The Need for Health Impact Assessments to be Integrated into all Federal Environmental Assessment Processes

The document advocates for a shift in federal environmental assessments (EA) in Canada to explicitly include Health Impact Assessments (HIAs). It argues that current processes focus too heavily on plant and animal species while neglecting the social, ecological, and physical determinants of human health. The authors propose a comprehensive HIA framework based on WHO definitions and the 'determinants of health' approach, emphasizing that health equity and the precautionary principle should guide development. Key recommendations include establishing baseline health data before proposals are made, integrating HIA into cabinet directives for all policies and programs, and involving health-focused federal agencies as central decision-makers.

• Current federal environmental assessment (EA) processes are deemed inadequate because they fail to sufficiently reflect the health and well-being of people and communities, focusing primarily on impacts to plant and animal species.
• The authors argue that health is shaped by a complex array of ecological, social, economic, cultural, and psychological determinants, including clean air, water, food, energy, shelter, and a stable climate, all of which should be integrated into EA processes.
• Climate change is identified as the most significant threat to global health in the 21st century, necessitating the inclusion of greenhouse gas emissions within federal EA processes.
• There is a reported failure in the application of the 1999 Cabinet Directive for Strategic Environmental Assessments, with an audit finding that ministers often lacked information on important environmental effects for the majority of proposals.
• The document asserts that the lack of baseline health and community well-being data prior to development proposals leads to scientific distortion, economic manipulation, and a lack of public trust in the EA process.
• The submission recommends that the federal government establish baseline health data before any proposal is made to move from simple consultation to community empowerment.
• The authors call for the integration of HIA into the cabinet directive for strategic environmental assessments of all policies, plans, and programs, and suggest that Health Canada and other health-related agencies become central decision-makers.

APA

Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (2016). The Need for Health Impact Assessments to be Integrated into all Federal Environmental Assessment Processes. https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/HIA-EA_final-1.pdf

Chicago

Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment. The Need for Health Impact Assessments to be Integrated into all Federal Environmental Assessment Processes. 2016. https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/HIA-EA_final-1.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment |title=The Need for Health Impact Assessments to be Integrated into all Federal Environmental Assessment Processes |date=23 December 2016 |url=https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/HIA-EA_final-1.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{canadianassociationofphysiciansfortheenvironment2016need, author = {{Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment}}, title = {{The Need for Health Impact Assessments to be Integrated into all Federal Environmental Assessment Processes}}, publisher = {Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment}, year = {2016}, month = dec, url = {https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/HIA-EA_final-1.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }