| Abstract: | i. The proposed 15 storey building at H. Dhoovehi will be developed by AMIN
Construction Pvt. Ltd. Once completed, the basement area will have water tanks
with storage area, the ground floor will be a private car park, generator room, water
meter room, security room, waste collection, loading area; first and second floors
will be a restaurant; third to thirteenth floor will be residential, fourteenth floor will
be a suite. At the top level will be a rooftop mezzanine. The total area of the plot is
290m2.
ii. The site will be excavated to a depth of 3.35m to lay the foundations and develop
the basement area having 167sqm in floor area, which is 57% of the total plot area.
The basement area will have 2 x 18cbm water tanks and a large storage area. The
entire boundary will be sheet piled to depths of 5m with corrugated sheets supported
by iron beams as a safety measure while preparing the site ready for construction.
iii. The building will rest on a pile raft foundation. A total of 79 micropiles (200-
300mm diameter) will be driven into the ground to depths ranging from 1 – 3.6m
through boreholes done in 2 regions within the plot. The region 1 will have 31 such
micropiles and region 2 will have 48 micropiles. The project requires 1,160m3 of
soil to be excavated and 783m3 of groundwater to be dewatered to lay the
foundation of the building. The project is scheduled to be completed in 18 months.
iv. The EIA has been prepared as per the EIA Regulations 2012 developed directly
under the Environmental Protection and Preservation Act and identifies that
development of such buildings exceeding 31m in height and with basements or over
10 storeys with greater than 5ft foundation require an EIA to be undertaken and
approved by EPA before commencement of construction.
v. In addition to Environmental Protection and Preservation Act, EIA Regulations, the
project has to comply with Dewatering Regulation, Waste Management Regulation,
Male’ Planning Regulation, Land Act as well as comply with Maldives National
Building Code recommendations.
vi. In order to understand existing environmental conditions of the proposed project
area, assessments have been undertaken including ambient noise levels, traffic
volume and movement, groundwater quality, soil and vegetation, physical condition
of the surrounding buildings and roads.
vii. The proposed development will take place in the eastern part of Male’, Henveiru
District on the north-eastern side of Block Number 9. Dhoovehi is located at the
corner of Boduthakurufaanu Magu and Burevi Magu at 4°10'22.63"N and
73°31'3.39"E. The main connectivity will be from Boduthakurufaanu Magu. The
block is located quite close to the Artificial Beach, proposed bridge and the open
park space of Block Number 10.
viii. Noise levels recorded from the sites were Site 1 47dB (day) and 56dB (night), Site
2 51dB (day) and 59dB (night), Site 3 49dB (day) and 57dB (night) and Site 4 42dB
(day) and 47dB (night). Night time noise levels at all sites were found to be slightly
increased than day time. This is mainly due to increased traffic in the area at the
time of assessment at night.
ix. The traffic volume was assessed to be quite high especially on Baduthakurufaanu
Magu for both day and night times. The highest traffic volume was observed to be
from motorcycle having 288 during day time and 420 during night time on
Baduthakurufaanu Magu. On Burevi Magu number of cycles were greatly reduced
having 56 during day time and 94 during night time. The volume of cars on
Boduthakurufaanu Magu was observed to be 90 during day time and 121 during
night time. On Burevi Magu number of cars were observed to be 22 during day time
and 35 during night time.
x. The results of the groundwater analysis show that the groundwater of the area is
free from contamination. As the plot is located quite close to the sea, the results
show some levels of salinity having 1.230/00.
xi. There is no vegetation present in the proposed plot hence, vegetation assessment
was not undertaken.
xii. On the western adjacent side of the plot, there are three buildings having 4 storey,
2 storey and 7 storey all of which belong to Noofaru house. Only the 7 storey
building is found on Burevi Magu while others are inside of Noofaru house. On the
southern adjacent side, a two storey storage and a labour building is found
belonging to Sea Side house. No other adjacent buildings are found by the plot. On
the western side of Noofaru house on Burevi Magu, a 5 storey building belonging
to Rumania house and 10 storey building belonging to Sheereen Villa is found. All
buildings are observed to be in good condition and no physical damages were
identified. All buildings are believed to be 5 -7 years old.
xiii. Dhoovehi plot is found on the corner of Boduthakurufaanu Magu and Burevi Magu,
hence these two roads are found by the plot. Boduthakurufaanu Magu is the main
road found around Male’. The condition of these roads are observed to be good. No
cracks or physical damages were found.
xiv. There are no significant environmental impacts from the proposed project, however,
some of the environmental impacts from development activities such as excavation,
dewatering, construction activities, operation of construction machinery,
construction waste generating environmental impacts such as noise, dust and
pollution are believed to occur. Social impacts such as traffic congestion,
disturbance to nearby residents have been predicted as well as health problems as a
result of dust have been identified. During operation period of the project, domestic
waste and traffic are believed to increase.
xv. As part of the proposed project, a number of mitigation measures have been
proposed in the EIA Report including using corrugated sheets supported by iron
beams as a safety measure for protecting the excavated area for foundation,
dewatering will be undertaken upon approval from EPA, while preparing the site
ready for construction, measures such as installation of safety and dust protection
nets, appropriate signage will be placed to make aware people on the development.
Also, important mitigation measures that will be implemented include complete
elimination of waste disposal during construction and operation stages of the
development into the project boundaries.
xvi. Although the project has short-term environmental impacts from the proposed
development, the project has more social and economic benefits, which is believed
to tremendously contribute to the need for residential and commercial space in
Male’, create some employment opportunities and contribute to the local economy
in Male’ in the long-term.
xvii. Although during construction of the project, negative environmental impacts from
construction activities have been envisaged, with appropriate environmental
management and mitigation measures, these impacts will be reduced to a
considerable level. Also, with positive socio-economic outlook of the project and
considering the overall importance of housing in Male’, it is concluded that the
project is an important development. |
