A Consolidated Report for Six Workshops - April-June 2000

Chapter 5: Aspects of Handbook Not Liked By Participants In All Six Workshops

Although the participants in all workshops liked many aspects of HIA in the handbook, they did not like fourteen different aspects of HIA including the lack of fundamental aspects in the handbook . Responses of participants are classified to these 14 different but related aspects of HIA in the handbook as presented next:

Inadequate Information on Target Audience

• description of target audience is not clear (Toronto Workshop)
• audience of this material is not well defined (Vancouver Workshop)
• the handbook did not clarify target audience (Vancouver Workshop)
• audience is not fully defined in the handbook (Vancouver Workshop)
• there is some confusion about target audience (Regina Workshop)
• this handbook could have been directed at a larger audience (Halifax Workshop)
• the handbook overemphasis on health professionals , but not on other target audiences which include EA practitioners among other groups (Ottawa Workshop)

Lack of Proper Integration of Human Health and Environment

• examples in the handbook do not include HIA linkages to EAs conducted in the past and present (Toronto workshop)
• there is no clear presentation on how the current environmental assessment be changed to include broader determinants of health (Regina Workshop)
• lack of clear information on HIA linkages with EA (Halifax Workshop)
• links between this handbook and EA are not clear (Ottawa Workshop)
• there is no information on how health professionals fit into EA team (Ottawa Workshop)
• the handbook does not specify HIA requirements relevant to EA process (Toronto Workshop)

Lack of Information on Environmental Health Concerns

• the handbook does not provide information on the common environmental health concerns in Canada (Toronto Workshop)
• human health issues are not properly addressed (Toronto Workshop)
• correct health standards are not properly established (Toronto workshop)

Lack of Proper Linkages of Hia with Legislation and Regulations

• does not establish links with related legislation and regulations (Toronto Workshop)
• review of Canada's legislation has inaccuracies (Ottawa Workshop)
• this handbook is not systematic in reference to legislation, regulations, directives and guidelines (Ottawa Workshop)

Lack of Linkages between Hia and Sia

• social impacts on health are missing (Toronto Workshop)
• the handbook is not clear on whether Social Impact Assessment (SIA) is separate from HIA (Toronto Workshop)
• if SIA is part of HIA, then it is important to show that linkage (Toronto Workshop)
• there is no clear identification of SIA issues and HIA issues (Toronto Workshop)

Lack of Information on Community Involvement / Public Involvement

• not enough tools for community involvement (Halifax Workshop)
• there is no information on community involvement (Halifax Workshop)
• how to consult the public is not detailed enough (Quebec Workshop)

Lack of Information on Cost Estimation and Resource Requirements

• resource requirements and availabilities are not discussed in the handbook (Toronto Workshop)
• cost of implementation is not available (Ottawa Workshop)
• cost information is not provided in the handbook (Ottawa Workshop)

No Clear Process for Health Impact Assessment

• the handbook does not provide information on how to do HIA (Toronto Workshop)
• there is no information on the monitoring and evaluation of HIA process (Toronto Workshop)
• the handbook does not recognize stages in EA process (Toronto Workshop)
• volume-2 is supposed to provide the "how", but that "how" is not there in the handbook (Vancouver Workshop)
• the required decision making process is not clearly given in the handbook (Regina Workshop)
• operational element is not clear in the handbook. ie. Tools on "flow to" are missing (Regina Workshop)
• there is no clear assessment framework for health impacts (Halifax Workshop)
• HIA is described at project level and not at program level in this handbook (Ottawa Workshop)
• the 'how' is not very well outlined in this document. Eg., How does a project officer apply HIA (Ottawa Workshop)

Lack of Mitigation Information

• lack of information on mitigation options (Toronto Workshop)
• mitigation aspects are not available in the handbook (Toronto Workshop)
• incorrect statement on page-102 about mitigation of noise (Ottawa Workshop)

Lack of Adequate Human Resources Information

• the roles and responsibilities of health authorities are not clear in the handbook (Toronto Workshop)
• there is lack of clarity on the role of health professionals (Regina Workshop)
• it is hard to know from the handbook on questions such as: Who is responsible for What?, When? and How? (Regina Workshop)
• there is a general lack of clarity on the roles of health professionals (Halifax Workshop)

Inadequate Information on Data Sources and Data Needs

• lack of adequate informational references from sectors (Vancouver Workshop)
• it appears that volumes 2 & 3 relies heavily on a single set of data from a single source (Regina Workshop)
• no provision for a centralized database
• the handbook does not answer the questions such as 'where do you go for further information?' Ie. Sources of information are missing (Halifax Workshop)

Problems on the Need for Different Volumes of Handbook

• volume-3 is not helpful (Toronto Workshop)
• many issues are raised in volume-3, but lacks direction (Toronto Workshop)
• the particular need for volume-3 is questionable (Toronto Workshop)
• if volume-3 is required, it could be titled as "Back Grounder" for health professionals (Toronto Workshop)

Unclear on Specific Contents and Format of the Handbook

• does not provide definition of terms used in the handbook (Toronto Workshop)
• land use issues are missing in the handbook (Toronto Works hop)
• lack of clear definitions on what we meant by some terms in the handbook (Ottawa Workshop)
• Sustainable Development (SD) is interesting. But not pertinent to HIA / EA practitioners (Ottawa Workshop)

General Problems with the Whole Handbook

• amount of information in the handbook may cause "paralysis" (Regina Workshop)
• the handbook is theoretical (Toronto Workshop)
• the handbook is too long (Vancouver Workshop)
• information in volume-2 is not current (Vancouver Workshop) there is no information in the handbook on "where will Guidelines ultimately be used" (Vancouver Workshop)
• the Handbook looks like more of a textbook instead of a handy "handbook" for quick reference (Halifax Workshop)
• the Handbook does not answer the question on how to use HIA as a part of developing strategic policies (Halifax Workshop)
• this handbook is not specific enough for EA practitioners (Ottawa Workshop)
• since the roles and responsibilities of EA practitioners are not clear in the handbook, there is a need for another volume (may be a volume-3) for EA practitioners (please be brief to about 20 pages) (Ottawa Workshop)
• titles do not match contents in many sections (Ottawa Workshop)
• volume-2 is not linked to volume-3 (Ottawa Workshop)
• titles in this handbook are not along guidelines (Ottawa Workshop)
• follow general EA process in the layout of chapters (Ottawa Workshop)
• does not address questions such as 'When to use volume-3?' etc. (Ottawa Workshop)
• the mere size of the document itself (several hundred pages) discourages its reading (Quebec Workshop)
• social impacts are not included in the handbook (Quebec Workshop)
• insufficient attention is paid to psychological health and diet (Quebec Workshop)
• language used in the handbook is too academic (Ottawa Workshop)