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RESILIENT AND INCLUSIVE LINEAR INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT: THE CASE FOR A HOLISTIC MODEL
from MAPPING PATHWAYS: Towards a Holistic Model for Inclusive and Resilient Linear Infrastructure
by WWF-Myanmar
The premise of the proposed holistic model is that the current approach to developing linear infrastructure in the ASEAN region cannot ensure the effective consideration of resilience and inclusivity for two interrelated reasons:
1. The lack of a clear overarching regulatory framework that begins at the upstream stages covering system planning and project identification and continues to individual project development, means that linear infrastructure is not being planned and implemented in a coordinated manner.
2. In the absence of a regulatory framework, EIAs have become the default mechanism for considering the risks associated with project proposals. This often comes too late in the linear infrastructure project lifecycle to avoid significant impacts while expecting EIAs to go beyond their purpose in terms of building resilience and inclusivity.
These issues form the basis for the proposed integrated regulatory model for the holistic planning, design, and construction of resilient and inclusive linear infrastructure. They are also consistent with the findings of a recent WWF analysis, Visioning Futures, which categorized the lack of progress in shifting investments towards climate resilient and sustainable infrastructure into three overarching causes:97
1. Insufficient “upstream” strategic planning across multiple projects and sectors, limited by insufficient data and analysis of key climate risk, ecological integrity, and ecosystem services factors;
2. The limited spatial scope of environmental and other impact and feasibility assessments;
3. Insufficient consideration of the risks and likely future impacts of ever-increasing climate change.
Cutting across all three causes is a disconnect between the project-based, or “downstream” mechanisms and the “upstream” considerations about the long-term infrastructure, community, and environmental needs of a region. As a result, EIAs are overused as risk management tools. The analysis of this upstream-downstream disconnect is based on an understanding of the approach to project development in ASEAN, including the authors’ practical experience in advising governments on major project investment and environmental assessment procedures.
