ABSTRACT
One of the most recent trends in EIA is its application at the level of policies, plans and programmes (PPPs). In the USA, since the enactment of the NEPA, this so-called SEA has been carried out as an extension of project EIA in a relatively low-key manner. However, in the EU it has increasingly come to be viewed as a valuable technique for achieving sustainable development, and a Europe-wide SEA Directive became operational in July 2004. SEA is also a strong growth area in other parts of the world.
