An evaluation of environmental impact assessment within the planning process in Libya and the UK in relation to cement manufacture.

This thesis presents both the ancient and recent history of the uses of limestone, including an outline of the history of limestone excavation. An evaluation of the environmental impact of cement manufacture upon the landscape, the green cover, the wildlife and the people is presented. Remedies and solutions are given to reduce the harmful effects resulting from the severe exploitation of limestone and the consequence uses of it.In the introduction to the thesis, the aims of the research, the objectives of the research and the rationale are clearly set out to indicate the form of the study. The methodology applied to the research is described and lays down the lines along which the investigations are followed throughout the thesis. To put the research into context the history of the ancient civilisations of Libya, their ways of living, their architecture and their constructions using limestone are described to demonstrate that there is great significance in their techniques. The primitive techniques they used to excavate and extract the limestone for their domestic buildings is noted in relation to the topography and the prevailing climate in Libya. The latter has a major impact, not only upon the forest and other forms of vegetation but also upon the native peoples of north-east Libya. The history of mining in Libya, especially of the cement industry is presented with outlines of geologic and stratigraphic distribution of Libyan limestone and clay raw materials. The Libyan and the UK planning procedures are also narrated to illustrate the controls by governments over mineral exploitation including copies of the required official Libyan and the UK contracts pro formae.The environmental impact assessment process is discussed, including several definitions and a short historical review. This is presented to illustrate the global significance of environmental management in response to degradation due to resource exploitation and its knock-on effect in different parts of the world. An overview of policies supporting the concept of sustainable development is given. The procedures relatede to quarry restoration such as site analysis and evaluation, landform considerations,soil preparation, plant species selection, methods' of vegetation establishment and management and the after-use of restored land are discussed. The use of the technique of restoration blasting is debated and its potential for restoration of former quarry faces is presented. Furthermore, the potential for the incorporation of ancient Libyan traditions, and the application of Roman and Greek ideas to quarry restoration in modem quarry sites forms the basis of the proposal at Dema. Such ideas can be effectively applied with similar methodologies to create simulations of those old ideas at any future quarry site.Environmental concerns are noted and presented in terms of the need for clearer management strategies. This is highlighted through the discussion of the definitions of ISO 14001 & BS 7750 as a means of developing appropriate international standards in managing large quarry and cement manufacturing operations. Two case studies, in the two countries Libya and the UK, are carefully examined to compare and contrast the different.approaches operating in each area with regard to the manufacture of cement but more significantly with the processes adopted or the restoration of the limestone and clay quarries.This includes, in the case of the UK example a synopsis of environmental works introduced by the leading landscape architect, Sir Geoffrey Jellicoe 1943. The research highlights similarities and differences in the histories and processes of these industries in the two countries. In particular, the transferability of key environmental and planning procedures and process are considered. The incorporation of novel approaches to restoration work in Libya is discussed.