Clarifications on the Scheme

Transcription

1 December 14, 2010 Clarifications on the Scheme Clarifications have been issued from time to time on the Scheme, as approved by the Accreditation Committee (AC). Those issued till date are mentioned below: Accreditation Committee Meeting II/ 2010 Dated : June 12, 2010 a) In response to a query, AC confirmed that a consultant may be accredited for Cat. A for certain sectors and Cat. B for some other sectors, depending upon its capability in a particular sector. b) For Applicants who have NABL Accredited Laboratory/ GLP Certified or tied up with one, the parameters accredited by NABL should be recorded during Assessment. If the spectrum of NABL Accreditation does not cover all essential testing required for environmental baseline data generation for EIAs, the procedure mentioned for outsourcing for such work by the applicant should be carefully checked. Accreditation Committee Meeting III/ 2010 Dated : June 24, 2010 NABET should advise applicants in advance to make all of their EIA Coordinators & Functional Area Experts available at the time of Office Assessment. The sectors allocated to the EIA Coordinators not present during Office Assessment & Interview, shall be automatically removed. Accreditation Committee Meeting V/ 2010 Dated : July 13, 2010 Laboratory Considering the critical importance of accuracy of environmental baseline data for EIAs, it was felt by the AC that data generated by NABL accredited/ MOEF registered/ GLP certified laboratories would be only acceptable. In case an applicant organization is using its own in house laboratory facilities but do not fall in the above Categories, needs to be assessed as per the criteria mentioned in the Scheme. Such applicant organizations shall be required to get their in house laboratories accredited/ registered/ certified as above, within one year or they will be required to use any of the accredited laboratories after the expiry of the one year from the date of accreditation. Accreditation Committee Meeting VI/ 2010 Dated : August 5, 2010 a) The response for NCs and Observations raised during Stage II or III by the Assessor shall be specifically submitted by Applicant Organization. The case should be put up to AC for its consideration only after the closure of the NCs/ Observation. b) For Sectors included in the list of projects needing environmental clearance for the first time in the Sept 2006 Notification of MOEF, requirements of prior experience in preparation of EIAs for such Sectors may be relaxed by the Accreditation Committee for reasons to be recorded. However, requirement of overall experience related to EIA, as per the Scheme will have to be met.

2 Accreditation Committee Meeting X/ 2010 Dated : September 21, 2010 Explanatory Notes on Accreditation Scheme to clarify various queries received by QCI from time to time on the different aspects of Scheme, the following explanatory notes on the Scheme were discussed and approved: 1. Clause 2 (Definitions) and (Experience/ Exposure) of Scheme Experience of EIA Coordinators a) EIA related experience Minimum 7 years work experience related to EIA preparation either as EIA Coordinator or assisting the EIA team as a Functional Area Expert/ supporting the EIA Coordinator or in the EHS department of the project proponent getting EIAs conducted by external consultants or in the role of appraisal of EIA reports as a regulator/ appraiser/ academician. b) Sector specific experience (for each Sector applied for) Any one of the following: *3 EIAs for the Sector *3 Environmental Assignments (monitoring, auditing, performance evaluation etc) for the Sector *A combination of EIAs & environmental assignments totalling three for each sector 2 years experience in an industry in the Sector as an employee in their EHS/ Operations/ Maintenance/ Projects departments *The environmental monitoring carried out for an EIA study cannot be separately shown as an assignment also, over and above an EIA. 2. Item 3.2 (Skills & Knowledge of experts) and (Functional Area Experts) of Scheme Requirement of in house experts There shall be a minimum requirement of having at least one in house EIA Coordinator who together with at least two other in house Functional Area Experts shall have expertise in the following areas: i. Air Pollution Control ii. Water Pollution Control iii. Socio Economics iv. Ecology and Biodiversity v. Solid & Hazardous Waste Management 3. Clause 3.15 of Scheme Category of Accreditation EIA Coordinators and Functional Area Experts proposed by the applicant organizations would be classified as Category A or B in the accreditation given to the Organization. EIA Coordinators: For being eligible as EIA Coordinator for Category A projects (as defined in MoEF Notification dated Sep 14, 2006) in a Sector, s/he should have carried out at least one EIA or an Environmental Assignment for a project of Category A in that Sector. Functional Area Expert: Experts with a total of minimum 3 years experience in the respective functional area/s, out of which at least 1 year should be related to EIA projects, will be able to work as independent FAEs for Category B projects. FAEs for Category A projects should have been involved in at least one EIA/ environmental assignment for a Category A project for each area of functional expertise applied for. Additionally, s/he should have a total experience in the respective functional area/s of minimum 5 years, of which at least 3 years should be EIA related. Category A experts (EC & FAE) would be able to work for Category B projects also.

3 4. Clause 3.2 of the Scheme (Para 2) Requirement of EIA Coordinators To do justice to the role of an EIA Coordinator and carry out an appropriate and detailed EIA, an EC could handle projects from maximum five sectors as defined in Annexure IIIA of the Scheme. These Sectors are same as those specified in MoEF Notification dated Sep 14, 2006 with 5 addl. sectors mentioned at Sl No. 40, to be treated individually as a sector. An expert may be proposed, both as an EIA Coordinator and a Functional Area expert, governed by the requirements of the Scheme i.e., maximum five Sectors and four areas of expertise, respectively. 5. Clause of the Scheme Office Assessment & Interview Changes in application prior to Office Assessment The following provisions will apply: Applicants are advised to go through the Accreditation Scheme carefully prior to preparing their application. It may be noted that all 11 functional areas should be covered in their application. In case of any doubt, they should seek clarification from NABET. Before applying to NABET, the applicants must exercise due diligence in ensuring that the experts proposed meet the minimum requirements of the Scheme Once the application is received by NABET, no changes shall be accepted in the scope of application, i.e. the number of sectors applied for. In case an applicant wishes to apply for additional sectors or change sectors, the same will be considered as a fresh application and will join the queue of applications. In respect of experts proposed, changes may be considered under the following conditions In response to NCs/ Obs. raised by NABET on the original application Applicants are informed by NABET Secretariat after Stage II Assessment about experts not meeting the Scheme s requirements in the form of Non Conformances (NCs) or Observations (Obs). The applicant organization may either redistribute sectors/ functional areas within the experts proposed in the original application to address such NCs/Obs. or add new names giving requisite details, without adding any new sector. In case of non availability of expert/s due to resignation/ long leave/ assignments abroad (evidence to be shown)/ due to a genuine and unavoidable reason (the Accreditation Committee s decision in regard to genuineness of the reason shall be final) However, any such change must be submitted to NABET prior to the Office Assessment. Any change proposed during the Office Assessment shall not be accepted. 6. Clause of the Scheme Office Assessment & Interview (Para 2) Interview of Experts The office assessment shall cover interview of all EIA coordinators and Functional Area Experts proposed who have met the requirements of the Scheme during Stage II Assessment and those proposed in response to NCs/ Obs. of NABET of the Stage II Assessment. The interviewees will include both full time employees and empanelled resources. Normally ten days prior notice shall be given by NABET through e mail to applicant organizations, for conducting the Office Assessment in their premises. All applicants are requested to kindly co operate, as rescheduling of Office Assessment is very difficult in view of large number of applications to be processed.

4 7. Clause 3.15 Category of Accreditation (Para 4) Re application The consultants who fail to get accreditation as Category A consultants or any Category of accreditation will be informed by NABET of the areas in which they need to improve to get accreditation. Such consultants may re apply to QCI, once they feel confident of having fulfilled necessary requirements. The re applications will be considered as fresh applications. 8. Qualification & Experience of Experts 8.1 Clause Minimum educational Qualification of EIA Coordinators Bachelor s degree or equivalent in Engineering/ Architecture/ Environmental Planning/ Town Planning and the like from a recognized University/ Institution. or Masters degree in Physical/ Environmental/ Life Sciences/ Social Sciences/ Economics/ Management from a recognized University/ Institution. In the subjects as mentioned below Engineering Chemical/ Civil/ Mining/ Electrical/Environmental/ allied Engineering, Architecture (Architecture or Town and Country Planning) Sciences Environmental Sciences/ Physics/ Chemistry/ Botany/ Zoology/ Geology/ Geography/ Forestry or Agricultural Sciences/ Social Sciences Others Law/ Management Ph.D. and other additional qualifications in related fields are welcome. 8.2 Clause to Clause Functional Area Experts Minimum educational Qualifications: Technical Subjects Bachelors Degree or equivalent in Engineering/ Architecture/ Environmental Planning/ Town Planning and the like from a recognized University/ Institution in specific disciplines as mentioned against each functional area or Science Subjects Masters Degree in Physical Sciences/ Environmental Sciences/ Life Sciences/ Social Sciences or in Economics from a recognized University/ Institution in specific disciplines as mentioned against each functional area Ph.D. and other additional qualifications in related fields are welcome Add: Following additional subjects are also acceptable against different FAEs mentioned below: i. Land Use: Masters Degree in Environmental Engineering or Environmental Management Bachelors Degree in other branches of Engineering or Masters degree in Science subjects or in Geography followed by specialized training in GIS/ Remote Sensing/ Cartography (not less than 2 months duration) from an University/ recognized institutions like NRSA, ISRO, IIRS, IIFM and the like ii. Air Pollution Control: Technical Mining Engineering

5 iii. Air Quality Modeling: Technical Civil/ Chemical Engineering Science Subject Atmospheric Sciences iv. Water Pollution Control: Technical Public Health Engineering Science Subjects Natural Resources Management/ Microbiology/ Hydrology/ Geohydrology v. Ecology & Biodiversity: Science Subject Natural Resource Management Delete: Masters Degree in Biotechnology and Biochemistry vi. Noise & Vibration: Technical Mining Engineering Science Subject Geophysics vii. Socio-Economics: Masters Degree in Social Welfare/ Geography/ Psychology/ Anthropology/ Demographic Studies/ Economics/ any sociology related subject viii. Hydrology, Ground Water & Conservation: Technical Mining Engineering ix. Geology & Soil: Technical Mining Engineering Science Subjects Forestry/ Botany/ Natural Resource Management x. Risk & Hazards Management: Technical Chemical Technology Bachelors Degree in Engineering/ Masters Degree in Science subjects followed by 1 year (or above) Post Graduate Diploma in Industrial Safety from a University/ recognized Institution xi. Solid Waste & Hazardous Waste Management: Technical Chemical Technology Science Subjects Toxicology/ Natural Resource Management Delete: Masters Degree in Environmental Economics 9. Quality Manual Systems and procedures mentioned as Broad Guidelines in QCI website must be included in the Quality Manual of the Applicant Organizations. 10. Representations by EIA Consultants The Accreditation Committee (AC) was apprised of the representations received from consultants whose cases have already been taken up. These mainly relate to requests for interviews of experts. It was resolved that a two member team of NABET Assessors will be available at the QCI Office every 2 nd and 4 th Saturdays of the month from 1100 hrs to 1600 hrs to take up such cases and interview the experts. However, the interviews will be limited to

6 a. Experts not present in the interview due to hospitalization/ long leave/ assignment abroad (evidence to be shown)/ exceptional and unavoidable circumstances (AC s decision in this regard will be final) b. Experts who had changed their sectors/ functional area/s during Stage III but not considered, may be interviewed for the original sectors/ functional areas proposed Representations will be taken up in the same chronological order as received by NABET. The genuineness of the representation shall be assessed by NABET and appropriate action shall be taken, if necessary. An assessment fee will be 1 x 2 person days for such interviews to the concerned applicant organization. Accreditation Committee Meeting XIII/ 2010 Dated : October 26, 2010 a) The Scheme requires all 11 Functional Areas (FAs) to be covered by an Applicant Organisation (AO) to be accredited. Out of these 11 FAs, the 5 core areas viz, AP, WP, SW, EB and SE should be covered through in house expertise, the balance could be covered by inhouse or empanelled experts. During Stage I Assessment by NABET Secretariat and Stage II Assessment by the Principal Assessor, deviations from the above requirements are intimated to the AO by NABET as Non conformance (NC) or Observation (Obs). The AOs are required to comply with these as early as possible, but not later than 3 months from the date of being intimated. Stage III Assessment will be taken up only when an AO covers at least the core FAs through eligible in house expertise. If an AO is not in a position to propose suitable in house candidates for the 5 core areas and preferably also for the balance areas within 3 months from the date of being intimated, its application will be treated as cancelled. It also to be noted that after the Stage III Assessment and consideration of the case by the Accreditation Committee, if some FAs are not covered as per requirements of the Scheme, the same are to be complied with positively within three months of date of the Minutes of AC Meeting being posted on QCI website. In case the conditions are not complied within three months by an AO, its application shall be put on the pending list and shall be considered further only after processing all the applications received by NABET. The accreditation certificate shall be issued only on compliance of all the conditions mentioned in the Minutes of the relevant AC meeting posted on QCI website. b) It has been noticed that considerable time is lost due to postponements sought by Applicant Organisations of scheduled Office Assessment. In order to expedite processing of the applications pending with NABET, it was decided to follow the following procedure NABET will give 10 days clear notice for Office Assessment An Applicant Organisation must reply within 2 days if it is not suitable to it Any postponement will be considered only on unavoidable grounds like proposed date clashing with an EAC meeting or presentation to State level authorities Once the date of Office Assessment is fixed, no postponement shall be accepted In case, an Applicant Organisation fails to keep the date of the Office Assessment, it will fall back at the end of the list of applicants and its case will be taken up only after completing the first round of Office Assessments of all applications received by NABET c) In case, an Applicant Organisation wishes to cover any functional area or a Sector (for an EC) through agreement with Institute/University/Research Centre etc, the same shall be done mentioning the specific experts. Such experts will go through the same process of assessment as for others. Any agreement without mentioning the names of the experts will not be accepted.

7 Accreditation Committee Meeting XVI/ 2010 Dated : November 16, 2010 The Accreditation Committee was apprised of the representations by the applicants that experts on Socioeconomics (SE) and Ecology & Bio diversity (EB) were not readily available for recruitment. The accreditation committee reiterated that in house availability of experts in all five core areas namely, AP, WP, SW, SE and EB is essential. Under the circumstances, as an interim measure, applicants having in house exerts in three core areas namely, AP, WP and SW but deficient in other two core areas i.e. SE & EB may be given provisional approval, provided they have approved empanelled experts in these two areas. Such applicants may also be informed that they must acquire in house approved experts in SE & EB positively prior to the first Surveillance Audit, failing which they will lose their claim for accreditation.