Screening

The purpose of the screening process is to determine whether a Plan is likely to have a significant effect on the environment and therefore inform whether SEA is required.  Some plans do not need to go through this stage and are permitted to go straight to scoping.

The relevant government body may be contacted to advise and assist Responsible Authorities in the process of identification of which Plans require to undertake screening for SEA (i.e. SEA gateway in Scotland and Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA) in Northern Ireland). However this can not be deemed legal advice and Responsible Authorities should take legal advice if they are in any doubt.

In Scotland, there is a wider range of Plans which are subject to SEA than in the rest of the UK, and Scotland also has a pre-screening stage which is an exemption route for those Plans that are likely to have no or minimal effects on the environment once implemented.  Further details on screening and pre-screening for Scotland can be found in the SEA Guidance (SEA Toolkit) in the Related Items.

The next level will take you to the screening section on Potential Significant Effects.