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Item Environmental impact assessment for the reconstruction of Guraidhoo Harbour, Thaa Atoll, Maldives(2015-12) Maldives Energy and Environmental CompanyThe Ministry of Housing and Infrastructure requested the services of Maldives Energy and Environmental Company (MEECO) to provide an Environmental Impact Study (EIA) for the re-construction of harbour at Guraidhoo Island, Thaa Atoll. The assessment addresses specific key issues stated in the Terms of Reference (TOR) as agreed between EPA and the Proponent following the Scoping Meeting held on the matter. This EIA report was prepared for the fulfilment of the requirements of the Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations, 2012 with the purpose of conducting an assessment of possible impacts on biophysical and human environment arising from proposed development project. The project is proposed by Ministry of Housing and Infrastructure, Maldives. The proposed harbour reconstruction project include the following components; 1. Reconstruction of improved breakwaters for harbour basin and entrance channel; 2. Reconstruction of improved main quay wall and a side quay wall; 3. Maintenance dredging of the harbour; 4. Extension of the harbour basin; 5. Reclamation of small area of land by dredge sediment disposal; 6. Construction of revetments on a 14m section for the newly reclaimed land; 7. Installation of navigational lights. The present harbour facility at the Guraidhoo Island is greatly damaged and is not serving its intended function of providing safe access to the island and safe mooring of vessels. Additionally, the size of the harbour is identified as inadequate for the present need and expected economic growth of the island. The harbour forms a key part in many livelihood activities of the island and is frequently used by passenger and cargo vessels as well as vessels travelling to and from Laamu atoll. Hence, the improvement of harbour facility will greatly benefit the island community while also enabling future economic development at the island. The proposed project is not expected to cause any long term major irreversible environmental impacts, though few temporary impacts during the construction phase is expected. These impacts can be successfully mitigated by following the measures recommended in this EIA. The construction phase of the project is also expected to present several negative socio-cultural and economic impacts, which can also be mitigated by following measures presented in this EIA. Overall, the project is expected to yield major positive impacts in socio-cultural and economic sector when the new harbour comes into operation. Based on the results of the assessments, this EIA study concludes that with the proposed mitigation in place, the project is justifiable, would be environmentally acceptable and could proceed in compliance with the relevant environmental legislations and regulations. In this EIA, the consultants have proposed an Environmental management plan to ensure that the construction phase of the project does not cause major unexpected impacts on the environment as well as to ensure that the proposed measures are working effectively to safeguard the environment.Item Environmental impact assessment for rehabilitation and repair of harbour at Inguraidhoo Island, Raa Atoll(2015-08) Maldives Energy and Environmental Company1. The Ministry of Housing and Infrastructure requested the services of Maldives Energy and Environmental Company (MEECO) to provide an Environmental Impact Study (EIA) for the rehabilitation and repair of the harbour, Inguraidhoo Island, Raa Atoll, Maldives. 2. The assessment addresses specific key issues stated in the Terms of Reference (ToR) as agreed between EPA and the Proponent following the Scoping Meeting held on the matter. 3. Inguraidhoo harbour was developed in 1998 by dredging into the island from the original coastline of the Island to create the required space for the harbour basin. Since then there was a major repair done in the year 2005, however, the repair and maintenance activity for the harbour had been performed was not adequate. Moreover, the island envision of expanding the basin to cater to the growing demand of increasing vessels in the island. 4. Inguraidhoo has a registered population of 1,842 people. Due to the poor design and workmanship during the construction of its existing harbour, it has failed to provide much anticipated protection and safety for the travellers and vessels. Consequently, the people of the island have suffered enormously. The present entrance channel creates dangerous situations particularly during the rough weather conditions. There had been several incidents of damages to the vessels, people and to property while trying to pass through the channel. In addition to the problems caused due to the deterioration of the breakwater, the original height of the seawall is not adequate to prevent overtopping of waves into the harbour basin creating very rough conditions during bad weather. Similarly the low height of the quay wall allows overtopping of waves into the coast causing flooding. 5. In order to alleviate the above problems the Proponent intends to rehabilitate the breakwater, extending the breakwater to provide protection for the harbour entrance, constructing revetment on the northern and southern ends of the harbour adjoining the land, maintenance dredging of shallow areas within the harbour basin and the entrance channel. 6. The Consultants assessed the potential environmental impacts using sound scientific methodology, literature review and experiences from the past projects of similar nature. In addition views and opinions of the key stakeholders have been reflected in the report. The main findings have been summarised in the following sub-paragraphs. a. Due to the critical role the harbour plays in the socio-economic development of the island, the existing problems associated with the harbour need to be addressed as a matter of priority. b. Environmental impacts assessment carried out for the project indicates that the project can be successfully implemented without an irreversible significant damages to the environment and that the socio-economic benefits to the community and the region far outweighs minor damages that may arise out of the project. c. The project, however, has inevitable low magnitude negative impacts, including, sedimentation over parts of the reef, noise and vibration due to piling and construction activities, pollution from solid and hazardous waste. Hence, the project shall put in place the mitigation measures prescribed in the report while undertaking the project activities. 7. The Inguraidhoo harbour maintenance and rehabilitation project is of utmost importance to the people of the island. The project is in line with the government’s policies and can be implemented in fully compliance with the relevant laws and regulations. The Proponent has given full commitment to undertake mitigation measures given in the report during the project implementation. Hence the negative impacts can be effectively mitigated through the prescribed actions and the project could be implemented successfully.Item First addendum to the environment impact assessment for Koodoo Domestic Airport extension and development of Airport Hotel at Koodoo Island, G. A. Atoll(2014-12) Maldives Energy and Environmental CompanyThis is the first addendwn to the EIA report for Kooddoo Domestic airport extension and development of an Airport Hotel at Ga Kooddoo, GA Atoll. This addendum is prepared to address the changes brought to the concept plan of the Airport Hotel and the alternative sand borrow sites recommended in the EIA report. Major changes to the airport hotel concept include the change in nwnber of water villas from 25 to 43, re arrangement of water villas from semi-circular shape to arc-shape with double rows of water villas on the southern ann of the arc. With this change the total number of the rooms in Kooddoo Airport Hotel will increase to 68 rooms. In addition to this the size of the VIP lounge is increased and owner's villa is added at the southern end of the Hotel. With the above changes the total built up area of Kooddoo airport hotel will be increased from 13.41% to 15.43%. The alternative sand borrow site recommended in the EIA report, which was located as on the eastern lagoon of the island, was changed to two sites on southern and northern end of Kooddoo Island, adjacent to the proposed reclamation area respectively. The main reason for changing the alternative borrow area is because of the shallow lagoon depth and swell conditions on the eastern side of the island, which would require cutting an entrance channel for operation of the dredger. Cutting an entrance channel on the eastern side would have irreversible impact to the reef and island and logistical difficulties for the proponent. Baseline data collected during the initial survey nere seen to be sufficient for the purpose of the addendum, thus no additional data was collected for this report. Impact assessment due to the changes were also observed to be more or less similar, but the impact footprint of the development will be changed to include the dredging area on the northern end of the island. However, with proper implementation of the mitigation measures, anticipated impact of dredging could be limited and contained in the work area without widespread dispersion of suspended sediment plume. Therefore the proposed changes will not alter the over-all aspect of the project.Item Environmental impact assessment for development of drainage works and storm water infiltration galleries in H. DH. Kulhudhuffushi, Maldives(2014-09) Maldives Energy and Environmental CompanyKulhudhuffitshi Island with a population of over 8900 people is the most populated island in the northern region of the country and is considered to be the third largest population in the Maldives. The island is currently the hub of all commercial activities in the north. Physical and infrastructure developments have although brought socio-economic improvements to the resident community it has also come at an environmental cost. Among the environmental issues faced to the island, stormwater flooding has been considered having impacts on the people in many different ways. Land reclamation, reclamation of the wetland, destruction of the coastal vegetation belt and increased use of vehicles on sandy roads without an engineered drainage system have all contributed to the occurrences of stormwater flooding in the island. In an attempt to address the issue of stormwater in Kulhudhuffushi, the Integrating Climate Change Risks into Resilient Island Planning Project (ICCRRIP) commissioned Male Water Supply and Sewerage Company (MWSC) and Engineering Consultant PVT. Ltd to undertake a study to identify technical options available to solve the flooding problem. Subsequently a report on the findings was submitted to ICCRRIP in 2013. The study proposed a number of options for stormwater management in the island. The recommended method being that stormwater from the gutters and soak pits be connected to a pipeline terminating into underground storage tanks consisting of blocks of AquaCell which has an extensive range of modular cell products and are known to provide an efficient and sustainable method of storing large volumes of run-off for water attenuation or soakaway applications. These underground water tanks would hold the water and release into the ground slow enough for the ground to be able to absorb water and ultimately re-charging the groundwater lens. The report divides the island catchment areas into four zones and recommends two flood prone areas in the northern and the southern part of the island for piloting flood control by this method. However, due to the limited financing available for the piloting flood control by this method. However, due to the limited financing available for the project, it has been decided to pilot the drainage activities in the north eastern region of the island only. This would involve diversion of storm water from six roads namely, Marukazu Magu, Miskiy Magu, Soafiya Higun, Madharusaa Magu, Dhanbu Magu and Orchid Magu. Approved project cost is MVR 16 million. Maldives Road Development Corporation (MRDC) has been selected as the contractor for the project while MWSC will supervise their work. MRDC intends to merge pilot project activities with the on-going road construction works. The project planning, design and surveying began in July 2014 and is entire project is expected to completed and handed over by the contractor during the first half of November. The site clearance and the earthworks is expected to start as soon as EIA clearance is sought and have been planned to be completed within about 30 days. hi order to proceed with the proposed drainage works and installation of the stormwater infiltration galleries and EIA was commissioned to obtain environmental clearance and the EIA was conducted based on the Terms of Reference agreed between the Consultant and the EPA. The EIA recognizes the importance and urgency of addressing the heavy rain associated flooding in Kulhudhuffushi based on the field investigations backed by Detailed Island Risk Assessment in Maldives (2007) and Detailed Island Risk and Vulnerability Assessment (2013). The impact analysis show no significant negative impact expected to be arising out of any activity associated with the project. Project involves minor excavations, potential dewatering, filling back and operation of vehicles and temporary enclosure of the project sites. These may have minor and temporary negative impacts to the scenic view and vista. Potential post-project negative enviromnental impact could arise out of breeding of mosquitos and pests in the tanks, in the pipeline and soakpits due to standing water. Through proper maintenance of the system the problem could be largely avoided. Potential socio-cultural impacts associated with the pilot project include, disruption to services, and temporary obstacles to right of way. Minor negative socio-cultural and environmental impacts associated with the project are temporary and reversible in nature. These further could be mitigated through appropriate mitigation measures. The most expected positive impact expected from the project will be improvement to the drainage. With the project the project is expected to alleviate drainage issue from an area measuring 175,000m2 of urban land with better drainage, and as indirect positive impacts, the project is expected to further improve groundwater, reduce potential contaminants reaching the marine environment, leading to improved public health and quality of life through reduced risk of waterborne and water-related diseases and increased public satisfaction with the urban environment. The project is expected to bring some minor positive impacts to the local economy during the three phases of the project as a results of temporary opportunities created during the works. Several major realistic and practical alternatives have been assessed including the 'no project alternative'. Without the project, the funds allocated for the project could be saved but may run the risk of losing it since the project may not have adequate time left before closure. Since, detailed designs, engineering drawings and contractor for the project has already been selected it would be completely unrealistic and wasteful to even consider utilizing the funds for a different activity. Considering meeting the objectives of the project, environmental and economical superiority of the alternatives evaluated, undertaking a pilot project in one of the flood prone area using underground tanks in empty available space for drainage has been found to the best practical option. The Council expressed their wish implement the project in the Zone A (the south east region) as opposed to Zone B (north east region). They were of the view that Zone A floods more severely compared to Zone B and therefore, the project would have greater impact by this shift. Considering that the detailed design has already been done for this zone, it is recommended to change the project location as suggested by the Council in order to increase public acceptability of the project. The intended positive impacts of the project can only be accurately determined by the post-project monitoring scheme. In order to ensure effectiveness of underground stomi water collection tanks in mitigating against flooding it is essential to monitor, collect information, evaluate the information collected and disseminated. With the following recommendations duly considered or addressed appropriately, the ETA found that the positive aspects of the project far outweigh its negative impacts. ■ Bank of Maldives Branch at Kulhudhuffushi have not been consulted during the design phase on the possible installation of an underground tank within their compound. ETA suggests that prior to the onset of ground work that the Bank be consulted for their consent. ■ Location identified for the tank at the football ground need to be relocated from the southwest corner to the northwest corner in order to reduce the pipeline length as well as the associated costs. ■ Capacity of the underwater tank proposed for Bank of Maldives' compound seem to be of inadequate capacity since it the region covers 53% of the total pilot project area. ■ It is not clear how the existing design will address the over-flow should such a situation arise. This issue need to be resolved prior to the construction. ■ Post project maintenance and management shall be discussed and agreed with the island council in order to avoid potential mosquito and other pest issues as a result of the project. If the pilot project is successful in managing storm water in the piloted area, the system will be expended to other regions of Kulhudhuffushi Island and similar systems it could be replicated elsewhere in the Maldives.