Environmental Management

Food for Peace programs focus on chronically food insecure households and people most vulnerable to the effects of hunger, who often strongly depend on limited natural resources. There is a need for greater recognition among USAID staff and partners of the linkages between natural resource utilization and food security and to integrate these issues at all levels of program development, design, and evaluation. The environmental review process serves as a comprehensive tool to clearly identify potential environmental impacts that could be caused by program activities.

Why is the environmental review process important for Food for Peace programs?

• Promotes sound environmental planning, with compliance viewed as part of a larger effort to enhance sustainability and food security
• Ensures that Food for Peace activities are protective of the local environment and resources on which communities depend
• Analyzes instances where improperly planned, designed and carried out measures could have a detrimental impact on people and the environment
• Considers and incorporates national and local environmental policies where we work
• Identifies mitigation measures to monitor over the life of the program, to take corrective measures ahead of time and learn from implementation
• Incorporates global climate change vulnerability considerations , given that food insecure communities are at greatest risk to suffer from the potential impacts of climate change. (World Food Program)

In many cases, underlying causes of food insecurity include widespread environmental degradation and pressure on limited natural resources. Through the environmental review process, USAID works to not only minimize impacts on the local resources and ecosystems but to also ensure success of the program’s own strategic objectives.

The following resources will assist Food for Peace awardees in writing Initial Environmental Examinations and meet the standards of U.S. Government environmental compliance regulations:

• Compliance and Preparation Resources for Initial Environmental Examinations
• Environmental Assessment
• Environmental Best Practices