% 1070 words
% Explain how you would identify the significant effects. Discuss
% any difficulties in determining the significance of effects in EIA

\section{Significance}

The process of impact assessment is conceptually open-ended. As one of
its major goals is to aid a decision-making process, however, each
step in the assessment must be completed within a given time
frame. Hence, limits are imposed on the level of detail, the length of
the time period for which impacts can be assessed at the expected
level of detail, and the number of interactions that can reasonably be
considered.  To set these limits, judgments must be made on how
significant each potential impact is, a decision on how much detail
and how much effort in avoiding or mitigating the impact is
appropriate, and whether the residual impacts is insignificant enough
to be acceptable.  These judgments are crucially guided by the
practitioners' own values and the values they consider in the
evaluation process \parencite{lawrence}.

According to \textcite{lawrence-approach}, the approach to determining
impact significance is usually ``limited to ad hoc and inconsistent
judgments with reasons and/or to the staged application of thresholds
and/or criteria.''  The Resource Management Act 1991 does not
prescribe a process for the assessment of significant effects. As all
major projects require resource consents, however, impact significance
is, in practice, reflected by the management plans and established by
resource consent decisions of regional and territorial councils. The
Ministry for the Environment bemoans that a ``lack of clarity and
certainty in some regional plans (eg, a lack of enforceable limits)
has led to issues being decided consent by consent and often
re-litigated'', resulting in ``decision-making processes [that] are
litigious, resource-consuming and create
uncertainty'' \parencite[p. 18][]{freshwater-reform}.

Since the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management (2011),
the ``national values of fresh water'' have been made explicit % TODO

- national values are specified in the NPSFM (2011), but as they
contradict there is no clear implication



- freshwater reform: collaborative approach to planning
  - talk about drawbacks mentioned in \textcite{lawrence-approach}
  - As the determination of significance is inherently subjective, it
   should not be an activity performed only by experts and under the
   aim/appearance/restriction of objectivity.
  ... the technical, the collaborative, and the reasoned argumentation approach
      \begin{quote}
        The collaborative approach is viewed as too quickly equating
        public concerns and issues with impact significance, at the expense of
        other sources of insight and knowledge.
      \end{quote}

- significance decisions must be made on a sound information base,
which rarely exists





- three approaches:
  - the technical approach
    - led by EIA specialists
    - heavy reliance on expert and technical data, analyses and knowledge.
    - 
  - the collaborative approach
  - the reasoned argumentation approach


(third part of lawrence): important to assess significance of
*positive effects* to see if they are worth the negative impacts.



\subsection{}

- significant impacts:
  - likelihood
  - effects that affect sensitive parameters

  

WASTEWATER

temperature:

  According to the project description, an existing dairy factory
  discharges wastewater that is two degrees warmer than the river
  water. If the planned factory has a comparable wastewater output, the
  water may have to be treated before discharge to avoid significant
  effects on the aquatic ecosystem.

organic/inorganic compounds:
contamination with antibiotics / pesticides:

  According to the description, the river is already used as a sink for
  the wastewater of another dairy factory; dairy farming is said to have
  expanded in this area, indicating that the inflow of organic and
  inorganic components from farm effluent and non-point sources has also
  increased. Under these circumstances, the cumulative effects of
  wastewater discharge must be addressed.