Hi,
You've all made very valid points. I would simply like to highlight the
practical limitations of achieving these ends (already acknowledged in
part by Salim). For example, what percentage of the affected communities
will actually be part of the participation or consultation process? How
can public anxiety be addressed by the decision makers through e.g.
planning obligations?
Can I be the first to wish everyone on the list a VERY HAPPY CHRISTMAS,
Andy.
-----Original Message-----
From: Health Impact Assessment for the United Kingdom and Ireland
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Salim Vohra
Sent: 21 December 2006 12:39
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: high-voltage lines
Martin good point, I do think ethics are involved here. Jenny, I
remember that study too.
Going back to Mike's question. I'll stick my neck out and give my
personal view/thinking/judgement.
I think HIA can/would do both.
My reasoning on this is as follows:
a) that in cases of heightened concern there tends to be some central
scientific uncertainty about the health impacts;
b) that residents concerns tend to be wider than just a
disbelief/disagreement about the evidence for impacts and impacts
analysis (the technical issues) and relate to social (process) and
cultural (symbolic) concerns about a plan/project;
c) HIA has the ability - though often difficult in practice - to bring
stakeholders together to discuss and reach a scientific and social
(values/morals/ethics) consensus on the above issues. By embedding
community consultation into the assessment process, not as the whole
process but as a key element of it, it can constructively reduce
anxieties by working through the science with lay communities. HIA in
that sense has similarities with lay epidemiology.
d) Lastly, one of the principles that I use in community consultation is
to recognise that just as we 'experts' are not always right so
communities are not always right. They do have valuable experiential
knowledge that can aid the analysis of health impacts and should be
tapped into but this knowledge needs to be sifted and filtered through a
review process similar to scientific peer review and qualitative data
triangulation.
________________________________
From: Health Impact Assessment for the United Kingdom and Ireland on
behalf of Joffe, Michael
Sent: Thu 21/12/2006 01:30
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: high-voltage lines
If it's true that the main (or even possibly, the only) harmful effect
of something is to cause public concern and anxiety, what is the
legitimate role of HIA in this? To the extent that the adverse health
effects are from a perception, is the role of HIA to try and reduce that
perception, and thus also reduce the health impact? - in other words, to
undermine the perception that is harming some people? Or is it just to
accept the public perception and go along with calls for the agent to be
controlled/reduced as if it were really toxic in a chemical or physical
sense?
Mike
------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------
This message has been scanned for viruses by BlackSpider MailControl
<http://www.blackspider.com/>
_
------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----
Email is used as a convenient medium for rapid data transfer. Any
contractual correspondence
sent or received by email will not be held to be such unless and until
it is received in writing by a Fax or Letter.
Likewise file attachments must be treated as uncontrolled documents
until issued as hard copy.
This email and any files transmitted with it are confidential and are
intended
solely for the use of the individual or entity to whom they are
addressed.
If an addressing or transmission error has misdirected this email please
notify
the author by replying to this email and delete the email. If you are
not the
intended recipient you must not use or disclose, print or rely on this
email.
Any OS Data attached to this email is issued in accordance with Licence
No. 100017583 under condition that it is used to plot once and not
retained
on the recipients computer system.
The Partnership accepts no liability for the contents of emails
unconnected
with the affairs of the firm or its clients.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----
This message has been scanned for viruses by BlackSpider MailControl -
www.blackspider.com
|