Treatment of biodiversity impacts in a sample of US environmental impact statements

The objectives of the project discussed here were to identify the level of documentation in US environmental impact statements dealing with biodiversity impact assessment, determine whether, in the years following release in 1993 of US Council on Environmental Quality guidelines on biodiversity, the treatment of the subject has changed, and identify deficiencies. A systematic review process examined 35 US impact statements using a ‘biodiversity assessment index’ based on 19 review questions to score each statement. While our project examines a relatively small sample, data indicate that biodiversity assessment is lacking in US environmental impact statements. As a result, we have formulated a series of recommendations and tools for improving the treatment of biodiversity impact assessment.