Sarhad Provincial Conservation Strategy - IUCN

6
G O V E R N A N C E & C A P A C I T Y D E V E L O P M E N T
but this does not effectively translate into any
improvement in environmental quality. The reviews of
the documents are undertaken in an ad hoc manner,
then presented during the decision making process,
and this may or may not influence the outcome. Even
in the event that environmental concerns are acknowledged,
there is little follow-up or monitoring to ensure
that environmental safeguards or mitigating measures
are being implemented.
This situation has been changing for major projects
in which multilateral or bilateral donor assistance is
involved. Both the World Bank and the Asian
Development Bank, for example, now have extensive
environmental assessment requirements as part of project
design, typically done in two phases. A scoping
exercise is undertaken as part of prefeasibility studies
to identify key environmental assessment requirements
that must be completed as part of project design. Then
during the full design phase, the key problems can be
tackled. Commonly the environmental assessment, if
undertaken like this, costs about 1% of design costs,
and can indeed reduce long-term overall project costs.
In the mining industry, for example, where this is now
referred to as ‘design for closure’, site rehabilitation is
required by law. Designing the closure process, as
part of the initial design, saves millions of rupees.
Unfortunately, the improving situation for major
projects does not apply to many small developments,
either private- or Government-sponsored. Many of
these, particularly those outside of industrial estates,
are constructed without any mitigation of air or water
pollution. And highways and roads are being built
for economic development purposes with little concern
for the impact on wildlife, forestry, or people.
There are many other examples where the cumulative
effect of many small projects has a greater aggregate
impact than one large project.
There is a significant and growing public awareness
of these issues, and a demand that something
be done. This was broadly evident during the consultative
workshop on environmental law held under the
auspices of the SPCS in 1994, where there was ministerial
endorsement for inclusion of EIA provisions in
the NWFP Environment Act. Such provisions should
be augmented with procedural manuals and public
awareness campaigns.
60 SARHAD PROVINCIAL CONSERVATION STRATEGY
6 . 1 0
S TATE OF THE ENVIRONMENT
R E P O RT I N G
The first NWFP state of the environment report, entitled
an Environmental Profile of North West Frontier
Province of Pakistan, was completed for the province
in 1994 by a team of local and expatriate advisors
using secondary sources. The profile includes technical
descriptions of:
■ the natural environment;
■ the human environment;
■ interactions between people and the environment;
■ conservation of biological diversity;
■ major natural resource problems;
■ rural pollution;
■ urban and industrial pollution;
■ issues analysis;
■ impacts on people;
■ legal framework, and
■ recommendations.
The Environmental Profile is useful, but it will be
quickly out of date given the variety and number of
environment and development programmes under
way. What is needed is a series of investigations
over time to determine trends and establish indicators.
This also helps in determining which aspects of
the SPCS are effective and whether progress is being
made towards long-term sustainability.
6 . 1 1
E N V I R O N M E N TAL RESEARCH
Many people still consider environmental protection
and resource conservation as an ‘imported’ idea.
However, a society that does not support the production
or development of knowledge will inevitably
have to import it, just as a society that does not support
the production of industrial goods has to import
them. Societies that support or finance such production
will be in a position to export them.
Like most developing countries, Pakistan and the
NWFP suffer from a lack of research infrastructures.
Research is not valued or funded adequately, and
whatever research does get accomplished is often of
poor quality and seldom relevant to social needs. This