2025 (Current Year) Faculty Courses School of Environment and Society Department of Transdisciplinary Science and Engineering Graduate major in Global Engineering for Development, Environment and Society
Environmental Impact Assessment
- Academic unit or major
- Graduate major in Global Engineering for Development, Environment and Society
- Instructor(s)
- Shigeo Nishikizawa / Takehiko Murayama
- Class Format
- Lecture (Face-to-face)
- Media-enhanced courses
- -
- Day of week/Period
(Classrooms) - 5-6 Tue
- Class
- -
- Course Code
- GEG.E501
- Number of credits
- 100
- Course offered
- 2025
- Offered quarter
- 2Q
- Syllabus updated
- Mar 26, 2025
- Language
- English
Syllabus
Course overview and goals
Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is an important tool for public and private development and planning decisions toward creating a sustainable society. In this course, students learn EIA theories, methods and regulations with several case studies. Scientific aspects such as predictions and evaluation methods as well as democratic aspects relating to public participation will be explained. Students will also explore EIA practices both of foreign countries and international cooperation.
Course description and aims
(1) To be able to explain what is EIA.
(2) To understand theories, methods and systems of EIA.
(3) To explain methodologies of impact prediction, evaluation and their challenges.
Keywords
Environmental Impact Assessment, Public Participation
Competencies
- Specialist skills
- Intercultural skills
- Communication skills
- Critical thinking skills
- Practical and/or problem-solving skills
Class flow
Mainly lectures are conducted, discussions or short reports are assigned.
Course schedule/Objectives
| Course schedule | Objectives | |
|---|---|---|
| Class 1 | Introduction to the course, What is EIA? | To understand the basic concept of EIA |
| Class 2 | Screening | To understand screening method worldwide |
| Class 3 | Scoping | To understand the matrix method in the scoping stage and public participation methodologies |
| Class 4 | SEA and Public Participation | To understand the concept of SEA and public participation |
| Class 5 | Prediction of Environmental Impacts | To understand prediction and evaluation methods relating to physical, eco-system and social environmental items |
| Class 6 | EIA systems in Foreign Countries | To understand prediction and evaluation To understand EIA systems in foreign countries such as US NEPA |
| Class 7 | Environmental and Social Consideration in International Cooperation | To understand EIA practices in international cooperation |
Study advice (preparation and review)
To enhance effective learning, students are encouraged to spend approximately 100 minutes preparing for class and another 100 minutes reviewing class content afterwards (including assignments) for each class.
They should do so by referring to textbooks and other course material.
Textbook(s)
Materials are distributed in each class
Reference books, course materials, etc.
Introduction to Environmental Impact Assessment, 4th Edition, John Glasson et al. (in English)
Introduction to Environmental Impact Assessment, Japan Society of Impact Assessment (in Japanese)
Environmental Impact Assessment 2nd Edition, Sachihiko Harashina (in Japanese)
Evaluation methods and criteria
Assignments in each class 70%, report 30 %
Related courses
- TSE.C312 ： Introduction to Environmental Policy and Social System
- GEG.S401 ： Environmental Policy
Prerequisites
There is no prerequisite for this course.