National workshop on EIA from Thursday

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Kerala, is organising a three-day national workshop-cum-hands-on-exercise on ‘Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)’. The event will be held in collaboration with the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), New Delhi, from March 29 to 31 at the seminar hall of the department on the Kariavattom campus.Vice-Chancellor Dr A Jayakrishnan will inaugurate the programme at 3 pm on March 28. P Sreekantan Nair, director-in-charge of the department, will preside over the function. Around 100 persons will take part in the programme.The workshop is aimed at providing an opportunity to develop a general understanding of EIA practices in India, a release from the department said. Experiences, trends and challenges in EIA will be discussed and the seminar intends to build a collective knowledge base in efforts to improve decision-making using EIAs.The workshop will also cover a range of topics, including basic concepts, processes, types of development, state-of-the art tools, techniques and approaches for the prediction and assessment of environmental impact at national and international levels.Case studies, both regional and national, will also be undertaken. A demonstration and hands-on-exercise are also part of the programme.