Environmental statement

A scoping exercise was carried out in 2007 and submitted as an Environmental Scoping Report (ESR) to the Department for Transport with a formal request for a screening and scoping opinion.  The ESR was also provided to statutory consultees and other interested parties for comment. 

Based on the DfT's views and consultation responses, a full Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) was undertaken. The results of the EIA are what constitute the Environmental Statement (ES), an important document submitted in support of the HRO application. 

EIA is a tool for systematically considering and assessing the potential impacts of a proposed development on the environment.  

• features of the natural or built environment which are considered to be at risk from the development are identified and potential impacts listed
• impacts are assessed using standard criteria such as magnitude, spatial extent, duration, reversibility and probability of occurrence
• where significant impacts are identified, appropriate mitigation measures are developed and details provided.

In the case of  the DSCT development the ES covers a wide range of subjects - ranging from marine hydrodynamics and sediments, dredging, water quality and fisheries;  through coastal and terrestrial ecology and flood defence;  to landscape and visual impact, road and rail traffic, and socio-economic aspects.

The ESR can be found in Information sources as single a document and also as a series of individual sections and appendices.