ONSHORE OIL AND GAS PUBLIC PARTICIPATION

This community toolkit provides guidance for individuals and affected parties on how to participate in the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) process for onshore oil and gas projects, outlining the legal requirements for consultation and the steps for submitting formal comments.

• Before onshore oil and gas exploration or drilling can commence, companies are required to obtain an Environmental Authorisation (EA), which involves an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) or an Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA).
• For larger projects, the EIA process is divided into two primary phases requiring community input: the Scoping Phase and the Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) Phase.
• Interested and affected parties (I&AP) have a legal right to participate in environmental decision-making. Comments submitted by registered I&APs become a formal part of the EIA Report, and the final decision to grant or deny an environmental license must include and respond to these community comments.
• The toolkit suggests that community members evaluate potential project impacts across several categories, including health, water sources, land access, wildlife, employment benefits, cultural and spiritual practices, and climate change effects on future generations.
• The EIA process involves specific regulatory bodies for review and decision-making: the DFFE reviews and decides on the scoping report, while the DMRE makes the final decision.

APA

Natural Justice (2026). ONSHORE OIL AND GAS PUBLIC PARTICIPATION. https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/FINAL_Onshore-oil-and-gas_EIA-Toolkit-2026.pdf

Chicago

Natural Justice. ONSHORE OIL AND GAS PUBLIC PARTICIPATION. 2026. https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/FINAL_Onshore-oil-and-gas_EIA-Toolkit-2026.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Natural Justice |title=ONSHORE OIL AND GAS PUBLIC PARTICIPATION |date=January 2026 |url=https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/FINAL_Onshore-oil-and-gas_EIA-Toolkit-2026.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{naturaljustice2026onshore, author = {{Natural Justice}}, title = {{ONSHORE OIL AND GAS PUBLIC PARTICIPATION}}, institution = {Natural Justice}, year = {2026}, month = jan, url = {https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/FINAL_Onshore-oil-and-gas_EIA-Toolkit-2026.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }