This is the Stop HS2 response to the Government’s Consultation on Draft Scope and Methodology document for the Environmental Impact Assessment, which finished on the 30th May.
Download: Stop HS2 submission to EIA Scoping Consultation
The current EIA timeline is
| April 2012 – May 2012 | Consultation on Draft Scope and Methodology document for the Environmental Impact Assessment |
| Spring 2012 – Spring 2013 | Engagement programme for Phase 1 route as part of the Environmental Impact Assessment process |
| Spring 2013 – Summer 2013 | Consultation on the Draft Environmental Statement for Phase 1 |
Stop HS2 have a number of concerns about the proposals in the scoping document, which we addressed in our submission.
These range from the structure of the proposed Environmental Statement, concerns about whether alternatives will be considered in the required depth, to HS2 assumptions about using “minimum standards” for the environment rather then “world class” standards.
In particular, we are concerned that HS2 Ltd is using an inappropriately tight timescale, with a project that would take decades just to build relying on one-off surveys in a single year.