A procedure for the environmental evaluation of roads in South Africa

Bibliography: pages 136-145.The aim of this report is to develop a procedure for the environmental evaluation of roads in South Africa, because in the past the environmental evaluation of road projects have been on an ad hoc basis, often using different formats. The procedure is therefore to be replicable from scheme to scheme, procedure, Management and is to be incorporated into the existing road development while drawing on the principles of Integrated Environmental The first part of the report is a study of the environmental evaluation procedures adopted in the United Kingdom, United States of America and Ontario (Canada). The environmental evaluation of roads in these countries are compared under the following headings: contextual features of the environmental evaluation procedures; the planning, location and design stages of the environmental evaluation procedures, and the environmental evaluation documentation. In this comparative study, the common and unique steps and elements are identified in order to generate an 'Ideal'. The second part of the report is a study on the environmental evaluation of roads in South Africa. The administrative structure, legislation, policy and planning procedures for roads in South Africa, and Integrated Environmental Management (IEM) are discussed. Although IEM is currently been developed and road authorities are committed to IEM, the procedure still needs to be incorporated into the existing road development procedure. The third part of the report develops a procedure for the environmental evaluation of roads in South Africa. The procedure developed incorporates common and unique steps and elements generated in the 'Ideal' into the existing road development procedure. The Environmental Conservation Act and Integrated Environmental Management are also taken into account in developing the procedure. Finally, as there is at present no formal documented procedure for the environmental evaluation of roads in South Africa, it is recommended that the procedure be considered by road and environmental authorities with a view to implementing it