Participatory Rural Appraisal Approaches for Public Participation in EIA: Lessons from South Africa

Luke A. Sandham, Jason J. Chabalala and Harry H. Spaling
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Luke A. Sandham: School of Geo and Spatial Sciences, North-West University, Potchefstroom 2521, South Africa
Jason J. Chabalala: School of Geo and Spatial Sciences, North-West University, Potchefstroom 2521, South Africa
Harry H. Spaling: Geography and Environmental Studies, The King’s University, Edmonton, AB T6B 2H3, Canada

Land, 2019, vol. 8, issue 10, 1-16

Abstract: Public participation in environmental impact assessment (EIA) often falls short of the requirements of best practice in the move towards sustainable development, particularly for disadvantaged and marginalized communities. This paper explores the value of a participatory rural appraisal (PRA) approach for improved public participation in a sample of EIA’s for photovoltaic projects in South Africa. PRA was conducted post facto making use of selected PRA tools. Findings show that a great deal more information was obtained by the PRA approach, confirming the perceived weakness of traditional PP for vulnerable and disadvantaged communities. It is concluded that a PRA approach has considerable potential for improving meaningful public participation, which should improve EIA, build capacity in those communities, and enhance livelihoods and sustainable resource use.

Keywords: participatory rural appraisal (PRA); public participation; EIA (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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