First world development in a third world environment: The challenges and solutions to environmental impact mitigation during construction phases of hydropower projects in Tanzania, East Africa

摘要

Integration of the Environmental impact assessment (EIA) in the project cycle is the accepted method of ensuring environmentally sound projects. The EIA and required mitigation are often perceived by engineers and contractors, as a barrier, rather than an aid, to project development. Third world infrastructure and support are limited, making project and mitigation implementation difficult. If perceptions are not changed, and mitigation is not pro-active, the EIA slowly becomes separated from the project cycle and avoidable negative impacts occur. This paper discusses the reasons that EIA separation occurs and how the environmental specialist, as a partner in the project cycle, shares the responsibility of project development and construction impact mitigation. The environmental specialist interprets the first world environmental concepts and provides mitigation specifications and criteria to assist in overcoming third world challenges encountered by the engineer and contractor. Experiences of Pangani Falls and Lower Kihansi Hydropower Projects in Tanzania illustrates the benefits of EIA integration.