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Social and Economic Impact Assessment Guidelines

by Integrated Resource Planning Committee, Government of BC; co-published with Government of BC

42 pages; Black coil; and 3-hole drilled; catalogue #97-0042; ISBN 1-55212-265-4; US$11.00, C$12.50, EUR9.00, £6.50

This document is intended for use by participants in Land and Resource Management Planning (LRMP) projects and as a guide for agency policy development and implementation. The objective is to ensure effective delivery of integrated resource planning.

Read more! Social and Economic Impact Assessment Guidelines

About the LRMP process About LRMP training and publications About this document Table of Contents

About the LRMP process

Planning for land and resources in British Columbia, including LRMP, is evolving in new directions. Land and resource management decisions made without an overall plan are being replaced by planning at the regional, sub-regional (LRMP), and more local levels. Land and resource decisions formerly made unilaterally by single government agencies are being replaced by inter-agency processes that seek to consider all environmental, resource and socioeconomic values. Decisions with short-range perspectives are being replaced by decisions that seek to protect future generations by ensuring commitments of land and resources are sustainable in the long term. Planning decisions made through internal government agency processes are being replaced by decisions made through open, consensus-based processes involving full participation of the public and stakeholders.

About LRMP training and publications

Training is an essential foundation for the new land and resource management directions in B.C. Through training, participants can become more effective in their roles and responsibilities in the processes. They can better understand the benefits of these processes, and avoid many of the difficulties. The purpose of training is to increase the capabilities of all participants.

How can I find out more about LRMP training?
Training module development is coordinated, on behalf of the Integrated Resource Planning Committee, by Brian Fardoe, Strategic Forest Planning Section, Forest Practices Branch, Ministry of Forests, 1st Floor -1450 Government St., Victoria, BC V8W 3E7. Phone 250-356-5110, fax 387-6751, or email Brian.Fardoe@gems3.gov.bc.ca.

How is training delivered?
Interagency Planning Teams (IPTs) are responsible for developing and implementing LRMP table training plans. In support of IPTs, the Integrated Resource Planning Committee has developed the training modules listed below. In general, IPTs select and fund consultants to present training to LRMP tables.

What kinds of training materials are available?
LRMP training materials produced by the Integrated Resource Planning Committee include modules and publications. Instructor manuals are available for all training modules. Overheads and participant workbooks are also available for most modules.

Training modules:

• Orientation to LRMP
• Public Participation in LRMP
• First Nations:
  • Orientation to LRMP for First Nations
  • Interagency Management Committee Orientation to First Nations
  • LRMP Table Orientation to First Nations
  • LRMP Table Orientation to Local First Nations
• LRMP Process Management
• Scenario Development in LRMP

Publications:

• LRMP: Statement of Principles and Process
• Diamond LRMP- A Model Report
• Resource Analysis Guidelines
• Public Participation Guidelines
• Social and Economic Impact Assessment Guidelines

Who pays for the training materials?

• Note: These training materials and publications are available to IPTs, colleges, researchers and others. A fee is charged by the distributor (Trafford Publishing) to recover printing and order processing expenses only.
• Many of the publications are available to read on-line through accessing the Land Use Coordination Office's web site at http://www.luco.gov.bc.ca/lrmp/home.htm.

About this document

This document is intended for use by participants in Land and Resource Management Planning (LRMP) projects and as a guide for agency policy development and implementation. The objective is to ensure effective delivery of integrated resource planning.

Foreword

The purpose of the guidelines is to provide a consistent format for documenting the range of social and economic implications of alternative land and resource management scenarios. Adopting the framework and procedures outlined in the guidelines will ensure that social and economic values are consistently and comprehensively evaluated in the analysis of land and resource management scenarios throughout British Columbia.

The guidelines described herein were developed originally for the analysis of scenarios specified for land and resource management planning. However, the recommended analysis framework is well-suited for any planning project which considers the social, economic and environmental implications of alternative management scenarios.

A useful example of the application of these guidelines is the Kispiox Resource Management Plan: Socio-Economic Impact Assessment, July 1992, Gary Holman and Karen Cooke, Marvin Shaffer & Associates Ltd.

Executive summary

Planning the use of provincial Crown lands involves consideration of many factors, from the potential of the land base for various uses to how these uses are valued by local communities and the province as a whole. The intent of the planning process is to develop a management strategy that will achieve the objectives established for a particular area of Crown land. The process involves identifying and evaluating alternative land use and management strategies based on the consideration of all resource values within the area. Public input is a key component of the planning process.

Multiple accounts analysis identifies the implications of the scenarios for each evaluation criterion, or account, and the key trade-offs between scenarios. Its purpose is to inform decision-making, not to supplant it.

Alternative land and resource management scenarios for the planning area are determined through the biophysical mapping and assessment of resources. To assess how people, communities and local economies are affected by each scenario, a multiple accounts analysis is used. Multiple accounts analysis uses a set of evaluation accounts to document the range of social and economic impacts of each land and resource management scenario on local communities and the province as a whole.

Table of Contents

Foreword

Executive Summary

1.0 Introduction

       1.1 Methods of Analysis 
       1.2 Organization of Guidelines 

2.0 Evaluation accounts

       2.1 Regional evaluation accounts 
       2.2 Provincial evaluation accounts 
       2.3 Summary of evaluation accounts 

3.0 Evaluation procedures

       3.1 Defining the Base Case 
       3.2 Specifying Land and Resource Management Scenarios 
       3.3 Evaluating Regional Accounts 
              Regional Economic Development Account 
              Regional Environmental Values Account 
              Community Characteristics and Quality of Life Account 
              Specific Aboriginal Community Concerns Account 
       3.4 Evaluating Provincial Accounts 
              Provincial Economic Development Account 
              Provincial Environmental Values Account 
              Provincial Government Finances Account 
              Economic Efficiency of Resource Use Account 

4.0 Communication of findings

5.0 Data sources

Footnotes

Glossary

List of Figures

       F1: Summary of Evaluation Accounts 
       F2: Forest Sector Linkages to Land and Resource Management Plan 
       F3: Tourism Sector Linkages to Land and Resource Management Plan 
       F4: Recreational Activity Linkage to Land and Resource Management Plan 
       F5: Calculation of Total Prov. Income and Employment Effects 
       F6: Socio-Economic Assessment in Land and Resource Management Planning 
       F7: Matrix Summary of Socio-Economic Assessment Findings 

List of Tables

       T1: Trends in Forest Sector Employment per Unit of Output 
       T2: Estimated Income Multipliers for Seven B.C. Regions