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Item Environmental impact assessment for the development of tuna purchasing and storage facility, GA. Raaverrehaa, North Huvadhu Atoll(2016-01) Riyaz, Mahmood; Adam, M. Shiham1- This is the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report carried out for proponent ̶ Ensis Fisheries Pvt. Ltd. ̶ to develop and operate fish purchase and storage facility in Raaverrehaa North Huvadhu Atoll. The EIA was prepared as partial fulfilment of the requirement by the Ministry Fisheries and Agriculture (MoFA) for acquiring permission for the Project. Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of development projects is a requirement by the Environmental Protection and Preservation Act (EPPA) (law 4/93) of the Government of the Republic of Maldives. 2- This report has been prepared in accordance with the Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations published by the Ministry of Environment and Energy in 2012 and covers both negative and positive environmental and socio-economic impact arising from the proposed project. Major findings of this report are based on information gathered during the field inspection of both the existing environment and possible effects of the project activities, and ongoing similar projects elsewhere in the Maldives and through extensive literature review and experiences gained from similar projects elsewhere. 3- Initially the proposed development was planned in Ga. Kedheraa Island and environmental Decision Statement was obtained to go ahead with the project. Shifting the planned development to Raaverrehaa was decided based on strategic analysis of the development, which found potential operational disadvantages that may impede smooth operation of the facility. Most importantly lack of shallow reef space to develop a harbour, which is an important infrastructure for the facility, remoteness of the island and being far from the airport and major fishing islands are also some of the shortcomings of Kedheraa. 4- The proposed activity will take place on Raaverrehaa Island and surrounding Falhu. Ga. Raaverrehaa Island is an uninhabited found on the North Eastern side of Huvadhu Atoll located at the periphery in an elongated, N-S oriented reef platform measuring a length of 20 km is shared by multiple islands. The reef is shared by three more islands including Villingili Island. The eastern part of the reef extends in the form shallow lagoon into eastern rim of the Atoll. The elongated-oval-shaped island of Raaverrehaa is lying in the western half of the reef. The coral reef system of Raaverrehaa is 20km long and the width is 0.8-1.8km. Reef perimeter is 43km and the area is approximately 25sqkm. The distance from the edge of the beach to the reef edge in both eastern and western sides is fairly consistent measured approximately 1km on the east and 400m on the western side. Raaverrehaa is an elongated-oval shape, N-S oriented island, with a length of 415m and width 100-119m and has an area of 4.7 ha. Average depth of the reef flat is less than -1 to -0.5m m from MSL. 5- Major operation that will be undertaken in Raaverrehaa Island will be loading/unloading storage and transportation of fish to Ensis processing facilities located in Hulhumalé Island. The facility will have 500 tonnes cold storage capacity and will produce ice needed for the fishermen to keep the fish fresh until they reach the storage facility from the fishing grounds. Necessary infrastructure needed to operate the facility will be developed on the island including the accommodation facilities for the staff working on the island. Electricity and water required for operations will be produced in the island. 100x3 KvA generator sets will be will be installed at the powerhouse to provide the electricity needed for the island. Reverse Osmosis (RO) desalination plants with total production capacity of 40MT per day will be installed to provide necessary water requirement for the operations. The proponent will ensure that the powerhouse and desalination plant implies with the relevant regulations. The exhaust chimneys, lightening conductors, sound attenuators, and CO2-based fire fighting equipment will be installed. Ear mufflers will be provided for staff working at louder areas of the facility. EIA Ensis Fisheries – Raaverrehaa Shore-based Facility – M. Riyaz & M.S Adam 15 | 90 6- The raw material, mainly skipjack and yellowfin tuna caught by pole-and-line and handline by Maldivian on local fishing vessels will be purchased entirely from the Maldivian fishermen. With Ensis’s long reputation in the country, it is expected that a large number of vessel will sell fish to the Ensis Fisheries Pvt Ltd. Ice will be provided free of charge from all the Ensis facilities as incentive for fishing and to encourage loyalty to the company. In addition the proponent will provide iceboxes for fishing operation startups in the area. 7- During the preparation of the EIA report an impact matrix, which is a standard tool for identifying the possible impacts of project activities, has been created for proposed development project Raaverrehaa Island. The activities carried out during the construction and operational phases are arrayed against a selection of environmental factors that may be affected directly or indirectly as a result of project activities. The impact outcomes from this analysis are considered and appropriate mitigation measures both in the development and operational phased has been provided. 8- The report has identified the main environmental impacts associated with the proposed activities and found that high water and energy consumption and the discharge of effluent with a high organic content are the major issues. Vegetation clearance and construction waste during the construction phase and noise, odor, solid wastes occupational health and safety issues may also be concerns of the operational phase. The study has found that most significant negative environmental impact identified during the operational phase of this project is release of untreated effluent into the sea. Liquid, solid and other forms of wastes and particularly hazardous waste generated during the operational phase has also been identified as significant impact associated with the project and appropriate mitigation measures are suggested for each and every impact identified in relation to the project. 9- The study has evaluated alternative options for the project and found that the proposed development is the right development for the right place. To enhance the water circulation in the reef and to limit the access to Raaverrehaa it is recommended to cut a channel through the walkway or remove it as an alternative for keeping the solid walkway which blocks cross reef water motion, increase nutrient enrichment and subsequent growth of seagrass on the eastern side of the reef and provides unlimited land access to the island. It is suggested to under-take post-development extensive monitoring programme that will keep on monitoring the environmental changes associated with the development and its operation and make necessary adjustment to the activities and its operation of the project based on the findings of various measured environmental parameters suggested in the monitoring plan. 10- The overall positive environmental impact from the development project is to integrate the existing product lines and the value-addition of fishery products rather than exporting the whole fish for processing. Job creation and stimulation of local economy, and exports is the most significant positive environmental impact of this activity. The long-term sustainability of the activity however, will depend on the sustainability of the fish stock. Skipjack and yellowfin tuna are highly migratory and their stocks straddle across the countries’ exclusive economic zones into the high seas spreading out into the entire Indian Ocean. The stocks are being managed by the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission which among its 32 coastal and distant water fishing nations. Maldives is a full member and now heavily engaged, partly due to its existing Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) Certification of its pole and line skipjack and yellowfin tuna fishery. The current assessed status of the skipjack and yellowfin tuna stock is considered ‘not overfishing’. The total average Indian Ocean catches are below the assessed maximum sustainable levels and the spawning biomass is healthy well above the point of recruitment impairment. The Maldives fishery component takes 17% of Indian Ocean skipjack and some 15% of the yellowfin. The most recent MSY is around at 680,000 Mt per year for skipjack and 350,000 Mt for yellowfin tuna. 11- Raaverrehaa is occasionally used for local picnic and it is the only remaining island for picnickers in the vicinity Villingili. Proposed fish purchase and storage facility development in Raaverehaa will limit the public accessibility for local picnickers. To overcome potential social problems that may rise in association with this development, the proponent has proposed to develop a picnic facility in any location identified by the public and Villingili Council. At present council is consulting with the people to identify the most suitable area to develop for local picnickers. 12- On the basis of the findings of this environmental impact assessment study and the impact mitigation measures proposed in the report will be duly implemented and recommendations are given due consideration, it is concluded that the benefits of the planned Ensis fish purchasing and storage facility development in Raaverrehaa Island will substantially outweigh an unwelcomed demand of burden on the environment.Item Environmental impact assessment (EIA) for establishment of a katsuobushi processing facility in Hithadhoo, Addu City(2015-12) Adam, M. Shiham; Ahusan, Mohamed1. The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report carried out for proponent Yours Maldivian Addu Katsuobushi Pvt. Ltd. to develop and operate a katsuobushi plant on a leased plot of land from the RAF area of Hithadhoo Island, Addu City. The EIA is prepared as fulfilment of the requirement by the Ministry of Environment and Energy for granting permission for the Project. Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of development projects is a requirement by the Environmental Protection and Preservation Act (EPPA) (law 4/93) of the Government of the Republic of Maldives. 2. This report has been prepared in accordance with the Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations published by the Ministry of Environment and Energy in 2012 and covers environmental and socio-economic impacts arising from the proposed project. Major findings of this report are based on data and information gathered during the field inspection of the existing environment. In addition, expert judgement and published literature were used to predict the possible impacts from the project. 3. The development project is located in the western side of the southern section of Hithadhoo Island, Addu Atoll. The plot is separated from the western beach by about 65m of coastal vegetation. Terrestrial vegetation around the plot area is a mix of salt and salinity tolerant trees and shrubs. The population of the Island is mostly concentrated to the northern end of the island while the southern end is sparsely inhabited resulting in an abundant. 4. Tuna to be processed will be sourced from the local fishermen. While only skipjack tuna will be used to make katsuobushi, other species in the catch (yellowfin tuna and small amounts of bigeye tuna) will also be purchased and processed into other products and marketed to the locals. This is in order to incentivize the fishermen to sell their catch to the proponent and ensure a steady supply of raw materials. 5. Pole-and-line tuna fishery of the Maldives exploits the wider Indian Ocean stocks, the management of which falls on the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC). Maldives is a full member of IOTC and takes a lead role in promoting management of the Indian Ocean tuna stocks. Most recent assessments for skipjack tuna (2014) indicate that the skipjack tuna stock is being exploited at safe levels. However, 2015 assessment of yellowfin tuna stocks showed that the stock has been overfished and is being overfished. 6. The development project involves construction of a 100 by 100 feet processing facility, its supporting infrastructure and a staff accommodation block for the employees of the facility. All construction will use general construction materials such as cement, imported river sand and aggregate, deformed steel bars etc. Construction materials and crew will be transferred to, and waste removed from the facility via existing dirt roads. 7. Major waste stream from the factory would consist of organic waste (fish offal) and blood water from gutting and cleaning raw fish, domestic sewage diluted in flushed water and greywater from the staff accommodation block and ash from the smoking process. 8. Organic waste (consisting of viscera, cuttings, skin and bones) will be collected in leak proof containers and routinely removed from the facility before it becomes putrid. This will be disposed of in the sea by an external party during the first year and later used to make agricultural fertilizer. Blood water and water generated from cleaning the facility will be discharged onto the reef flat on the western side of the island. Septic tanks will be used for the treatment of domestic sewage and greywater from the accommodation block. 9. Assessment of the existing terrestrial environment in the vicinity of the site showed that the area consist of typical island vegetation except for a dominance of coconut palms (Cocos nucifera). Site of the project does not contain strong vegetation as it was cleared prior to leasing to the proponent. Small scale farming takes place in plots around the project site. 10. The island being located on the western atoll rim reef and the project site being located on the western side of the island, is in close proximity to the marine environment. The beach is exposed to strong swell waves originating in the Western Indian Ocean. Breaking of waves on the reef creates longshore currents which would allow almost instant mixing and dilution of effluent discharged. Benthic cover on the reef flat/lagoon showed a predominant abundance of seagrass and a lack of live corals and associated benthic fauna. 11. Minimal environmental impacts are predicted for the project. Key negative impacts include a transient deterioration of water quality at the effluent discharge site and likely deterioration of groundwater due to sewage from the accommodation block. Further, a localized reduction in air quality is expected due to gaseous (NOX) and particulate emissions from the smoking process. 12. The project is expected to have a number of positive impacts on the local economy and wellbeing of locals especially fishermen. Firstly, fishermen will be paid a competitive price for their catch in order to ensure a reliable supply of raw materials. The project will also open up employment opportunities for locals. Further, it will contribute to the local economy by outsourcing some aspects of the project such as waste disposal and sea transport of products to Male’ and contribute to government’s policy of value0addition of fishery catch.