Ghana - Thermal Power Project : environmental assessment (Vol. 1 of 7) : EIA : Takoradi Thermal Plant (final draft)

Environmental Assessment/Analysis Reports ___ ___ Report E0051 Ghana - Thermal Power -- Project. EA Category A Environmenta Assessment. L1~of 4 August 1993 This report has been prepared by the Borrower or its Consultant  * Republic of Ghana Volta River Authority /I/fl VIIfMI IIklIhII7f / lk I l Y/ August 1993 Acres Intenational Limited ADF  Executive Summary  Executive Summary This report has been prepared to review and evaluate the environmental impact of a proposed 300-MW, with the potential to upgrade to 600 MW, combined-cycle thermal generating plant to be located 15 km northeast of Sekondi-Takoradi, near the village of Aboadze. This environmental assessment addresses the requirements of the African Development Bank and also those of the World Bank as a Category 'A' project. The analysis involved a 1-wk visit to the area by an environmental specialist and the provisions of socioeconomic and other data by VRA staff, both of which supplemented site visits by engineering staff. Some monitoring data is presented, while further information is being collected, and will be included, as an addendum to this report at a later date. The plant will initially use light crude oil, or distillate oil with the possibility of later conversion to natural gas should a supply become available. The plant requires a 3.0 m conduit for once through cooling water, drawing 5.7 m3/s from the sea. Current estimates indicate a construction work force of approximately 400 including 75 expatriates and an operating work force of up to 125. Plans include a townsite for construction and operations staff, likely including a first- aid clinic. A permanent townsite will be developed for operating staff, and a school will be provided if existing community services are insufficient. There will be a self- contained sanitary sewage treatment system and a desalination plant to provide an adequate long-term, water supply for operational and domestic requirements. In addition, the plant will be connected to the municipal water supply. In general the analysis indicates that the plant will have modest, but mitigatable, environmental impacts. The key potential issues include: i  the effect of the cooling water on marine life and the consequent effects on the thriving fishing industry of Aboadze and neighboring vi!lages the effects that the loss of site land (some 35 - 40 ha) will have on nearby families who currently practice predominantly subsistence level agriculture on that site air quality impacts potential spillage and/or leakage of oil. Cooling Water and Marine Life Normal ambient sea water temperatures are 26 to 27C0, however, water temperatures occasionally rise to 30 to 31 degrees. Draft guidelines proposed by the Environmental Protection Council of the Ghanaian Ministry of Environment suggest that the maximum ambient water temperature at the beaches should not exceed 33