China - Hubei Hydroelectric Project - environmental assessment (Vol. 7 of 7) : Summary environmental assessment report - Hubei hydropower development in poor areas

E416 Volume 7 Summary Environmental Assessment Report Hubei Hydropower Development in Poor Areas Prepared for: The Government of Hubei Province Prepared by: Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences November 2001 FIL COPYrz  Summary of EIA Report for Hydropower Project in Hubei Province Content Project: Hubei Hydropower Project, P.R. China Document: EA Summary Report (4th Draft) EA Team Leader: ZHANG Yutian Research Fellow EA Team Member: MAO Wenyong Research Fellow SONG Fu Research Fellow SU Yibing Associate Research Fellow ZHOU Yun Engineer JIAO Yang Assistant Engineer Reviewed by: LI Yanwu Associate Research Fellow EA Unit: Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences EA License No.: National EIA License Grade A No. 1001, issued by SEPA Entrusted by: Hubei Provincial Planning Commission and Hubei Department of Finance AL1.  Summary EA Report - Hubei Hydropower Project Table of Contents TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1 CHAPTER 2: PROJECT DESCRIPTION 9 CHAPTER 3: ENVIRONMENTAL SETTING 18 CHAPTER 4: ASSESSMENT OF IMPACTS AND RECOMMENDED 33 MITIGATION MEASURES CHAPTER 5: ASSESSMENT OF PROJECT ALTERNATIVES 61 CHAPTER 6: ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT PLAN 69 CHAPTER 7: PUBLIC CONSULTATION AND DISCLOSURE 77 CHAPTER 8: SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS 84 APPENDICES  Summary EA Report - Hubei Hydropower Project Chapter 1 Introduction to the Project 1.1 Introduction This section of the report provides an overview of the project and its objectives, the basis for the EIA, and the main benefits and adverse impacts that are expected to accrue if the project proceeds. 1.2 Background The Hubei Government, in association with provincial or county owned electrical generating companies, proposes to implement the Hubei Hydropower Project, a water resources development project consisting of four individual hydropower stations. The four hydropower stations will be constructed in the mountainous regions of western Hubei Province, one of the poorest areas, economically, in all of China. The primary objective of the four proposed projects is to provide electricity to the provincial power grid, and associated power sales revenues, which will help to alleviate poverty in the region. Secondary objectives include transportation (i.e., shipping), aquaculture (fish cage culturing), irrigation and tourism. The location for each of the four projects is shown in Figure 1-1, and include: * Dongping Hydropower Station (102 MW installed capacity), in Xuanen County; * Lajitan Hydropower Station (36 MW installed capacity) in Laifeng County; * Songshuling Hydropower Station (50 MW installed capacity) in Zhushan County; * Xiakou Hydropower Station (30 MW installed capacity) in Nanzhang County (hereinafter refers to as 4 stations). The four projects will be owned and operated by county level electric power utility companies that have been established for each project. They include: * Zhongjian Basin Development Company, Xuanen County (Dongping Project); * Lajitan Hydyopower Ltd., Laifeng County (Lajitan Project); * Zhushan County Hydropower Ltd. (Sonshuling Project); * Xiakou Hydropower Company Ltd., Nanzhang County (Xiakou Project). In total, the four sub-projects that comprise the Hubei Hydropower Project will provide 218 MW of installed capacity, and 700 GWh of electricity per year. Investors include provincial or county owned electricity generation companies, and host county govemments. 1  Summary EA Report - Hubei Hydropower Project Figure 1-1 Location Map for Proposed Hubei Hydropower Project Area, Showing the Location of the Four Proposed Hydroelectric Generating Stations The four projects were first proposed between 1958 and 1995. As a requirement of both the Government and China and the World Bank, an Environmental Impact Assessment Report must be prepared for each of the proposed projects. Due to the significant and irreversible impacts that each of the four projects will generate, the four projects have been assigned a Category 'A' rating under the Bank's environmental screening process. The following World Bank environmental and social safeguard policies have been triggered by the four projects: * Environmental Assessment (OP 4.01, BP 4.01, GP 4.01) * Involuntary Resettlement ((GD 4.30); and * Safety of Dams (OP 4.37, BP 4.37) The Bank requires that the EIAs be prepared in both Chinese and English languages and that the EIAs meet Chinese Government and World Bank EIA requirements. Where Bank funding is involved in any part of a project, the EIA must cover all project components. An EIA report was prepared for each subproject by the Hubei Environmental Protection Research Institute (HEPRI), as part of the feasibility studies, and submitted to the Hubei Environmental Protection Bureau (HEPB) between 1996 and 2000. The four projects were approved by HEPB during this period. Environmental Specialists representing the World Bank subsequently reviewed the EIA documents in late 2000, and provided detailed review comments. In 2000, HDPC contracted the Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences (CRAES) to revise the EIA reports such that they would meet 2~~~~~~~~~~~~~~__-d  Summary EA Report - Hubei Hydropower Project World Bank requirements for EIA. CRAES carried out additional environmental investigations in 2000 and 2001 as part of this exercise, including a biodiversity assessment of karst features. In addition, CRAES prepared this EA Summary Report. A supplementary aquatic ecological assessment is currently being carried out for each of the four projects by the Institute of Hydrobiology (Wuhan). The following tables summarize the key dates for EIA preparation and approval for the four projects: Table 1-1 - Preparation, Review and Submission of the Dongping EIA EIA Report Title: Environmental Impact Report for the Hubei Dongping Hydropower Project EIA Outline Approval: September 1995, by the Hubei Environmental Protection Bureau Draft EIA Prepared by: Hubei Environmental Protection Research Institution EIA Draft Submitted: April 1996 EIA Approval: May 1996, by the Hubei Environmental Protection Bureau Final Draft EIA December 1996 Submitted: Further Revisions to October 2000, by the Chinese Research Academy of Final Draft EIA: Environmental Sciences Final EIA: July 2001, by the Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences Table 1-2 - Preparation, Review and Submission of the Lajitan EIA EIA Report Title: Report for EIA for Lajitan Hydropower Project in Leifeng County, Hubei Province EIA Outline Approval: Hubei Environmental Protection Bureau Draft EIA Prepared by: Hubei Environmental Protection Research Institution EIA Draft Submitted: June 1999 EIA Approval: July 1999, by the Hubei Environmental Protection Bureau Final Draft EIA May 2000 Submitted: Further Revisions to October 2000, by the Chinese Research Academy of Final Draft EIA: Environmental Sciences Final EIA: July 2001, by the Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences 3  Summary EA Report - Hubei Hydropower Project Table 1-3 - Preparation, Review and Submission of the Songshuling EIA EIA Report Title: Report of Environmental Impacts of Songshuling Water Conservancy Hydropower Station Pivotal Project, Zhushan County, Hubei Province EIA Outline Approval: December 1999, Hubei Environmental Protection Bureau Draft EIA Prepared by: Hubei Environmental Protection Research Institution Final Draft EIA August 2000 Submitted: Approval of Final Draft September 2000, by the Hubei Environmental Protection EIA Bureau Further Revisions to October 2000, by the Chinese Research Academy of Final Draft EIA: Environmental Sciences Final EIA: July 2001, by the Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences Table 1-4 - Preparation, Review and Submission of the Xiakou EIA EIA Report Title: EIA Report of Xiakou Hydropower Project in Nanzhang County of Hubei Province EIA Outline Approval: April 199, Hubei Environmental Protection Bureau Draft EIA Prepared by: Hubei Environmental Protection Research Institution Final Draft EIA December 1999 Submitted: Approval of Final Draft July 1999, by the Hubei Environmental Protection Bureau EIA: Further Revisions to October 2000, by the Chinese Research Academy of Final Draft EIA: Environmental Sciences Final EIA: July 2001, by the Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences The four project ETAs take into account the entire spectrum of potential project-related environmental effects on the bio-physical and socioeconomic environments within the project settings. The EIAs identify the existing environmental and socioeconomic conditions that could be affected adversely or beneficially by the projects, identify potentially significant environmental impacts, and recommend measures for mitigating the more serious negative impacts. The EIAs also suggest measures for enhancing beneficial impacts, where a small additional investment would yield environmental returns. The following Chinese state and provincial policies, regulations and standards have been followed in preparing each of the EIA reports: 4  Summary EA Report - Hubei Hydropower Project * "Environmental protection regulations of construction project", P.R.C. State Council No.253. * "The Decision on Certain Environmental Protection Problems" State Council [1996] No.31. * "Notice on 'Environmental Protection Design Requirement of Construction Project"', State Planning Commission, Environmental Protection Committee of State Council (87) 002. * "Notice on Strengthening Environmental Management Work of International Financial Organization Loan Construction Project" State Environmental Protection Administration, State Planning Commission, Ministry of Finance and China People's Bank (1993) No.324. * "Rules for Environmental Protection Management of Construction Project of Hubei Province", (1988) No. 5. * "P.R.C. Environmental Protection Law" (1989) * "P.R.C. Water Law"(1988) * "P.R.C. Water Pollution Prevention and Control Law"(1995) * "P.R.C. Air Pollution Prevention and control Law"(1996) * "P.R.C. Noise Pollution Prevention and Control Law"(1996) * "P.R.C. Land management Law"(1999) * "Implementation Rules of Land Management Law" (Stated Council NO.256) * "Farmland Protection Basic Regulation "Stated Council NO. 257 * "P.R.C. Water and Soil Conservation Law" * "P.R.C. Wild Animal Protection Law" * "P.R.C. Forestry Law" * "Implementation Rule for P.R.C. Forestry Law" State Council, No. 278. * "Regulations on Land Requisition Compensation and Resettlement for Medium and large Size Hydropower project"(1991), P.R.C. State Council NO.74 * "Notice on Enhancing the Prophase Work of Reservoir Submergence", Mvinistry of Energy, Ministry of Water Resources, Water Resources and Hydropower Design and Plan Institute, (1991) No.67 * "Notice on Certain Suggestions for Enhancing the Resettlement Work", State Council (1992) NO.20 * "Construction Management Regulation on Village and Town Planning" State Council NO.116 * "Design Standard of Reservoir Submergence of Hydropower Project", DL/T5064-1996 * "EIA Standard for Hydropower project ", SDJ302-88 5  Summary EA Report - Hubei Hydropower Project * "Technical Guide for EIA: Non-pollution Ecological Impact", HJ/T19-1997 * "Technical Guide for EIA: General, Atmospheric Environment, Surface Water Environment " HJ/T2.1 - 2.3-93 * "Technical Guide for EIA: Acoustic Environment", HJI/T2.4-1995. This Summary EA report has been prepared based on the information contained in the four separate project EIA reports, as well as additional studies conducted by CRAES. 1.3 Project Impacts 1.3.1 Benefits of the Proposed Project The primary benefits of the project will be provision of a cheap source of reliable electricity supply to local inhabitants within the project-affected areas, and production of hydroelectric power for sale into the provincial electricity network. Proceeds of power sales revenues will accrue to the county-based electricity companies within which the respective projects will be situated, thereby providing additional local economic benefits to the region in the form of taxes and employment. The Hubei Hydropower Project will make an important contribution towards stimulating and diversifying the local economies, thereby helping to alleviate poverty in what is one of the poorest areas of China, by improving the standard of living within the region. This is in keeping with the Government of China's policy for developing the western part of the country, so that it becomes self-sufficient, economically. In addition to these potential socioeconomic benefits, other potential benefits may accrue as follows: * Creation of reservoirs that provide a reliable source of water for dry season irrigation; * Improved flood control capability during the monsoon season, when river levels can rise dramatically, threatening villages and farmland located on river terraces; * Opportunities to develop an aquaculture industry based on fish cage culturing in the newly created reservoirs; * Improved regional transportation system that links reservoir shipping and local rural road networks in an area of difficult mountain terrain that is currently serviced only by Category m or IV, and in some cases Category V, mountain roads; * Development of a tourism industry based on more affluent citizens traveling from the eastern commercial centers who wish to visit and travel on mountain reservoirs that provide scenic vistas in rocky mountain gorges; and * Avoided emissions (greenhouse gas and others) that would otherwise be produced by alternative thermal generation facilities. 1.3.2 Negative Impacts The proposed project is expected to generate the following negative impacts: * Resettlement and losses from reservoir inundation -- A total of 2,605 people will be resettled over the four subprojects, requiring the removal and replacement of 119,253 m2 of houses. An estimated 314 ha of farmland, 376 ha of forest (including 6  Summary EA Report - Hubei Hydropower Project secondary and sparsely stocked forest, bush, orchard and artificial forest), 28.65 km of roads, 76.9 km of transmission and distribution lines, and 29.95 km of telecommunications lines, will be submerged. Gravesites within the inundation area 2 will be submerged along with any archaeological sites, as yet undiscovered . * Impacts during Construction period -- Construction zones will be established at each of the four proposed dam sites, and nearby support areas. Vegetation will be cleared from these construction zones and burned. Soils will be removed and stockpiled for later site reclamation. Sites will be leveled by clearing and blasting to make way for materials storage yards, equipment maintenance and fabrication yards, rock quarries and aggregate processing facilities, concrete batch plants, switch yards, temporarily construction camps, and offices. Roads and transmission lines will also be constructed. Waste rock and excess surficial material will be deposited in spoils dumps. The spoils of the 4 stations will amount to 2.1657million m3. Another 2.3982 million m3 of material will be excavated to produce stone and construction aggregates. Creation of large spoils dumps presents the potential for soil erosion, unless appropriate mitigation measures are implemented to ensure these structures are stable. * Waste gases, dust, waste water and noise produced in the construction zones has the potential to temporarily affect environmental quality of the local area, impact human settlements and disturb whatever wildlife that may still reside in the area. * Impacts during Operation Period -- The aquatic floral and faunal communities of the riverine ecosystems will change significantly once the dams are in place to regulate downstream flows, and reservoir reaches replace fast flowing sections of river. Some species of fish and invertebrates will be able to adapt to the new lake environments, while others will disappear. During reservoir filling and dry season operations, short stretches of river immediately below those dams that do not discharge into backwater areas of downstream reservoirs (i.e., Dongping), will become dewatered unless fishery flows are maintained. Much of the soil eroded from hillsides in the respective reservoir catchment areas will not be carried through the river reaches once the reservoirs are filled. Instead, this material will be deposited within the reservoirs, along with nutrients derived from fertilizers and pesticides. It is estimated, however, that the concentration of nitrogen and phosphorous entering and retained within what will essentially be run-of-the-river reservoirs will not degrade water quality below the Grade III standard. Therefore the reservoirs are expected to remain in an oligotrophic or mesotrophic state of nutrient loading. Once operational, the reservoirs will release greenhouse gases, primarily CO2 and methane as submerged organic matter decomposes. Because of its greater greenhouse warming effect, methane is the primary gas of concern. Based on an analysis of the volume of vegetation that will remain following reservoir clearing, and 2 Chinese State and Provincial policies and guidelines for identifying and protecting/removing archaeological and heritage features will be followed as part of the process of resettlement. The number and locations of gravesites has been determined as part of the resettlement studies. 7  Summary EA Report - Hubel Hydropower Project the expected level of GHG production by unit area of inundated land, the potential amount of methane released from each reservoir is estimated to be less than 49 to 145 kg/year. There are no provincial or national parks, or protected areas within any of four project areas. 1.4 Recommended Mitigation Measures To reduce or eliminate negative impacts generated by the Hubei Hydropower Project, a total of 7.7033 million RMB will be allocated for developing and implementing environmental protection and mitigation measures. Mitigation measures have been developed for each subproject, and include the following key actions: * Environmental Measures to be Carried out within the Dam Site and Ancillary Facilities Construction Zones - design and implementation of environmental protection measures, including requirements for liquid and solid waste management from construction camps, aggregate and concrete processing facilities, etc; actions to be taken to ensure best housekeeping practices throughout the construction zone; slope stability and erosion control measures; actions required to meet noise and air quality standards. Site reclamation/rehabilitation plans are also included. * Environmental Measures to be Carried out in Siting and Constructing Resettlement Villages - siting, design and implementation of environmental protection measures, including location of resettlement communities; requirements for supplying potable water; treating and disposing of sewage and gray water; stabilizing slopes and controlling erosion; ensuring public health is protected; and disposing of municipal solid wastes. . Preparation of an Environmental Management Plan (EMP) - identifies the key impacts, how they will be minimized during construction and operation, the parties responsible for implementing the mitigation measures, monitoring activities and responsible monitoring authorities, reporting requirements, institutional requirements of the environmental program, budget for labour and equipment, and scheduling. * Preparation of Reservoir Clearing and Sanitation Plans - identifies requirements for removing man-made structures (houses, bridges, etc.); clearing vegetation from inundation zones; decontaminating/sanitizing pit latrines, livestock corrals, and pig-sties; and removing/recovering debris from reservoir inundation zones. 8  Summary EA Report - Hubei Hydropower Project Chapter 2 Project Description 2.1 Introduction This section of the report provides a brief description of each of the four proposed projects: Dongping, Lajitan, Sonshuling and Xiakou. 2.2 Environmental Study Area The environmental study area for a given project is defined by the areas that could be affected by project construction, reservoir impoundment and operation, and resettlement as follows: * Construction Area - includes the dam site and associated processing facilities, yards, camps, offices, and roads in the vicinity of the dam site, as well as offsite quarries or borrow areas and linear developments such as transmission lines. * Impoundment (Inundation) Area - this is the area below the normal storage level' (NSL) that will be flooded to create the reservoir. * Resettlement Areas - these are the areas generally located "up and back" from existing villages, that will be developed as residential and commercial areas to which people will be relocated. * Downstream Areas - these are areas within the existing watercourses that will be affected by reservoir operation during construction and once the project is completed. The EIAs for the project focused on these areas in assessing the effects of the Hubei Hydropower Project. 2.3 Project Data Each of the four proposed hydropower projects will be located in steep, narrow, rocky gorges in mountainous terrain of western Hubei Province. Each project will consist of a concrete dam, behind which a long narrow reservoir will be formed. Power will be produced from an underground or above ground powerhouse at each site (the configuration depending on the amount of space available and geology at each site), and transmitted to local consumers by high voltage transmission lines. Figures 2-1 through 2-4 provide a general comparison of the capital investment, reservoir scale, installed capacity, and electricity output for each of the four projects. 9  Summary EA Report - Hubei Hydropower Project Figure 2-1 - Project-by-Project Comparison of Capital Cost Project Investment '800 - 757.2 >- 600 400 3 2 .2 200 Dongping Lajitan Song Shuling Xiakou Proposed Projects Figure 2-2 - Project-by-Project Comparison of Reservoir Scale Reservoir Capacity vs Reservoir Area Xiakou 1.27 4 Reservoir Capacity (100 4.46 Mil m3) e Reservoir Area (sq km) * Song Shuling 2.74 a. Lajitan 0.44 2 3.04 X 1 Dongping 8.12 10  Summary EA Report - Hubei Hydropower Project Figure 2-3 - Project-by-Project Comparison of Installed Capacity Dam Height vs Installed Capacity 184.5 Max. Dam Height (m) Xiakou 30 8 Installed Capacity (MW) 4-.~~~~~~~~~~6. Song Shuling 65.5 0 ~ ~ ~ ~ ~~~~5 Ce 135.5 i. Lajitan 36 0 3 h. Dongping 1134 Figure 2-4 - Project-by-Project Comparison of Electricity Output Average Annual Electricity Production (GWh) 800 697 700 600 0 , 500 4. 00- 312- *U 200 ___ 11 100 - - 0 Dongping Lajitan Song Shuling Xiakou Total Proposed Projects Table 2-1 provides a summary of some of the key features of each of the projects. More detailed information is available in the feasibility report prepared for each project. Table 2-2 provides a further summary of each project on a per unit basis to facilitate comparison between projects.  Summary EA Report - Hubei Hydropower Project Table 2-1 - Project Summary Item Dongping Lajitan Songshuling Xiakou River Name Zhongjian Youshui Guanduhe Juhe Overall River Basin Catchment Area km' 1656 18530 12502 3367 Catchment Area Upstream of the dam site 1420.5 3369 2447 1458 km2 Average Annual Runoff 106m3 14.71 36.3 18.26 5.70 Average Annual Flow Rate m3/s 46.5 115 57.9 18.07 Maximum Flow Rate Measured m3/s 2660 4470 2590 2890 Minimum Flow Rate Measured m3/s 0.02 3.03 10.2 No records Maximum Flow Rate Recorded in History 4120 7060 4760 8500 m3/s l Average Annual Suspended Sediment Load 0.4726 1.523 0.832 0.3433 millions t/yr Maximum Sediment Concentration No records 0.42 31.8 No records Measured kg/m3l Average Annual Sediment Concentration 0.539 0.667 0.456 No records kg/m3l Scale of Project Category 111 1111 1111 11l Normal Pool Level of the reservoir m 490 370 394.0 262.13 Dead Water Level of the reservoir m 454 366.5 384.0 246.13 Reservoir Area at normal pool levelkm2 8.12 3.07 2.74 4.46 Total Reservoir Storage 106m3 345 44.28 57.48 127.4 Reservoir Storage below the Normal Pool 308 29.42 48.2 116 Level 106m3 Flood Storage 106m3 32 14.86 9.28 11.4 Regulating Storage 106m3 206 9.71 22.5 59 Dead Storage 106m 102 19.71 25.7 57 Length of Backwater km 31.56 33.1 19.0 18.04 Maximum Discharge at the designed flood 3880 6610 4353 3750 level m3/s Downstream Water Level at the design flood 389.40 364.75 362.78 201.03 level m Maximum Discharge at the verified flood 4580 9276 6270 5520 level m3/s Downstream Water Level at the verified 390.95 368.62 366.40 202.85 flood level m Regulated Flow m3/s 138.88 26.1 165.6 Downstream Water Level with the regulated 378.1 348.8 flow m l Minimum Flow Rate m3/s 33.4 11.9 41.4 l Downstream Water Level with the minimum 377.3 347.2 flow rate m Installed Capacity MW 102 36 50 30 Firm Output of Power Generated (P=85%) 16.90 5.56 5.36 3.69 MW Average Annual Power Output GWh 312 151 153.9 80.02 Annual Utilization Hours of Power 2834 4195 3078 2667 Generation h il Type of Dam Concrete Concrete Gravity Concrete Gravity Concrete Double-curvat Dam Dam Double-curvature ure Arch Dam Arch Dam Crest Elevation m 494 373 399.5 265.5 Maximum Height of Dam m 134 35.5 65.5 84.5 Crest Elevation of Flood Discharge Weir 485 356 382.0 223.1 12  Summary EA Report - Hubei Hydropower Project Item Dongping Lajitan J Songshuling 1 Xiakou Method of Energy Dissipation Narrow Underflow Flaring Pier+ Ski-jump Ski-jump baffle pool Hydraulic Turbine Set 2 3 4 3 Power Generator Set 2 3 4 3 Unit Capacity of Power Generating Sets kw 55000 12000 12500 10000 Transformer Set 2 2 2 2 Volume of Earth-rock Excavation 104m3 68.59 64.86 84.71 21.66 Volume of Spoils 104m3 67.09 58.82 75.72 14.94 Filling back of clay and sandy gravel 1.5 6.04 8.99 6.72 104M3 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Number of Construction Workers Persons 800 800 500 700 Person Days of Construction 913.4 692.7 468.9 452.3 OOOs of days l Construction Period Years 5.5 3.5 4 3.5 Table 2-2 - Per Unit Comparison of the Four Projects Project Data | Lajitan Xiakou Dongping Songshuling Ratio of the area of the catchment area upstream of the dam site 85.78 18.18 19.57 43.30 to the overall catchment area % Ratio of the reservoir area to catchment area upstream of the 0.572 0.091 0.112 0.306 damsite % l Flooded Area per MW of Installed Capacity km2/MW . 0796 .0853 .0548 .1487 Resettled Population per unit reservoir area person/km2 129 107 78 210 Resettled Population per unit installed capacity person/MW 10 9 4 31 2.3.1 Dongping Hydropower Station Figure 2-5 shows the schematic layout of the Dongping dam and powerhouse. The proposed Dongping Project will create a reservoir with a storage capacity of 308,000,000 m3 and a surface area of 8.12 km2. The dam site will be located in Xuanen County on the Zhongjian River, 11 km upstream of its confluence with the Qingjiang River. During operation the reservoir will vary in elevation a total 38.0 m. The reservoir will have an average width of 260 m and extend upstream a distance of 31.35 km to the tailrace of the existing Longdong Hydropower Project. The Dongping project will have an installed capacity of 102 MW, with an annual utilization of 2834 hr, and an annual output of electric power of approximately 312 GWh/year. The scale of the station belongs to Chinese Category II. An underground power house will be located on the left bank downstream of the dam. A bridge will be built to connect the main access road that runs to the dam, with the powerhouse. The aggregate production facilities will be located 1 km away from the dam site, and will require that a 1 km road be constructed. The project will require 68,090,000 m3 of aggregates and will generate 670,900m3 of spoils. Approximately 913,400 person days of construction employment will be provided, over a construction period lasting 5.5 years. The 13  Summary EA Report - Hubei Hydropower Project transmission line component of the project will involve 36 km of 220 kV line connecting the Dongping Hydropower Station with the Qifengba Substatoin at Enshi. Figure 2-5 - Dongping Dam and Power House Site Layout 2.3.2 Lajitan Hydropower Station Figure 2-6 shows the schematic layout of the Lajitan dam and powerhouse. The proposed Lajitan project will create a reservoir with a storage capacity of 44,280,000 m3 and an area of 3.07 km2 along the Youshui River. During operation water levels will fluctuate a total of 3.5 m. The reservoir will have an average width of 92 m and will extend upstream a distance of 33.1 km to the tail race of the existing Tangkou Hydropower facility. The proposed Lajitan dam site is situated approximately 1 km upstream of Baifusi town, south of Laifeng County. The project will have an installed capacity of 36 MW, an annual utilization of 4,195 hr, and generate 151 GWh/year. 14  Summary EA Report - Hubei Hydropower Project Figure 2-6 - Lajitan Dam and Powerhouse Site Layout Lajitan HydwopowerHouse:-Engineerui .P-In _ The scale of the station belongs to Chinese Category 3. The powerhouse will be located underground on the right bank of the river. A bridge will be constructed across the Youshui River at Baifusi Town. The project will require 648,600 m3 of aggregate that will be obtained from aggregate production facilities located 1.5 to 15 km from the dam site. Approximately 3.2 km of road will need to be constructed. About 588,200 m3 of spoils will be produced by the project. Construction will require 692,700 person days over a period of 3.5 years. The transmission line component of the project will involve 32 km of 1 lOkV line from the Lajitan Hydropower Station to Jiusi township, and 20 km of 110 kV line to the Tangkou Substation. 2.3.3 Songshuling Hydropower Station Figure 2-7 shows the schematic layout of the Sonshuling dam and powerhouse. The proposed Songshuling Hydropower project will create a reservoir with a storage capacity of of 575,000,000 m3 and an area of 2.74 km2 along the Guandu River. During operation, the reservoir water level will fluctuate approximately 10.0 m. The reservoir will have an average width of 144 m and will extend upstream a distance of 19 km. The dam site is located in the upper reaches of the Guandu River, 6 km upstream of Guandu town, south of Zhushan County. The powerhouse will have an installed capacity of 50 MW, an annual utilization of 3,078 hours, and electric power production of 153.9 GWh/year. 15  Summary EA Report - Hubei Hydropower Project Figure 2-7 - Songshuling Dam and Powerhouse Site Layout The scale of Songshuling Station belongs to Chinese Category 3. The powerhouse will be located above ground on the right bank of the river. The project requires about 847,100rn3 of aggregates. The aggregate processing facilities will be located approximately 3.5 to 4.5 from the damsite. Approximately 10.5 km of road will need to be constructed. Approximately 757,200 m 3of spoils will be generated. Construction will involve 468,900 person days of labour over a period of 4 years. The transmission line component of the project will involve 40 km of I110 kV line from the Songhuling Hydropower Station to Zhushan County, and 4 km of 10 kV distribution line from Guandu Substation to the damsite to provide electricity during construction. 2.3.4 Xiakou Hydropower Station Figure 2-8 shows the schematic layout of the Xiakoiu dam and powerhouse. The Xiakou Hydropower Station will create a reservoir with a storage capacity of approximately 127,400,000 m3 , and a surface area of 4.46 kM2 along the Ju River. During operation, the reservoir storage water level will fluctuate approximately 18.04 m. The reservoir will have an average width of 247 m and will extend upstream from the dam a distance of 18.04 km. The dam site is located in the upper reaches of the Ju River, 2 km southwest of Xiakou town, in Nanzhang County. The project will have an installed capacity of 30 MW, with an annual utilization of 2,667 hr, electric power output of 80 GWh/year. 16  Summary EA Report - Hubei Hydropower Project Figure 2-8 - Xiakou Dam and Powerhouse Site Layout _ i~~~~~0 97''0 *S-Z'ftf1. -ii IN The scale of Xiakou Hydropower Station belongs to Chinese Category I. The powerhouse will be located above ground on the right bank of the river. The project will require approximately 216,600 m3 of aggregates. The aggregate production facilities will be located approximately 5 to 7 km from the dam site. The project will also involve repairs to 1.5 km of road. The project will generate 149,400 m of spoils. Construction will require approximately 452,300 person days of employment over a period of 3.5 years. The transmission line component of the project will involve 66 km of 110 kV line from the Xiakou Hydropower Project to the Huazhang Substation, and 16 km of 35 kV line to the Xunjian Substation. 17  Summary EA Report - Hubei Hydropower Project Chapter 3 Environmental Setting 3.1 Introduction This section of the report presents information on the environmental and social setting within the project areas. Maps showing the location of each subproject are included as Appendices A-1 to A-4. 3.2 Climate The four proposed hydropower stations and their respective reservoirs that will comprise the Hubei Hydropower Project, are located in a region of China affected by the annual subtropical monsoon weather pattern, characterized by the seasonal reversal in atmospheric circulation. Although the area has an annual average temperature of 15.50 C to 15.90C, the winters are cool and the summers are hot and humid. The coldest month is January with temperatures as low as -8.30 C (Lajitan) to -13.5