What are the thresholds that an EIA will definitely be required for a Schedule 2 project?

Any project which falls in a Schedule 1 category will definitely require an EIA. Since Schedule 2 projects are not straight-forward, the Local Planning Authority should decide if one is required after evaluating its size against some thresholds. A few examples of projects that will still require an EIA are listed below:

  • Industrial estates
    • in excess of 20ha
    • more than 1000 dwellings within 200m
    • smaller estates in sensitive rural areas
  • Out-of-town shopping centres
    • with a floor area of 20.000m2 or more
  • Urban development schemes
    • greater than 5 ha
    • more than 700 dwellings within 200m from boundary
    • more than 10.000m2 of shops, offices or other commercial development.

The table below summarises the categories found in Schedule 1 and Schedule 2:

Schedule 1
(23 categories)
Schedule 2
(13 categories)
1. Crude-oil refineries 1. Agriculture and aquaculture
2. Thermal/Nuclear power stations 2. Extractive industry
3. Installations for the reprocessing of irradiated nuclear fuel 3. Energy industry
4. Integrated works for the initial smelting of cast-iron and steel 4. Production and processing of metals
5. Installations for the extraction of asbestos 5. Mineral industry
6. Chemical installations 6. Chemical industry (unless included in Schedule 1)
7. Railways and airports with a basic runway length longer than 2,100 m 7. Food industry
8. Inland waterways & ports 8. Textile, leather, wood and paper industries
9. Waste disposal installations or landfill of hazardous waste 9. Rubber industry
10. Waste disposal installations of non-hazardous waste with a capacity exceeding 100 tonnes per day. 10. Infrastructure projects
11. Transfer of water resources 11. Other projects
12. Waste water treatment plants 12. Tourism and leisure
13. Groundwater abstraction or artificial groundwater recharge schemes 13. Changes and extensions
14. Extraction of petroleum and natural gas for commercial purposes
15. Dams and other installations designed for the holding back or permanent storage of water
16. Pipelines with a diameter of more than 800mm and a length of more than 40km
17. Installations for the intensive rearing of poultry or pigs
18. Industrial plants for the production of pulp or paper
19. Quarries and open‑cast mining
20. Construction of overhead electrical power lines
21. Storage sites (geological storage of carbon dioxide)
22. Installations for the capture of carbon dioxide streams
23. Any change to or extension of development listed in this Schedule

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