China - Hubei Xiaogan - Xiangfan Highway Project : environmental assessment (Vol. 6 of 10) : Yunmeng connecting road

lIWorld Bank Financed Project 11 E584 Volume 6 Yunmeng Connecting Road Environmental Impact Assessment & Environmental Management Plan HIubei Provincial Communications Department March 2002 Wuhan China FILE COPY  Table of Contents Chapter 1 Introduction .I 1.1 Background .......................................1 1.2 Purpose of EA ........................................ 1.3 Bases of Assessment. 2 1.4 Assessment Factors. 4 1.5 Scope and Standards of Assessment. 4 1.6 Methodology .......................................5 Chapter 2 Project Description .......................................6 2.1 Location. 6 2.2 Traffic Volume Prediction. 6 2.3 Technical Standards and Work Quantity .......................................6 2.4 Alignment Selection and Justification. 7 Chapter 3 Environmental Baseline. 8 3.1 Sensitive Receptors .......................................8 3.2 Existing Noise Environment .......................................8 3.3 Existing Air Quality .......................................9 3.4 Soil Erosion ...................................... 10 Chapter 4 Impact Assessment ....................................... l 4.1 Ecological and Agricultural Impact .......................................11 4.2 Impact on Acoustic Environment ...................................... 12 4.3 Ambient Air Quality Impact Assessment ...................................... 15 4.4 Socio-economic Environment Impacts ...................................... 17 4.5 Public Consultation and Disclosure ...................................... 17 Chapter 5 Mitigation Measures ...................................... 21 5.1 Environment Protection Measures in Design Stages ...................................... 21 5.2 Mitigation Measures during Construction Phase ...................................... 22 5.3 Mitigation Measures during Operation Phase ...................................... 24 Chapter 6 EIA Summary ...................................... 26 Chapter 7 Environmental Management Plan ...................................... 28 7.1 Components of Environmental Management Plan ...................................... 28 7.2 Organization of Environmental Management ...................................... 29 7.3 Environmental Mitigation Plan ...................................... 31 7.4 Environmental Supervision Plan ...................................... 34 7.5 Environmental Monitoring Plan ...................................... 34  7.6 Personnel Training ............................................................ 36 7.7 Estimated Costs for Environmental Mitigation ............................................................ 37 List of Table Table 2.3-1 Main Engineering Work Volume .................................................................6 Table 2.3-2 Location and Scale of Borrowing Pits .................................................................7 Table 3-1-1 Environmental Sensitive Receptors along the Connecting Road ........................................8 Table 3.2-1 Measuring Results of Noise Environment (LAeq) ................................................................9 Table 3.3-1 Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Results Unit: mg/Nm3 ....................................................9 Table 4.1-1 Land Acquisition of Yunmeng Connecting Road unit: mu ............................................... I I Table 4-2-1 Traffic Noise Prediction of the Yunmeng Connecting Road Leq (dB(A)) ....................... 14 Table 4.2-2 Prediction Results of Ambient Noise Level in Sensitive Spots Leq(dB(A)) ..................... 14 Table 4.3-1 TSP Survey Results ................................................................ 16 Table 4-3-2 Analogical Results of TSP after Water Spray in Construction Site ................................... 16 Table 4.5-1 Public Consultation Participants Composition ................................................................ 18 Table 4.5-2 Public Response to Questions from the Questionnaire ...................................................... 18 Table 4.5-3 Public Opinions/Concerns and Responses ................................................................ 19 Table 4.5-4 Public Locations for Disclosure ................................................................ 20 Table 5.1-1 Location and Rehabilitation of Borrowing Pits ................................................................ 21 Table 5.1-2 Traffic Noise Mitigation Measures ................................................................ 22 Table 7-3-1 Environmental Mitigation Plan ................................................................ 32 Table 7-3-1 Environmental Mitigation Plan (Continued) ................................................................ 33 Table 7.4-1 Environmental Supervision Plan ................................................................ 34 Table 7.5-1 Environmental Monitoring Plan ................................................................ 35 Table 7.7-1 Cost of Environmental Protection ................................................................ 37 List of Map Map 2-1 The Alignment of Yunmeng Connecting Road Map 2-2 Location of Borrowing Pits Map 3-1 Sensitive Receptors and Environmental Baseline Map 7-1 Location of Planned Monitoring Spots  List of Abbreviations BP Best Procedure COD Chemical Oxygen Demand EA Environmental Assessment EIA Environmental Impact Assessment EMP Environmental Management Plan EPB Environmental Protection Bureau EPO Environmental Protection Office GB National Standard GDP Gross Domestic Product GHZB National Environmental Quality Standard GP Good Practice HJ/T Environmental/Technical HPCD Hubei Provincial Communications Department LAeq Continuous Equivalent Sound A Level MOC Ministry of Communications NO2 Nitrogen Dioxide OD Operational Directive OP Operational Policy PRC the People's Republic of China SEPA State Environmental Protection Administration SS Suspended Solid THC Tetrahydrocannabinol TSP Total Suspended Particle WBFPO World Bank Financed Project Office  Chapter 1 Introduction 1.1 Background Yunmeng connecting road is part of the Xiaogan to Xiangfan expressway project which is to be partially financed by a World Bank loan to the People' s Republic of China. The objective is to maximize the transportation benefits of the expressway to Yunmeng region particularly to the urban area of Yunmeng. The proposed expressway passes through the municipality of Yunmeng, but is still away from the Yunmeng county proper (see Map 2-1 in Chapter 2). This proposed connecting road is to link the urban Yunmeng with the expressway. As part of the project preparation, an Environmental Assessment (EA) has been conducted by a team of environmental specialists from Shanghai Ship and Shipping Research Institute (SSSRI), in compliance with relevant requirements from the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) and the World Bank. The EA involves various screening and full scale assessment in accordance with SEPA requirements and World Bank safeguards policies. Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) reports and Environmental Management Plan (EMP) have been prepared to summarize the key findings and recommended actions for adverse impact mitigation from the EA. As the project involves several components including the main expressway, three connecting roads and four rural roads, one set of EA documentation (EIA and EMP) has been prepared for each component. This document is the EIA for the Yunmeng Connecting Road. The original EIA report is prepared in Chinese and this English version of the report is the translation. As the project EA team and the author of component EIA report and EMP, SSSRI certifies that the main contents of the Chinese and English versions of the EA documents are basically identical, except more stringent noise standards are applied in the English version. With regard to the translation itself, while the two versions may not be identical due to different expressions in Chinese and English languages, there is no key difference on the matter of substance. 1.2 Purpose of EA The EA predicts various environrmental and socio-economic impacts of the Project, and analyzes the impacts quantitatively or qualitatively through the investigation or monitoring of the physical, biological, socio-economic environment, and through public consultation along the project area. More specifically, the purposes of the EA are:  * To improve the decision-making process by introducing environmental criteria and assessment to design engineers and decision makers and to ensure the Project is environmentally sound and sustainable; * To ensure adverse environmental impacts be identified and evaluated in the earlier stage of the Project so as to develop appropriate measures including alternative alignments and designs to avoid, mitigate, reduce or otherwise minimize the adverse impacts to acceptable levels; * To develop measures of compensation for the impacts which could not be avoided or mitigated; and; * To provide a basis for Project executing agency and relevant governrnent agencies to develop and implement plans for environrmental management and monitoring. 1.3 Bases of Assessment World Bank Requirements The World Bank requirements include primarily the Bank' s ten safeguards policies, including Operational Policies (OP), Best Procedure (BP), Good Practice (GP) and Operational Directives (OD). They are: * Environmnental Assessment (OP/BP/GP4.01); * Forestry (OP/GP4.36); * Natural Habitats (OP/BP4.04); * Safety of Dams (OP/BP4.37); * Pest Management (OP4.09); * Involuntary Resettlement (0D4.30); * Indigenous People (OD4.20); * Cultural Property (OPN11.03 and soon to be OP4.11); * Projects in Disputed Areas (OP/BP/GP7.60); and * Projects on International Waterways (OP/BP/GP7.50). Among these safeguards policies, Environmental Assessment is the primary requirements and thus the focus of this report. In addition, other policies such as Natural Habitats (OP4.04), Indigenous People (OD4.20), Forest (OP4.36), Cultural Property (OP4. 11) and Pest Management (OP4.09) are also applied in the EA first as screening and, when triggered, included as part of the full assessment in this report. Policies on Involuntary Resettlement are the subject of a separate assessment by another team but the key findings are included in the report as well. Since there are no project components that involve international waterways, dam construction or disputed areas as defined under OP7.60, policies related to these subjects are not applied in the EA. 2  National laws and regulations on environmental review and FIA * Environmental Protection Law of PRC of December 26, 1989; * Land Management Law of PRC of August 29, 1998; * Water and Soil Conservation Law of PRC of June 29, 1991; * Water Pollution Prevention Law of PRC of May 15, 1996; * Noise Pollution Prevention Law of PRC of October 29, 1996; * Air Pollution Prevention Law of PRC of April 29, 2000; * Solid Waste Pollution Prevention Law of PRC of October 30, 1995; * Rules of Environmental Protection Management for Construction Projects, issued by the State Council of PRC; * Measures Concerning with the Environmental Protection and Management for Transportation Construction Projects, issued by MOC; * Directories of Environmental Protection management for Construction Projects (No.9, [1999]), issued by SEPA; * The Technical Rules for Environmental Impact Assessment (HJ/T2. 1-2.3- 93,HJ/T2.4-1995,HJ/T19-1997); issued by SEPA; * Specifications for Environment Impact Assessment of Expressway, issued by MOC; * Notice to Strengthen the Environmental Impact Assessment and Management of Construction Projects Financed by Loan from International Financial Organizations, jointly issued by SEPA, the State Planning Commission, the Ministry of Finance and the People' s Bank of China; * Review comments for Project EA TOR of November 1999 and again of May 2000, and for Project EIA of November 2001; all these comments have been incorporated in EA process and the EA documentation; and * Other relevant environmental protection laws, regulations and policies. Engineering Design Documents * Preliminary Engineering Design of Xiaogan-Xiangfan Expressway, by HPCPDI, 2001; This design contains much more details than a typical preliminary design in western countries and is the latest and most updated design document at the time the EA was prepared; and * Feasibility Study for Xiaogan to Xiangfan Expressway, by HPCPDI, 1998, which is the final version for the feasibility study. Other Relevant Study Reports * Final version of Project Resettlement Action Plan (RAP), HPCD, December 2001; and * Final version of Project Cultural Relics Report, HPRARI, March 2002. Relevant International Environmental Agreements (where China is a signing party) 3  * UN Framework Confer on Climate Change; * Biologic diversity Agreement, signed on December 29, 1993; * Vienna Agreement on Ozonosphere Protection, signed on December 30, 1989; and * Amended Montreal Protocol on Ozonosphere Material Depletion, signed on August 20, 1992. 1.4 Assessment Factors The EA is conducted through assessment of key environmental factors to reflect the environmental quality and impacts of the project to the environment. Where applicable, following factors are applied in the EA for this connecting road: Acoustic Environment: Equivalent continuous sound amplitude LAeq. Ambient Air: NO2, and TSP Water Quality: COD and SS Soil Erosion: Erosion intensity and volume Vegetation: landscape area and number and species of trees Cultural relics Presence and value of cultural sites and relics Socio-economic factors Community severance, economic development, etc. 1.5 Scope and Standards of Assessment Based on the relevant regulations and guidelines for EA and the site specific conditions, the study scope for environmental assessment for this project is in general within the areas of 200 m from the center line of the proposed connecting road on both sides. The study scope for socio-economic assessment may be extended, to cover the affected rural communities through which the connecting road passes. The following standards are applied in the EA: * Water Environment: The Class III in the Environmental Quality Standard for Surface Water (GHZBI-1999) for surface water in the project area; * Acoustic Environment: For villages and rural residential areas, Class IV standards in the Standard of Environmental Noise of Urban Area (GB3096-93) (daytime 70dB (A) and nighttime 55dB(A)) are applied. More stringent standards, Class I (daytime 55dB(A), nighttime 45dB(A)) are applied for highly sensitive receptors such as schools and hospitals. * Ambient Air: Class II in the Ambient Air Quality Standard (GB3095-1996) * Soil Erosion: Classification standard of soil erosion in the Specifications for Environment Impact Assessment of Highway. 4  1.6 Methodology Road construction is a linear development project. Site investigation shows that the environmental conditions and potential impacts from the road development along the proposed alignment are similar. Therefore, the EA is primarily based on assessment of typical sensitive receptors to represent a particular section and through different types of receptors to cover the whole assessment area. Mathematical modeling is applied to predict noise levels and water quality to predict the impacts. Analogous approach is adopted for assessment of air quality impacts using experience from other similar expressway projects in the province. The environrmental and socio-economic assessment cover the construction phase and different periods in the operation phase, i.e., short term to 2006, medium term to 2013 and long tern to 2020. 5  Chapter 2 Project Description 2.1 Location The Yunmeng connecting road of Xiaogan to Xiangfan expressway project goes in general from north to south directions. It starts from Yunmeng interchange on the Xiaogan to Xiangfan expressway, through Zengdian and Wupu townships, and finally ends at Laojing village at Yunmeng urban district, where it connects with NH 316 (Map 2- 1 ). The connecting road has a total length of 6.9 km. 2.2 Traffic Volume Prediction Traffic volume prediction of on the Yunmeng connecting road is shown as follows as provided by HPCPDI: Year Traffic Volume (medium vehicles/day) 2006 3321 2013 5313 2020 5840 2.3 Technical Standards and Work Quantity Yunmeng connecting road is to be constructed based on the Grade Two standard. Designed motor vehicle speed on the road is 80 kmihr. The subgrade width is 12 m and pavement is 9 m. The total length of the road is 6.9 km, of which 2.1 km will be newly built and 4.8 km will be upgraded from the existing road to a Grade Two road. Table 2.3-1 lists the major engineering work volume. Table 2.3-1 Main Engineering Work Volume No. Works Item Unit Works Amount Construction Mileage Km 6.9 New construction Km 2.1 Upgrading Km 4.8 2 Permanent Land Occupy Mu 220 Temporary Land Occupy Mu 17 6  ~~~~. ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~ Zr 't.Z .9"~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~; '(s. ** tA t~~~t>~9>.~)Aij$A~~ I r ~/g '- _______ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"~~~~~~%Lf At ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~I _______ -~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~c , , A I.v at,': ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ .