that building of pipelines has is the destruction of heritages and social amenities during the process of construction. There are very many heritage sites in the Brighton area where the project is located. As thus, most of the local nature reserves may end up defaced due to the excavations done within the forests. In addition, the excavations done may result in a change in the physical appearance of the town and especially where the

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