ABSTRACT
Public concerns and anxieties have focused attention on the need for informed and transparent assessment procedures to ensure that the impact of developments is acceptable from an environmental perspective. Therefore, it is essential that due attention is given to environmental risk assessment procedures as well as EA for certain projects. Risk assessment is widely regarded as a specialised tool for high-profile or high-risk projects that require an examination of potential risk extending beyond a conventional source–pathway–receptor analysis. Recent guidance has been issued by the UK Department of Environment on risk assessment procedures for environmental protection (Department of the Environment UK 1995). The output of risk assessment and EA studies has become inextricably linked with the common objective of assessing the significance of impact. A growing number of practitioners are incorporating the procedures of risk assessment into EA studies.
