ABSTRACT

This chapter discusses how to write an Environmental Impact Statements (EIS) that is useful both to the decision maker and to the concerned citizen. It aims to provide guidelines that can be used to create a cogent, concise EIS presented in a manner conducive to use, rather than to the collection of dust on a shelf. A variety of specialized experts in fields such as archaeology, botany, chemistry, economics, invertebrate zoology, meteorology, sanitary engineering, urban planning, and so forth may contribute to an EIS. One of the challenges to EIS writers is capturing readers' attention when most people are convinced that the only alternatives are to build or not to build a particular alternative. The writer of an EIS must often make predictions using a relatively small information base. However, what is "relatively small" to the professional who wants to make a statistically valid prediction may be a surfeit to the decision maker.