. The current proliferation
of SEA legislation around the world emphasizes the role of
SEA as an essential environmental policy planning tool to
integrate environmental considerations as well as to complement
EIA in environmental protection. SEA potentially can
satisfy the emerging need for environmental policy integration
(EPI) at a more strategic level than the project level (Dusik
and Xie, 2009; Rachid and El Fadel, 2013; The´ rivel, 1997).