3.2.1. Step 1: Collect information on the project and on the Natura 2000 sites concerned

The information required for the appropriate assessment includes a description of the Natura 2000 sites likely to be affected, the species and habitats significantly present on the site (so called designating features) and their conservation objectives, as well as a description of the plan or project and its possible effects on the site’s conservation objectives. Part of this information may already have been collected during the screening phase, but usually the information will need to be more detailed for the appropriate assessment. Pursuant to Article 5(2) of the EIA Directive and Article 5(4) of the SEA Directive, at the request of the developer, the competent authority should establish the scope of the environmental impact assessment (scoping). The purpose of scoping is to identify those elements that should be covered in the environmental assessment report prepared by the developer and submitted to the competent authority. In particular, the scoping exercise should help to identify the most important elements to be studied so that these can be addressed in greater detail. (23) The scoping will vary depending on the plan or project and the sites concerned. However, normally it will include a description of the site, a description of the plan or project and the identification of its potential impacts on the site, in view of the sties conservation objectives. Irrespective of whether the appropriate assessment is integrated into the EIA/SEA or not, the scoping should indicate the baseline conditions within the site (i.e. the conditions of protected habitats and species significantly present on the site, the site-specific conservation objectives as well as of other elements that determine its integrity and the importance of the site for the coherence of the network) that will need to be identified and studied during the appropriate assessment, the level of detail of the analysis, the methods, criteria for the evaluation of significance, types of mitigation measures and alternatives to be analysed, etc. The extent and level of detail required for data collection, surveys and investigations will differ depending on the project and the site(s) affected. It must therefore be decided on a case-by-case. It may depend, for instance, on the complexity of the project and of the site, as well as the site’s importance for the species and habitats for which it has been designated. It will also depend on the data that is already available on the site and the species and habitats significantly present, as well as on information from previous assessments, etc. Harmonised and high quality geographic information usually facilitates the work of the developers, authorities and stakeholders and is of particular importance in the context of transboundary projects and impacts. For example, in the case of a project affecting a cross-border river or an installation which can potentially create transboundary pollution, it is very important that common standards are used to identify, assess and mitigate these impacts. The EU directive ‘INSPIRE’ (INfrastructure for SPatial InfoRmation in Europe) aims to make such standardised data available and used (24). Table 3 provides an indicative checklist of baseline information required for the appropriate assessment, while Table 4 gives an example of information to collect when assessing the effects of plans and projects on Natura 2000. Table 3 Indicative checklist of baseline information required for the appropriate assessment Table 4 Information to collect when assessing the effects of plans and projects on Natura 2000 sites (guidelines in Spain) Adapted from: Recommendations on the information to include in the appropriate assessment of projects on the Natura 2000 network in the EIA documents of the national administration in Spain (Ministerio de Agricultura y Pesca, Alimentación y Medio Ambiente, 2018). Available at: https://www.miteco.gob.es/es/calidad-y-evaluacion-ambiental/temas/evaluacion-ambiental/guias-directrices/

← sec_3_2__para__7 · All articles · sec_3_2_1__para →

Source: EUR-Lex (Cellar) · retrieved 2026-09-25 · Text as adopted (Official Journal); later amendments are not incorporated in this text.