Forum member, the Scottish Environment LINK, the umbrella group for Scotland's environmental organisations, is calling for the creation of an independent body to ensure that Scotland is a world leader in Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA).

The call follows the introduction to the Scottish Parliament, at the beginning of March, of the Environmental Assessment (Scotland) Bill, which LINK welcomes as a mechanism to protect and improve the Scottish Environment.

Effective SEA is dependent on creating the right delivery mechanisms and a report published today, commissioned by Scottish Environment LINK and written by Dr. Elsa Joao and Anna McLauchlan of the University of Strathclyde, concludes that creating an independent SEA body will be key to ensuring that Scotland is a world leader in SEA. A number of international comparisons are explored including, Canada, the Netherlands and the Czech Republic.

Lloyd Austin, chair of Scottish Environment LINK said:

"This report was commissioned by LINK in order to inform the work of the parliament as it scrutinises this important bill. We hope the committee will consider the author's findings and support our proposal for an independent SEA body with powers which include providing advice, arbitrating in the event of disputes and quality control."

For more information:

• Related news story
• Scottish Environment LINK Press Release 
• Report