Environmental impact assessment: useful tool or just another fashion?

Documentary made by UNESCO-IHE Water Management participants about environmental impact assessment, is it a useful tool or just another fashion?
The opinions expressed in this video are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of UNESCO-IHE.

[@wiey22k]

Best definition of SEA I have seen at the start of this video! Thank you.

[@amanlalwani3343]

An environmental impact assessment is an important tool to use for ensuring effective management and conservation of the surrounding environment of an area that is being utilized for development. It incorporates the use of multiple steps to ensure that the likely environmental impacts of a certain project can be minimized in the best way possible.

[@otumonongefoli9546]

I need more lectures on EIA project

[@Salvadario]

So as I understand, if a construction project (i.e a fruit juicing factory) were to be built on coastal wetlands with a high diversity of bird and marine wildlife, and that was very close to a highly populated town, an EIA may take a long time?
Compared to a construction project where the location was on baron land of no wildlife diversity, several km from the outskirts of a town, an EIA may take a short period of time?

[@callum1131]

Can't understand the narrator very well and the sound quality of the video extracts isn't very good. Improve/change these. The video is unclear.