The Government of the Republic of Zambia (GRZ) through
the Zambia Environmental Management Agency (ZEMA)
has unveiled Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)
Guidelines for the Construction Sector in Zambia.
The
guidelines, which were developed with the support of the
United Nations Environment through the Zambia Green Jobs
Programme (ZGJP), drew input from a wide array of
stakeholders in the construction sector.
Zambia’s construction sector has recorded steady growth
over the past decade through various infrastructural
projects hence job creation and other economic benefits.
However, in the absence of strict guidelines, the construction
industry has the potential to bring about major adverse
environmental impacts which could erode the national
objective of attaining sustainable economic and social
development.
It was against this background that the Environmental
Impact Assessment Guidelines for the Construction Sector in
Zambia were developed with the aim of providing
information and guidance on EIA in general and specifically
for construction related projects.
The guidelines are meant
to ensure green construction or environmental
sustainability.
The development of the guidelines took a phased approach.
The first phase involved review and analysis of both national
and international legislation and guidelines on construction
and the best practice on EIA and construction.
The second
phase involved testing of the draft guidelines in North
Western and Muchinga provinces.
The testing of draft
guidelines included identification of projects that were in the
pre and post EIA - approval stages and piloting the
guidelines through the EIA post approval stage.
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