Ministry of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environment Geological Survey Department
Feasibility Study and Strategic Environmental Assessment Possible Creation New Quarry Zone in Paphos District GSD/2005/06
Final Report
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1 PROBLEM AND OBJECTIVES
Due to growing economic activities, including the growth of the tourist sector, there is an increasing demand for building materials in Paphos district. Until now, this demand is partly met by the existing quarry zone at Androlykou and partly by importing quarry products from other regions, e.g., the Parekklisia – Vasa area in the Limassol district. The reserves at the Androlykou quarry zone are expected to be exhausted within five years. Importing building materials entails a considerable environmental, social and economical impact because these materials have to be transported over long distances. Therefore, there is an increasing interest in establishing new quarry zones within the Paphos district which will cover all future demand. From a geological point of view, the northern and eastern parts of Paphos district ( FIG. 1 ) are suitable for quarrying diabase rock. However, these areas are covered by semi-natural forests that are important for biodiversity conservation. Thus, albeit new quarry zones within the Paphos district may decrease the environmental impact due to the transportation of building materials, this may endanger the ecological status of Paphos Forest.
The aim of this work is to identify specific sites within the Paphos Forest that have the best potential to accommodate new mineral extraction without causing undue environmental impact. In second instance, a comparative Strategic Environmental Assessment is performed comparing the establishment of a new quarry zone in the Paphos Forest with alternative ways for meeting the demand for building materials in Paphos district. The procedure for this Strategic Environmental Assessment is determined by the European Directive 2001/42.EEC.
In detail, the objectives of the study are:
Secure the availability of building materials in Paphos District as a contribution to the sustainable development of the region; Investigation and evaluation of all the factors affecting the creation of a new quarry zone in Paphos: gathering data from existing databases and field surveys, incorporating these data in a GIS and identifying, listing and analysing all partial and absolute constraints; Establishing a methodology for identifying areas with the least constraints: in these areas, creation of quarries would have the least impact on key issues; The methodology for identifying new quarry zones, within the Paphos Forest, needs to be logical, verifiable and transparent. In this way all the interested parties will be able to see and understand the process used to arrive at the identification of new sites; Perform a Strategic Environmental Assessment for each alternative, according to the Directive 2001/42.EEC; Propose mitigation measures for each alternative; Environmental comparison of all the impacts (of the various possible alternatives which will be proposed); Identification, evaluation and justification of the important environmental impacts that will remain for each case/alternative/choice.
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2 DESCRIPTION OF THE STUDY AREA
2.1 Topography and Hydrology
Cyprus can be subdivided into four geomorphologic zones: the Pendadaktylos mountain range, the Troodos Range the valley of Mesaoria and the coastal zone. The study area, described as the territory in Paphos district with rocks of the Diabase and Basal Group geological formations, is located in the northwest part of the Troodos Range and ranges in altitude between 300-1.352 m. The highest summit is the Tripylos (FIG. 2).
The rugged Troodos Mountains, whose principal range stretches from Pomos Point in the northwest almost to Larnaca Bay on the east, are the single most conspicuous feature of the landscape. Intensive uplifting and folding in the formative period left the area highly fragmented, so that subordinate ranges and spurs veer off at many angles, their slopes incised by steep-sided valleys. In the southwest, the mountains descend in a series of stepped foothills to the coastal plain.
Deforestation over the centuries has damaged the island's drainage system and made access to a year-round supply of water difficult. A network of winter rivers rises in the Troodos Mountains and flows out from them in all directions. All rivers are dry in the summer. An extensive system of dams and waterways has been constructed to bring water to farming areas.
2.2 Geology
2.2.1 Geological Zones of Cyprus
Cyprus can be divided into four geological zones 1 that determine the availability of specific minerals:
1. Pentadaktylos (Kyrenia) Zone; 2. Troodos Zone or Troodos Ophiolite; 3. Mamonia Zone or Complex; 4. Zone of the autochthonous sedimentary rocks.
The Pentadaktylos (Kyrenia) Zone forms the Kyrenian mountain area of northern Cyprus. It is mainly composed of allochthonous, massive and recrystallised limestones, dolomites and marbles of Permian-Carboniferous to Lower Cretaceous age. These have been overthrust and now lie above younger autochthonous sedimentary rocks of Upper Cretaceous to Middle Miocene age.
1 According to ‘Strategy for sustainable quarrying and mining development of Cyprus – Final Report’ by Wardell Armstrong, for the Ministry of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environment, Geological Survey Department Ecorem nv – E01/0079.040.R5 – 27/03/2006 - SH/GHE 3
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The Troodos Zone, in which the study area of this Project is entirely situated, dominates the central part of the island as an elongated dome structure outcropping in the main mass of the Troodos mountain range and in the Limassol and Akapnou Forests areas. It comprises a distinctive assemblage of mafic to ultramafic rocks that represent part of an oceanic crust that has been thrust to the surface. This rock sequence is referred to as an ophiolite and as such the Troodos is regarded as the most complete and studied ophiolite in the world. It was formed in the Upper Cretaceous.
The Mamonia Zone occurs in the Paphos district in the southwest part of the island. It is a series of igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks, ranging in age from Middle Triassic to Upper Cretaceous. They have generally been intensely deformed and mixed with rock fragments of the Troodos ophiolite. They are regarded as allochthonous both in relation to the overlying autochthonous carbonate successions and the Troodos ophiolite.
The autochthonous sedimentary rocks range in age from Upper Cretaceous through to Pleistocene and cover the area between the Pentadaktylos and Troodos Zones, and also occur in the southern part of the island.
2.2.2 Minerals for the Construction Industry
Minerals for the construction industry make the largest contribution to the total extraction of minerals in Cyprus. Construction minerals are mainly derived from diabase and reef limestones, and, to a lesser extent, finer aggregate (sand) is also obtained from crushed calcarenites.
Diabase is mainly extracted from the Sheeted Dyke Complex. It is also derived from the Basal Group, which generally delivers rocks of poorer quality. Diabase forms a major part (of the order of one third) of the Troodos Ophiolite complex (see further). It is a very competent material for the production of aggregate for the domestic construction industry. The total resources of rock suitable for aggregate production are huge; moreover, aggregates produced from the diabase are generally stronger and more durable than those from the limestones.
The autochtonous reef limestones of the Koronia and Terra members of the Pakhna Formation are the main source for limestone aggregates. To a lesser extent, it is also obtained from the layered limestone of the Ayios Photios Group within the Mamonia Complex. The reef limestones provide a better quality crushed aggregate although porosity can adversely affect durability and strength. The geological outcrop of suitable limestone resources is rather limited, restricting the possibility for future extractions. It is to be expected that reef limestones will become exhausted or unexploitable so that future extraction will shift towards the diabase areas.
Calcarenite for sand is obtained from crushed calcarenites or weakly consolidated sands from the Nicosia and Athalassa Formations. This is a fine calcareous sand that is used in mortars and concrete.
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2.2.3 Geology of the Study Area
The Troodos ophiolite consists of following units: the structurally deepest but topographically highest plutonic complex, the overlying and surrounding Sheeted Dyke Complex, the Basal Group and the stratigraphically highest Pillow Lava Series, which forms a discontinuous ring around the Troodos Massif. The study area includes the territory in Paphos district with outcrops of the Sheeted Dyke Complex and the Basal Group.
Overlying the plutonic complex, the Sheeted Dyke Complex forms a 1-1,5 km thick unit above the high level intrusives, consisting entirely of vertical, or near vertical 'diabase' dykes, with lava and gabbro 'screens' close to the upper and lower contacts of the complex, where sheeted dykes give way to either the Basal Group, high level gabbros or plagiogranites, or, in atypical situations, layered gabbros. These dykes provide direct evidence for formation in an extensional environment. Three separate domains of fossil spreading can be identified, seen as three structural grabens on the northern flank of Troodos (Solea, Ayios Epiphanios and Larnaca grabens), which also may be linked with the formation of major mining districts in Cyprus.
The Sheeted Dyke Complex represents the conduits for lava transport from the underlying source to the seafloor. This implies that the dykes should record the same range of compositions found in the extrusive sequence. The dykes do span the same range of compositions, but sharp breaks in composition - observed in the lavas - are not recorded in the dykes. This fact, combined with the fact that no consistent relationships are evident between age and composition, suggests that within each individual spreading axis, dykes were intruded at a number of spreading centres, possibly overlapping. The dykes also have been metamorphosed, ranging in grade from zeolite to greenschist facies, with 'epidosite' (epidote-quartz-sphene) zones marking the base of hydrothermal recharge systems.
The Diabase as a whole is characterised in the field by rugged outcrops strongly resistant to erosion and weathering and of a greyish to light brown colouration. Because the rock is related to steep mountainous topography, areas with Diabase are mainly covered by forests. These forested areas are important for biodiversity conservation so that large parts of these forests are protected by environmental legislation.
Above the Sheeted Dyke Complex comes the Basal Group , sandwiched between the dykes and the overlying pillow lavas. The Basal Group consists of both dykes and lavas, with lava screens and pillows filling inter-dyke spaces. This combination of both intrusive and extrusive factors means that this group does not fit neatly into either the Sheeted Dyke Complex, or the Pillow Lavas. It instead forms a middle ground, having characteristics of both.
The Basal Group covers the gap in the stratigraphy covered by the outgoing dykes, and the incoming pillow lavas. The mixed unit that emerges is somewhat arbitrarily defined, and should possibly be considered to cover anything with less than 100% dykes, but not entirely composed of pillow lavas and feeder tubes.
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As a result, the dykes of the Basal Group are partly similar to the Diabase dykes and partly to the dykes of the Lower and Upper Pillow Lavas; they have similar widths and composition, increase in quantity towards the Diabase with an analogous decrease of the pillow lava screens, and decrease towards the Lower Pillow Lavas with analogous increase of pillow lava screens.
2.3 Ecology
2.3.1 Ecology of Cyprus
The varied topography of Cyprus, as well as the spatial variation in climate (rainfall and temperature) results in the creation of a large number of different habitat types, which can be categorised in six groups.
Pine forests constitute the most important and widespread habitat. They occur throughout the entire altitudinal range of Cyprus and are found where human intervention has not caused substantial alterations of the ecosystem. Pine forests are further subdivided in two types, namely Pinus brutia found at an elevation up to 1300 meters and Pinus nigra found at elevations from 1200 – 1900 meters. Paphos forest is one of the important forests of Pinus brutia . The remaining habitat type groups are Frygana and shrubs, Maguis, rock outcrops, coastal zones, wetlands and cultivated areas. (Tsintides and Kourtellarides 1998).
The lowest elevations are characterised by a predominance of sclerophyllous evergreen and semi-deciduous oak forests ( Quercus coccifera , Q. infectoria ), "maquis" of strawberry tree ( Arbutus andrachne ), and juniper and cypress woodlands (Cupressus sempervirens , Juniperus phoenicea ). The driest low plains, with less than 300 mm of annual rainfall, host a semi-arid, shrub-like vegetation where wild olive ( Olea europaea ), carob ( Ceratonia siliqua ), and jujube lotus (Z izyphus lotus ) once flourished. In the medium elevations mesophyllous pine forests ( Pinus brutia ) are widespread, and endemic evergreen oak forests ( Quercus alnifolia ) are locally abundant, such as in the western Troodos range – the relict endemic Cedrus brevifolia forest stands are located here also. The highest elevations host mountain pine ( Pinus pallasiana ) forests and juniper ( Juniperus foetidissima ) woodlands.
The plant endemism rate of Cyprus is about 7% (130 species and subspecies of a total indigenous flora of about 1,800 species). The endemic flora is distributed all along the mountain ranges: Troodos Forest with 65 endemic plants, the northern Pentadaktylos range with 50 endemics, the Paphos Forest with 40 endemics and the Akamas peninsula with 39 endemic species (Tsintides and Kourtellarides 1998). Among the most significant endemic plants are the rare and endangered Cyprus cedar ( Cedrus brevifolia ), the cyprus oak ( Quercus alnifolia ), a considerable number of bulb species such as Cyclamen cyprium , Tulipa cypria , Crocus cyprius , C. veneris , Chionodoxa lochiae , and Gagea juliae , and aromatic plants such as Nepeta troodi , Teucrium cyprium , T. micropodioides , Thymus integer , Salvia willeana , and Origanum cordifolium .
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The island also serves as a stepping stone between Europe and Africa for millions of migratory birds every year. Over 350 species of birds can be found here, most of which are migratory. Some 46 residents and 27 migratory species breed regularly on the island; about 10 species are endemic. The island is home to a number of mammals such as the Cyprus moufflon ( Ovis orientalis ophion ), which is a rare type of wild sheep found only on the island of Cyprus.
2.3.2 Ecological importance and protection status of the Paphos Forest.
The Paphos Forest is situated at the northwest part of Troodos range and it is considered one of the most important areas of Cyprus in terms of its ecological characteristics. It covers a large area that stretches from near sea level up to the peak of mount Tripylos at 1,352 m.. According to the Cyprus Forest Law, the Paphos Forest is a Main State Forest. Four sites that are situated within the boundaries of the Paphos Forest have been proposed by the Government of Cyprus as Special Areas of Conservation and they will form part of the Natura 2000 network. The Paphos Forest includes two areas that were designated by the Ministerial Council as Nature Reserves, namely Tripylos (823 ha) and Mavroi Kremoi (2557,6 ha). Part of the latter area has also been designated as a Council of Europe Biogenetic Reserve. The entire Paphos Forest has been characterised as an important Bird Area according to Birdlife International criteria. Recently, the Paphos Forest was declared by the Minister of Interior as a Special Area of Conservation and has been proposed to be included in the Natura 2000 Network.
The Paphos Forest comprises extended natural habitats, hosting a large number of flora and fauna species. It includes an extended, natural pine forest ecosystem of a generally very good conservation status, the unique endemic cedar forest, large stands of Quercus alnifolia scrub, the riparian Oriental plane forests, which develop along the rivers and streams, and several other habitats, including three priority habitat types (matoral with Ziziphus - habitat type *5220, communities with annuals and grasses - habitat type *6220, Alluvial forests with Alnus orientalis – habitat type *91E0) and 9 other Annex I Dir. 92/43/EEC habitat types. It also hosts 3 Annex II Dir. 92/43/EEC plant species.
The avifauna of the Paphos Forest includes about 100 species. It supports the highest number of breeding raptors Hieraaetus fasciatus and Accipiter gentilis . A corridor crossing Paphos Forest from north to south is used by the raptors. The Forest supports considerable populations of endemic bird species, including some new additions to the Annex I 79/409/EEC. It also supports populations of a considerable number of Annex I species (more than 20).
The Paphos Forest is the most important habitat for the Cyprus mouflon ( Ovis gmelini ophion ), which was accepted as a new addition to Annex II, 92/43/EEC Dir. The Cyprus mouflon lives in the forest and at the forest margins. The Paphos Forest supports almost the entire mouflon’s population in Cyprus.
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The Paphos Forest also supports the largest population of the endemic snake Coluber cypriensis , which was also recently included in the Annex II, 92/43/EEC Dir. as a priority species.
Finally, the Paphos Forest hosts a considerable number of other endemic, rare and threatened animals.
Scientific information regarding the ecological characteristics of the four sites within Paphos Forest that were proposed for inclusion to the NATURA2000 network is included in Annex 1. The location opf the proposed NATURA2000 areas is presented on FIG. 3 .
2.3.3 Short Note On Existing Threats To The Ecology
At present the Paphos Forest is free of major developments or human activity. However, several threats exist to the ecology of the area.
Road construction has been a major source of ecological disruption both by the direct removal or covering of surface cover, and the subdivision of forest space. A further impact evident in several occasions of road construction is the erosion and downstream silting that occurs from the ground works related to the road construction and the disposal of inert materials. Further, the vines plantations near Vouni Panagias are associated with the use of large volumes of pesticides, which threaten some of the protected species, e.g., Scilla morissii . Hunting, though controlled, is rather intensive, and is also believed to impact the bird fauna of the area. Lastly, fires are a major threat to the forest, with several fires having affected parts of the forest in recent years. The Forestry department has set up a network of early warning fire stations as well as has constracted a dense grid of fire-breaker belts in order to control and minimise the impacts of fires.
2.4 Socio-Cultural Aspects
Within and at the boundaries of the project area there are several small villages ( FIG. 1). Agriculture constitutes a major part of the economic activities of these villages, but tourism is an important economic activity of the Paphos region as well. Though mostly developed in the coastal areas, it also directly or indirectly influences the economy of these villages. Paphos Forest is an important attractor for tourists. Following the ‘Strategic Plan for Tourism 2010’, the touristic sector will evolve around two core themes, i.e., Culture and Environment.
The Forest Station at Stavros tis Psokas, for example, is an important tourist attractor in the heart of the Paphos Forest. Nearby, there is an enclosure where visitors can admire the Cyprus Moufflon. Three nature trails cross this area, with a total length of 9,5 kilometers. Besides its nature, the wider area is also known for its churches and monasteries of the former Byzantine Empire.
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Tourism could generate an additionnal income for the local community. It is expected that infrastructure for toruists will develop in the northwestern part of the district, between Polis and Pomos. These two cities which are connected by an asphalt road, that constitutes the western boundary of the search area. Within Paphos Forest, most raods occur as earth roads or forest tracks, apart from the two main asphalt roads: one east-west connection along the northern boundary of the district, and one north-south connection passing the central part of Paphos Forest.
2.5 Road Network
All villages are connected with the main network to Paphos via two-lane two-way asphalt roads. The Paphos Forest area is served by a sparse network of asphalted roads leading from the populated areas to Stavros tis Psokas and Kykkos Monastery. FIG. 1 presents the road network. An additional and rather dense network of dirt roads also serves the area. Most of these roads are narrow, steep and rather inaccessible, especially during the rainy season.
Access to a proposed quarry will need to be secured via a combination of the existing asphalted roads, and the upgrading of dirt roads. Its is therefore considered as difficult to avoid passage through some of the villages. The existing roads are generally narrow, curvey, and run through the village centers. For these reasons they are considered unsuitable fro the passage of heavy vehicles for the transportation of quarry materials.
2.6 Air Quality
Paphos Forest is actually free of major developments that constitute a source of air pollution. The only pollutant expected to occasionally rise to high concentrations is PM10 due to a combination of natural sources and human activities.
A preliminary assessment of air quality in the Paphos Forest area is made with use of air quality measurement data at Agia Marinouda. The station is operated by the Department of Labor Inspection, and it is used to assess background air pollutant concentrations.
Air quality was assessed with respect to Ozone (Ο3), Nitrogen Oxide and Dioxide (NO), (NO 2), Sulfur dioxide (SO 2), Carbon monoxide (CO), airborne particulate matter (TSP & PM10) and lead (Pb).
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2.6.1 Air Quality Criteria
The following Table 1 presents the maximum allowable air pollutant concentrations, as set out in the Cyprus Air Quality Protection Law. The recommended limits as proposed by the World Health Organization (WHO) are also shown.
Table 1: Air Quality legislative limits (all values in μg/m 3 at T= 293 Κ and pressure = 101,3 kPa) Pollutant Reference Period Legislative limit 2 (ΝΟ 2) 1-h average 200 Annual Average 40 1-h average 3 400
(NOx) Annual average 4 30
5 (Ο3) 8-h average 110
1-h average 6 180
1-h average 6 360
1-h average 5 200
24-h average 5 65
(CO) 8-h average 10.000
(SO ) Annual average 5 20 2 24-h average 7 125
1-h average 350
1-h average 4 500
(PM10) 24-h average 50 1-h average 40 (Pb) Annual average 0,5
In accordance with the background measurement results, Paphos enjoys low levels of air pollutants with the exception of Ozone, which should be elevated during the summer months, and may occasionally exceed legislative limits. These concentrations are produced by natural sources. Also PM10 is expected to exhibit high concentrations during the summer period with the possibility of locally exceeding legislative limits, especially in the vicinity of disturbed areas or ground works.
It must be noted that due to the high value and sensitivity of its ecosystems, flora protection limits (see footnote 5) are very important for the study area.
2 Not to exceeded more than three times per year 3 Population alert limit, not to exceeded more than 18 times per year 4 For the protection of Flora or ecosystems 5 Population alert limit 6 Population Awareness 7 Should not be exceeded more than 24 times per year Ecorem nv – E01/0079.040.R5 – 27/03/2006 - SH/GHE 10
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2.7 Noise
The project area covers a range of acoustic environment conditions including:
2.7.1 Main Road Arteries
These are asphalted roads offering connection to urban centers. They are utilised by through traffic and traffic volumes may reach 500 vehicles per hour in peak periods. Road noise levels typical in these arteries are presented in Table 2 .
Table 2: Typical noise levels for main roads
Lden = 60
Lday = 60-65
Levening = 55
Lnight = 50
2.7.2 Lateral Road Arteries
These are locally used asphalted roads offering connection to the area’s villages, but generally not utilised for through traffic. Traffic volumes are typically less than 100 vehicles per hour. Typical noise levels are listed in Table 3 .
Table 3: Typical noise levels for lateral roads
Lden = 55
Lday = 55
Levening = 50
Lnight = 40
Both main and lateral road arteries cross through village centers, and noise, though not a serious issue, does raise some concerns.
2.7.3 Dirt Roads
Paphos Forest is served by quite a dense network of dirt roads. Traffic flow on these roads is sparse and periodic, thus noise levels are not a serious issue. In specific locations such noise may be a source of nuisance.
2.7.4 Forest
The majority of the project area is remote from developed areas and accessible only by dirt roads with minimal traffic. Under such conditions, noise levels range from 30 – 40 dB(A), except in periods of high wind speeds or rain.
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2.7.5 Noise Criteria
Acceptable noise levels in Cyprus have not yet been set. However, Directive 49/2002 prescribes a methodology for setting noise limits. At present, the noise criteria presented in Table 4 are generally applied.
Table 4: Preliminary criteria for evaluating noise levels Urban areas
Lday 65
Lnight 45 Quiet residential
Lday 55
Lnight = 45
Also, it must be noted that any increase of noise by more than 10 dB(A) is treated as significant impact. Therefore, areas within a quarry zone may be considered as high noise impact zones if current noise levels are less than L day 65 dB, since typically noise levels within quarries reach or exceed L day 75 dB. Possible access routes will also constitute high impact zones if current levels do not exceed L day 60 dB.
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3 PROJECT DESCRIPTION
In the previous paragraph, the distribution of construction minerals within Paphos and within Cyprus was discussed. Construction minerals often occur in ecologically valuable areas which constrains the possibilities for future mineral extraction. Another constraint that should be taken into account when searching suitable areas for quarrying, is the demand for construction products. This in turn determines the required size of the new quarry zones. So to predict the required size of a new quarry zone, we need to express the demand for construction products, especially aggregates, in terms of measurable quantities.
FIG. 4 presents the geographical distribution of some existing diabase quarry areas in Limassol district.
3.1 Correlation Between Cement Consumption and Aggregates Sales
FIG. 5 shows the monthly cement consumption in Cyprus from Jan. 2003 – Sep. 2005. FIG. 6 shows the annual cement consumption in the period 1995 – 2005. The amounts of quarry products (aggregates) sold in Cyprus in 1993-2005 are shown in FIG. 7 .
180 000 160 000 140 000 120 000 100 000
TONS 80 000
60 000
40 000
20 000
0
01-03 03-03 05-03 07-03 09-03 11-03 01-04 03-04 05-04 07-04 09-04 11-04 01-05 03-05 05-05 07-05 09-05 FIG. 5: Monthly cement consumption in Cyprus (Jan. 2003 - Oct. 2005)
1 800 1 600 1 400 1 200 1 000 800 600 TONSx1000 400 200 0
1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 FIG. 6: Annual cement consumption (1995 – 2005)
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FIG. 4: Location of existing diabase quarry sites (Vasa, Zoopigi and Parekklisia) in Limassol district
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14 000 000
12 000 000 585 11 000 064 12 112 10 634 000 634 10 10 528 10 000 10 000 000 9 327 000 9
000 8 802 8 443 000 8
8 000 000 000 7 714
000 6 812 6 405 000 6 405 6 024 000 6 024 TONS 5 793 000 5 6 000 000 730 000 5
4 000 000
2 000 000
0
6 7 1 2 94 95 9 9 99 00 0 0 04 05 9 9 9 0 0 1993 1 1 19 19 1998 1 2 20 20 2003 2 20 FIG. 7: Quarry product sales in Cyprus
For the period 1995-2005, the cement consumption and quarry products sales in Cyprus ( FIGS. 6 and 7) show a correlation of 85% ( FIG. 8 ). Consequently, one can conclude that the cement consumption is directly related to the aggregates demand/production. Moreover, since 2001, the cement production, as well as the aggregates production are rising, indicating a growing demand of aggregates. This increasing demand of cement and aggregates is also shown in FIG. 9 , comparing the total area of issued construction permits in the period Jan. - Aug. 2004 with Jan. - Aug. 2005. This increase, its evolution in the future and the needs it creates for new quarry zones, in the Paphos region, is discussed in the next paragraphs.
18 000 000 1 800 000 CORRELATION 85% 16 000 000 1 600 000 14 000 000 1 400 000
12 000 000 1 200 000
10 000 000 1 000 000 8 000 000 800 000 6 000 000 600 000 (TONS) CEMENT
AGGREGATES (TONS) 4 000 000 400 000
2 000 000 200 000 0 0
5 7 9 0 2 4 * 9 9 0 0 0 5 99 00 1 1996 19 1998 19 20 2001 20 2003 20 2 AGGREGATES CEMENT FIG. 8: Cement vs total aggregates consumption
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900 000 800 000 700 000 600 000
500 000
400 000 Area (m²) 300 000 200 000 100 000 0 NICOSIA FAMAGUSTA LARNACA LIMASSOL PAPHOS
Jan - Aug 2005 Jan - Aug 2004
FIG. 9: Area of issued construction permits (statistics service departmenet)
3.2 Paphos Aggregates Consumption: Period 1993 –2005
This paragraph describes the past, present and future situation of aggregates consumption in Paphos and Limassol district.
Data from two cement plants * concerning the consumed total bulk cement and the amount of cement in bags in the Paphos district are given in Table 5 (column 1 and 2). To calculate the total amount of aggregates form these data, certain assumptions are made ( Table 6 ):
- the amount of aggregates used in the production of bulk cement is 5,23 tons of aggregates to 1 ton of cement. This figure is based on a C25 concrete mix design, which is used in 65% of the total concrete sales in Paphos; ** - cement in bags is mixed with 4 tons of aggregates per ton of cement mainly used for plaster purposes; - aggregates used for cement production counts for 70% of the total aggregates sales. The remaining 30% of the total aggregates are used for road construction, domestic use, etc. *** The above ratio is equal to Cyprus average ****
Considering these assumptions, the total amount of aggregates consumption is given in Table 5 (column 5).
References: * Vassilikos and Moni Cement Plants ** Ready Mix Concrete Plants *** Info based on current consumption as it is extracted from Local Paphos District engineer office (350000 tons) plus the private sector consumption **** Mines Department Ecorem nv – E01/0079.040.R5 – 27/03/2006 - SH/GHE 16
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Table 5: Consumed total bulk cement and the amount of cement in bags in the Paphos district (tons)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Year Year district district in Paphos in Paphos production production from Nicosia from Nicosia from Limassol from Limassol Cement in bags bags in Cement Paphos quarries Paphos quarries Total aggregates Total aggregates non cement uses uses cement non Total Bulk cement cement Bulk Total consumed in Paphos Paphos in consumed consumed in Paphos Paphos in consumed Aggregates to Paphos Paphos to Aggregates Paphos to Aggregates Limassol consumption consumption Limassol consumption including including consumption from Limassol Quarries Quarries from Limassol Aggregates with cement cement with Aggregates Total Cement consumed consumed Total Cement Limassol total production production total Limassol
2000 184882 27000 211882 1074933 1535618 1271510 164108 100000 2215190 2051082 2001 206115 32000 238115 1205981 1722831 1199610 373221 150000 2349840 1976619 2002 210167 36000 246167 1243173 1775962 1318555 257407 200000 2936590 2679183 2003 236395 43000 279395 1408346 2011923 1248512 483411 280000 2743762 2260351 2004 280648 69000 349648 1743789 2491127 1418879 696248 376000 2632608 1936360 2005 272000 58000 330000 1654560 2363657 1256689 801968 305000 2731452 1929484
11 12 13 Year Year district district Limassol district Limassol district Consumption for Consumption and Limassol districts districts Limassol and Consumtion for Paphos Paphos for Consumtion Consumtion for Paphos Paphos for Consumtion
2000 1435618 2051082 3486700 2001 1572831 1976619 3549450 2002 1575962 2679183 4255145 2003 1731923 2260351 3992274 2004 2115127 1936360 4051487 2005 2058657 1929484 3988141
Table 6: Assumptions made to calculate the total amount of aggregates form the data in Table 5 (Note : Columns 11,12,13 excluding input from Nicosia which is assumed to be constant)
Tons of aggregates per ton of bulk cement 5,23 Tons of aggregates per ton of cement in bags 4 % of aggregates consumed with cement 70% Losses during treatment of aggregates % 10% % of overburden in quarry total excavation 20% In situ rock density (tons/m³) 2,44* Average depth of excavation in quarry 60** zone(m) Annual growth of consumption in Paphos 2% Annual growth of consumption in Limassol 2%
*In situ rock density is a combination of 2,5 tons/m³ for diabase and 2,2 tons/m³ for waste (reference: Mines Department Study for a diabase quarry) ** expected final depth for Parekklisia
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Figures from the Cyprus Mine Department concerning the quarry products sold per district show that the production of aggregates in the Paphos district ( FIG. 10 ) is insufficient to meet the local demand of aggregates. The main alternative source for aggregates for Paphos are the Limassol diabase quarries and some smaller quantities of fine sand supplied from Nicosia. Column 7 of Table 5 gives the amount of aggregates from other districts (Limassol and Nicosia). An overall figure of the aggregates consumption in the Paphos district is shown in FIG. 11 , divided in the amount of aggregates coming from other districts and the amount of aggregates of the Paphos quarries itself.
The total amount of quarry products sold in the district of Limassol in the period 1993- 2005 is given in FIG. 12.
1 600 000 1 400 000 1 000 418 1 000 318 1 271 000 271 1 1 642 253 1 2481 000 1 200 000 1 000 199
1 000 000 000 883 800 000 657 000 657 TONS 600 000 000 575 438 000 438
400 000 000 336 284 000 284 283 000 283 200 000 0
3 4 6 7 0 1 3 4 9 9 9 9 0 0 9 9 9 9 999 0 002 0 1 1 1995 1 1 1998 1 2 200 2 2 200 2005 FIG. 10: Paphos district quarry products sales
3000000
2500000 2000000
1500000 TONS 1000000
500000
0 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 Total Paphos aggregates consumption Paphos quarries production Aggregates to Paphos from Limassol Aggregates to Paphos from Nicosia Lineair (Total Paphos aggregates consumption)
FIG. 11: Aggregates consumption in Paphos district
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3 500 000
2 9362 000 3 000 000 2 840000 2 7982 594 2 743000
632000 2
2 500 000 2 349 000 2 221 000 2 215000 2 2 210000 2
067000 2 2 000 000
7551 000
1 459000 TONS
1 500 000 3421 000
1 000 000
500 000 0
4 98 03 1993 199 1995 1996 1997 19 1999 2000 2001 2002 20 2004 2005 FIG. 12: Limassol district quarry products sales The rate of aggregates from Limassol and Nicosia used in the Paphos district is shown in column 7 and 8 of Table 5 . Since 2000, this ratio is increasing while Pafos quarry production is declining since last year (Column 7 of Table 5). Therefore, the next paragraph will examine the future demand of aggregates in the Paphos district in more detail, inluding possible solutions to meet this demand, i.e. the required size of new quarry zones.
3.3 Future Aggregates Demand and Required Size of New Quarry Zone
Considering the amount of aggregates consumed in 1993-2005 in Cyprus, Limassol and Paphos, one can predict the future growth and calculate future demand aggregates for the period 2006-2025 ( FIGS. 13, 14, 15, 16 and Table 7 ). To calculate the future growth, an exponential function was fitted on the data about quarry product sales between 1993 and 2005 in Cyprus, Limassol and Paphos. This function was compared with the sales data predicted with different growth rates. Finally, a 2% growth was retained because this gave the best fit.
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Table 7: Aggregates consumption projection for Limassol and Paphos (2000-2005: actual data; 2006-2025: forecasts) Paphos Limassol Paphos + Limassol YEAR GROWTH AGRREGATES GROWTH AGRREGATES GROWTH AGRREGATES RATE TONS RATE TONS RATE TONS
2000 1 435 618 0 2 051 082 3 486 700 2001 9,6% 1 572 831 -3,6% 1 976 619 1,8% 3 549 450 2002 0,2% 1 575 962 35,5% 2 679 183 19,9% 4 255 145 2003 9,9% 1 731 923 -15,6% 2 260 351 -6,2% 3 992 274 2004 22,1% 2 115 127 -14,3% 1 936 360 1,5% 4 051 487 2005 -2,7% 2 058 657 -0,4% 1 929 484 -1,6% 3 988 141 2006 2,0% 2 099 830 2,0% 1 968 074 2,0% 4 067 904 2007 2,0% 2 141 827 2,0% 2 007 435 2,0% 4 149 262 2008 2,0% 2 184 663 2,0% 2 047 584 2,0% 4 232 247 2009 2,0% 2 228 357 2,0% 2 088 535 2,0% 4 316 892 2010 2,0% 2 272 924 2,0% 2 130 306 2,0% 4 403 230 2011 2,0% 2 318 382 2,0% 2 172 912 2,0% 4 491 295 2012 2,0% 2 364 750 2,0% 2 216 370 2,0% 4 581 120 2013 2,0% 2 412 045 2,0% 2 260 698 2,0% 4 672 743 2014 2,0% 2 460 286 2,0% 2 305 912 2,0% 4 766 198 2015 2,0% 2 509 492 2,0% 2 352 030 2,0% 4 861 522 2016 2,0% 2 559 681 2,0% 2 399 071 2,0% 4 958 752 2017 2,0% 2 610 875 2,0% 2 447 052 2,0% 5 057 927 2018 2,0% 2 663 093 2,0% 2 495 993 2,0% 5 159 086 2019 2,0% 2 716 354 2,0% 2 545 913 2,0% 5 262 267 2020 2,0% 2 770 681 2,0% 2 596 831 2,0% 5 367 513 2021 2,0% 2 826 095 2,0% 2 648 768 2,0% 5 474 863 2022 2,0% 2 882 617 2,0% 2 701 743 2,0% 5 584 360 2023 2,0% 2 940 269 2,0% 2 755 778 2,0% 5 696 047 2024 2,0% 2 999 075 2,0% 2 810 894 2,0% 5 809 968 2025 2,0% 3 059 056 2,0% 2 867 112 2,0% 5 926 168 TOTAL 2006 - 51 020 353 47 819 010 98 839 363 2025 AVERAGE 2006 - 2 551 018 2 390 951 4 941 968 2025
In the above table, figures for years 2000 to 2005 are actual (exctracted from Table 5 columns 11,12,13) while 2006 to 2025 are projected with a growth rate of 2%. The Nicosia input to Paphos district is considered to continue.
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0.2108 Tons = 7368600.(year 1998=1 ) 18 000 000 Annual increase rate 1.5% 16 000 000
14 000 000 12 000 000
10 000 000
TONS 8 000 000
6 000 000 4 000 000
2 000 000 0
9 3 5 7 93 95 97 01 13 17 19 21 23 25 9 9 9 99 0 00 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 2 200 2 200 2009 2011 2 2015 2 2 2 2 2
FIG. 13: Projection of quarry product sales in Cyprus
3 500 000 y = 1279657x 0,2642 Annual increase rate 2.0% 3 000 000
2 500 000
2 000 000
TONS 1 500 000
1 000 000
500 000
0
2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2022 2024
FIG. 14: Projection of Paphos district aggregates consumption
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0,2982 4 000 000 y = 1325578x
Annual increase rate 2.0% 3 500 000
3 000 000
2 500 000
2 000 000 TONS 1 500 000
1 000 000
500 000
0
1993 1995 1997 1999 2001 2003 2005 2007 2009 2011 2013 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025 FIG. 15: Projection of Limassol district quarry products consumption
7 000 000 0,412309 y = 1461910x Annual increase rate 2% 6 000 000
5 000 000
4 000 000
TONS 3 000 000
2 000 000
1 000 000
0
1993 1995 1997 1999 2001 2003 2005 2007 2009 2011 2013 2015 2017 2019 2021 2023 2025
FIG. 16: Projection of Limassol and Paphos quarry products sales
To cope with the growing demand of aggregates and given the rising amount of ‘imported’ aggregates from other districts, a possible solution lies in the excavation of new quarries in the Paphos district.
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To calculate the volume, that needs to be excavated to meet this growing demand, we assume the following ( Table 8 ):
- 10% losses during total aggregates production (based on experience and data from some diabase quarries); - 20% of total material excavated is waste overburden (based on experience and data from some diabase quarries); - an average in situ bulk density of total excavated material of 2,44 tons/m³; - an average depth of excavation in the whole quarry zone of 60 m; - 10 % of the Paphos consumption will be covered by materials from Nicosia district; - a decrease of the Limassol contribution to the Paphos demand as soon as the production from the new quarries start.
Table 8a: Limassol quarries (Parekklisia + Vasa + Zoopigi) lifetime Parekklisia current reserves of final products 79000000 tons Vasa & Zoopigi current reserves of final products 1100000 0 tons Androlykou current reserves of final products 5000000 tons Total current reserves of final products 95000000 tons Average annual demand (2006-2025) with new Paphos quarry zone (Table 8 Limassol) 2 390 951 tons Average annual demand (2006-2025) without new Paphos quarry zone (Table 8 Paphos+Limassol) 4 941 968 tons Limassol quaries life (years) with new Paphos quarry zone 37,6 years Limassol quaries life (years) without new Paphos quarry zone 19,2 years Table 8b: Parekklisia quarry zone equivalent past figures (data from Mines Dpt) Pareklissia quarry zone area (m 2) 775.294 Total tons excavated since 1978 (18 years) 40.000.000 tons Volume excavated (m³) 16.000.000 m³ Average depth excavated (m) 20,6 m 1993-2005 final products sales (tons) 20.029.000 tons Future overburden 12% Losses 8% Expected average excavation depth at the 63 m end of life
As stated above, the volume will vary depending on the annual growth rate. Table 10 presents the results in case of an annual growth of consumption of 0, 1, 2, and 3%. The calculation for an annual growth of 2% is given in Table 9 .
Table 10 gives the estimated radius, in case of a circular shaped quarry zone, or the estimated length of one side, in case of a square shaped quarry zone, for the calculated volume. The larger the annual growth, the larger the future excavation has to be to meet the growing demand of aggregates in the Paphos district. Based on the sensitivity analysis presented in Table 10 , one can predict the minimum and maximum quarry size. To this end, the area needed for waste disposal and the area for productions units (including roads, plant, stocks, buildings) must be accounted for. This area for production units is estimated based on experience from existing diabase quarry plants (Vasa & Pyrga approx. 20 km west of Larnaca). The area needed for waste disposal is based on an average depth of 40m which is similar to Parekklisia practice.
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Table 9: Area needed for quarry development assuming a growth rate of 2% Total final products needed in Paphos tons district (Extracted from Table 8 Paphos) 5.1020.353 Treatment losses 5.668.928 tons Overburden /Waste 14172320 tons Total tons needed to be excavated 70.861..601 tons Reserves in existing quarry zone 5.000.000 tons (Androlykou) Materials from Paphos new quarry zone 65.861.601 tons Volume needed to be excavated in new 26992460 m3 quarry zone (m 3) Area needed for quarry 449874 m2 development
Table 10: Sensitivity analysis of quarry size
a. Sensitivity for growth rate Case 0 Case 1 Case 2 Case 3
Growth rate 0,0% 1,0% 2,0% 3,0% Tons demand 41 173 143 45 782 876 51 020 353 56 976 395 Area needed (m²) 356 454 400 187 449 874 506 379 Circle Radius. (m) 337 357 379 402 Square width (m) 597 633 671 712 Limassol quarries life without Paphos Quarry Zone (yr) 23,8 21,4 19,2 17,2
b. Sensitivity for excavation depth (m) assuming a growth rate of 2%
50m 60m 70m Tons demand 51 020 353 51 020 353 51 020 353 Area needed (m²) 539 849 449 874 385 607 Circle Radius (m) 415 379 351 Square side (m) 735 671 621 Limassol quarries life without Paphos Quarry Zone (yr) 19,2 19,2 19,2
c. Summary (Minimum and Maximum area extracted from above sesitivity analysis including additional area needed)
Area needed for two production units including roads, plant, stocks, buildings 50 000 m2 Area needed for waste disposal (average height 40m) 200 000 m2 Total additional area needed 250 000 m2 Minimum area needed 606 454 m² Maximum area needed 789 849 m²
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The figures in Table 10 are based on actual plant data of diabase quarries (Vasa, Pyrga,Parekklisia).
3.4 Conclusion
To meet the future demand for building materials, a quarry with an area between 61 and 79 hectares is needed. The above area includes the quarry itself, the area needed for disposal of the overburden, roads, plant area, etc.
The alternative scenario when the Paphos quarry zone is not developed, is to cover all Paphos aggregates demand by Limassol quarries. In that case, the life of Limassol district quarries will decrease from 38 years to 17-24 years if extensions to these quarry areas are not granted.
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4 LEGISLATIVE FRAMEWORK
4.1 Town and Country Planning Law
In 1990 the Town and Country Planning Law and new planning regime was introduced, including additional controls over the mineral sector. Planning consents were required for mineral development. Amongst others, the presence of the clusters of quarries was endorsed with the introduction of “Quarrying Zones” as part of the Town and Country Planning Law. Since then, a mechanism for the control of the environmental effects of mineral operations has evolved, which is outlined as follows.
A planning permit must be obtained from the relevant Planning Authority. A formal Planning Application is required for any minerals development proposal and information must be supplied concerning the development which include in general the following:
Name and address of applicant; Site location and characteristics including a description of the development and the type of material to be quarried including, available reserves, production output, anticipated life, area of quarrying activity, number of employees and vehicle generation; Description of any building or mechanical installations needed for the quarrying activity; Description of the restoration methods to be used; Proposed mitigation measures for avoiding water, air or noise pollution; Existing land use and nature of proposed access to the quarry area.
Planning permits are issued usually for a period of two years after which they have to be renewed, and are subject to conditions covering the following:
The excavation should be as shallow as possible so as to minimise any adverse effect on the landscape (although this is not applicable to diabase quarries); The cutting of trees, the creation of waste or any other kind of nuisance to the surrounding area should be kept to a minimum; The area and especially the access road should be sprayed with water regularly so as to avoid dust formation; In certain cases explosives are not allowed. Where they are allowed, these should be controlled and conducted at specific times; Excavation shall have a minimum stand-off distance of 4 m from the borders of adjacent plots. Operational faces can be vertical but the overall slope of the excavation, taking into account intervening benches, shall not exceed 45 degrees; A separate planning application is required for any buildings or fixed plant or machinery; The operation of the quarry cannot start before the approval of the Environmental Impact Study and the acquisition of a quarry license; A phased restoration plan should be submitted to the Planning Authority for approval.
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Quarry zones are preferred areas for mineral extraction. They are initiated by the Geological Survey Department and the Mine Department, and are then evaluated by a committee whose recommendation is passed to the Minister of the Interior before being formally adopted into the Development Plans. The zones are revised on a five yearly cycle. New zones are based principally on geological criteria and demand. Besides, following article 9.8 of the town planning law, development of potential quarry zones will not be permitted inside or near the following areas: Coastline and nature protection area; Protected landscape; Touristic zone and Area of seasonal residence; Areas with ancient monuments; Veterinary surgeon region; Industrial and Craft-based region; Built-up areas and other residence regions; Ground that is irrigated with Government irrigation infrastructure.
Mineral developments outside the quarry zones are controlled through the provision of published Development Plan designations and detailed policies; mining and quarrying activities are not generally allowed in the areas designated for alternative uses in the Local Plans.
“The Statement of Policy for the Countryside” regulates Planning and Development Control in the rural areas and comprises maps identifying various designated planning zones and other protected areas and also detailed policies that minerals applications are tested against. Issues identified in the policies include, amongst others, the following:
potential loss of forest areas, agricultural land, other designated areas and effects on other land-uses; visual intrusion; adverse effects on community welfare; effects on employment; disruption to traffic and increased traffic loading; noise and vibration; potential disturbance/pollution of watercourses/aquifers; damage to nature conservation interests; effects on archaeology and other cultural resources; potential for air pollution.
4.2 Environmental Planning Law
Environmental assessment is a procedure that ensures that the environmental implications of decisions are taken into account before the decisions are made. The process involves an analysis of the likely effects on the environment, recording those effects in a report, undertaking a public consultation exercise on the report, taking into account the comments and the report when making the final decision and informing the public about that decision afterwards. In principle, environmental assessment can be undertaken for individual projects such as a dam, motorway, airport or factory
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('Environmental Impact Assessment') or for plans, programmes and policies ('Strategic Environmental Assessment').
On a European level, the procedure for a Strategic Environmental Assessment is regulated by the SEA Directive 2001/42/EC. The purpose of the SEA Directive is to ensure that environmental consequences of certain plans and programmes are identified and assessed during their preparation and before their adoption. The public and environmental authorities can give their opinion and all results are integrated and taken into account in the course of the planning procedure. After the adoption of the plan or programme the public is informed about the decision and the way in which it was made. In the case of likely transboundary significant effects the affected Member State and its public are informed and have the possibility to make comments which are also integrated into the national decision making process. SEA will contribute to more transparent planning by involving the public and by integrating environmental considerations. This will help to achieve the goal of sustainable development.
In Cyprus the Environmental Planning Law enacted in 2005 requires that Environmental Statements and Environmental Impact Assessment must be submitted for the following developments:
Open mines; Underground mines; Quarries with an area greater than 2 hectares; The treatment of mineral wastes; The treatment of mineral wastes that contain metals.
The submissions must include a detailed description of the processes and procedures proposed and the intended restoration methods and must be approved by the relevant Local Authority and the Ministry of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environment. The Planning Authority may impose very strict planning conditions regarding the quarry operation and restoration.
4.3 Fauna and Flora
The Island’s flora and fauna are protected through a number of laws, as well as conventions ratified by Cyprus. Relevant regulations include the Forests Law, the Law on the protection of Nature and Wildlife and the Law on the Protection and Mangement of Wild Birds and Game, the Mines and Quarries Regulations, the Bern Convention (Convention on the protection of wildlife) and the Rio Convention (for the protection of Biodiversity).
In 1979, the European Community adopted Council Directive 79/409/EEC on the conservation of wild birds in response to the 1979 Bern Convention on the conservation of European habitats and species. The annexes were amended by the Environment Chapter of the Treaty of Accession 2003. The Directive provides a framework for the conservation and management of, and human interactions with, wild birds in Europe. It sets broad objectives for a wide range of activities, although the precise legal mechanisms for their achievement are at the discretion of each Member State.
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The Habitats Directive aims to contribute to the conservation of biodiversity by requiring Member States to take measures designed to maintain or restore certain natural habitats and wild species at a favourable conservation status in the Community, giving effect to both site and species protection objectives. As the Bird Directive, the Habitat Directive is formulated in response to the Bern Convention on European Wildlife and Natural Habitats.
To implement the Habitat Directive (92/43/EEC) and the Birds Directive (79/409/EEC), respectively ‘special areas of conservation’ and ‘special protection areas’ have been delineated where human impact should be kept to a minimum.
4.4 Water Resources
The Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC), explained in previous paragraph, and the Water Framework Directive (2000/60/EC) both aim at an integrated approach to water and nature conservation.
The Water Framework Directive has set the objectives and the strategy for the sustainable use of water in all Member States of the EU. In Cyprus, the provisions of the Water Framework Directive have been incorporated in the national legislation through the ‘Water Protection and Management Law of 2004 ’, which was adopted by the House of Representatives on the 5 th of February, 2004. This legislation implies amongst others that a register of protected areas has to be established for each river basin district. These protection zones can be located near drinking water wells or close to surface waters.
The Law for the Removal, Minimization and Control of Water and Soil Pollution provides the framework for the controlled release of pollutants to the environment. It unifies previous environmental protection laws and provides water quality standards, classification of water resources, testing methods, defines protected areas and implements a regime for controlling discharges to the environment.
The Law for the Protection of Potable Water Resource similarly provides of potable water resources.
4.5 Other Legislation
Law for the Removal, Minimization and Control of air Pollution from Industrial Sources integrates all laws and regulations regarding the protection of the environment from atmospheric pollution. The Law prescribes emission levels and monitoring and reporting mechanisms and also defines procedures for emission permit applications. The law applies to specified industries, but not quarrying and mining processes. The Department of Labour is responsible for implementing the Law, for setting emission rates and for monitoring conformance criteria.
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for environmental noise. There are however generally accepted guidelines on noise limits, such as those from the from the World Health Organisation (WHO), based on the following:
Levels above 35 – 45 dB cause sleep disturbance; Noise levels above 55 dB during the daytime cause disturbances in oral communication and psychological aggravation; Noise levels above 65 dB during the daytime may produce psychological stress, hypertension, etc.
Operational quarries are required to pay an “Environment Levy” which provides significant funds for use in environmental protection and restoration activities. Of the total money raised, 75% is allocated to the local communities affected by the quarrying or mining activity, which must be used for development projects in the area. The remaining 25% of the funds are used for environmental projects.
The Health and Safety Framework Law forms the basis of regulations for health and safety in the workplace and covers personnel as well as third parties. At present, health and safety in quarries and mines is controlled both through the Mines Law and the Health and Safety Law. In accordance with the new Health and Safety Regulations, responsibilities for health and safety in the workplace will be transferred to the Labour Inspection Department. Specific regulations pertaining to “Health and Safety in open and underground quarrying industries” are prescribed in Directive 89/391/EC.
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5 DATA
5.1 Fieldwork
Geological reconnaissance mapping was executed in the area with outcrops of Diabase and Basal Group rocks. This survey was performed by local project staff, including geologists and mining engineers. During this geological survey, 126 locations were studied. These locations are scattered over the entire search area. The following properties were recorded at each sample location:
General data Name of observer; Date; Location description; Latitude; Longitude; Elevation; Land ownership;
Geological data Rock type; Texture; Secondary/metamorphic minerals; Alteration degree; Presence of fractures and faulting; Joint sets; Geometry of joint sets; Tectonic elements; Thickness of overburden; Depth of groundwater; Topographic suitability; Overall evaluation of geological suitability;
Based on the geological screening and on available environmental and socio-economic data, potential quarry zones were identified (suitability stage). During site visits to these potential quarry zones, their geological, ecological and socio-cultural properties were investigated, allowing the ranking of the zones according to the feasibility of quarry development.
A detailed geological mapping is performed for the best ranked potential quarry zone. The recorded geological properties for the detailed mapping are the same as for the geological screening. However, the sampling density is larger so that the spatial variation in geological suitability within the potential quarry zone can be assessed.
The ecological field visists focussed on the inventory of habitat types (including their representativity in each quarry zone), plant species and fauna composition of the quarry zones. The timing of the inventory (January, 2006) is considered as suboptimal. During this period many of the flora species (perennial, biennial and annual herbs) were dry and non-legible. Moreover, many fauna species that are found in the area during the Ecorem nv – E01/0079.040.R5 – 27/03/2006 - SH/GHE 31
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spring and summer could not be recorded. However, the aim of the ecological inventory is not to give a complete view of the flora and fauna composition of the study sites but to identify their most important and valuable elements.
For assessing the social impact of quarry development for each zone, the following characteristics were recorded:
Visibility of the site from nearby developped areas; Visibility of the site from nearby roads; Presence of private land within or adjacent to potential quarry zone; Distance to villages; Location and capacity of roads; General aesthetic value; Distance to rivers, dams and reservoirs; Presence of tourist attractors.
5.2 GIS
Table 11 lists the GIS data layers that are used for the identification and characterisation of potential quarry zones. For each data layer, the file name is tabulated as well as the geographical coverage of the data layer, a short description of the content and the source (available GIS data layer, derived from an available GIS data layer, field work data, etc.).
Table 11: GIS data layers ID File name Coverage Content Source
Index data layer 1 TopoMapIndex50 Paphos topographical map index Available GIS data layer, original format k_Pafos.shp retained 2 SATELLITEQuick Pahpos + quickbird satellite images Available GIS data layer, original format BirdIndex_PafosL Lemesos index retained emesos.shp 3 CadastralMapInd Paphos cadastral map index Available GIS data layer, original format ex5k_Pafos.shp retained 4a AirPhotoIndex_P Paphos + air photo index 1994 Available GIS data layer, original format hotos1994_Pafos Lemesos retained Lemesos.shp 4b AirPhotoIndex_Fli Paphos + air photo index 1994 Available GIS data layer, original format ghts1994_PafosL Lemesos retained emesos.shp 5a AirPhotoIndex_P Paphos + air photo index 1963 Available GIS data layer, original format hotos1963_Pafos Lemesos retained Lemesos.shp
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5b AirPhotoIndex_Fli Paphos + air photo index 1963 Available GIS data layer, original format ghts1963_PafosL Lemesos retained emesos.shp
Administrative data 6 Municipalities100 Paphos Boundaries of Available GIS data layer, original format k_Pafos.sbx municipalities retained 7 Outline.shp Paphos Boundary of Paphos district Derived from available GIS data layer (ID= 6) 8 Coastline50k_Paf Paphos Coastline Available GIS data layer, original format osLemesos.prj retained 9a Townplanningzon Surroundings of Town planning zones Digitised from hardcopy map with town es.shp selected quarry planning zones zones 9b Townplanningzon Surroundings of Town planning zones Digitised from hardcopy map with town esWest.shp selected quarry planning zones zones
Infrastructure, built-up areas, quarry zones, etc. 10 Roads50k_Pafos Paphos + Road map Available GIS data layer, original format Lemesos.shp Lemesos retained 11 Pafos Paphos Village centers Available GIS data layer, original format Villages_point.sh retained p 12 QuarryingZones5 Paphos + Existing quarry zones Available GIS data layer, original format k_PafosLemesos. Lemesos retained shp 13 Pareklissia.shp Pareklissia Location of the Pareklissia Derived from available GIS data layers quarry zone (ID=12) 14 consumption Paphos Main centers of aggregate Mines department centers.shp consumption (approximate location) 15 XYboreholedata.s Paphos Wells for irrigation and Derived from available literature hp drinking water supply 16 11qz.shp Paphos 11 geologically suitable Field work potential quarry zones (first selection) 17 quarryzones.shp Paphos potential quarry zones (final Field work selection) 18 Quarrypit.shp Selected quarry Location of pit (new Strategic pit design based on available a zone topography), and waste digital elevation data dump sites 18 Wastedump.shp Selected quarry Waste dump sites Strategic pit design based on available b zone digital elevation data
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Physiography, hydrology, soil, geology and vegetation 19 Contours50k_Pafos Paphos + Elevation contour lines Available GIS data layer, original format a Lemesos.shp Lemesos (interval: 20m in Z direction) retained 19 Detailed Selected Elevation contours Digitised from 1/5.000 topographical map b topography.shp quarry zone 20 Soils250k.shp Cyprus Soil map Available GIS data layer, original format retained 21 Rivers50k_Pafos.s Paphos + River network Available GIS data layer, original format hp Lemesos retained 22 largestrivers.shp Paphos Main rivers Derived from available GIS data layers (ID=20) 23 Dams.shp Part of Dams and reservoirs Digitised from available hardcopy maps, Paphos (Approximate location) literature, field observations district 24 kannavioureservoir. Kannaviou Approximate location of Derived from available GIS data layer shp reservoir Kannaviou reservoir (elevation contours ID = 19) 25 bufferkannaviou.sh Kannaviou Buffer zone around the Derived from available GIS data layer p dam Kannaviou reservoir (elevation contours ID = 19) and info from water development dpt 26 Geology250k..shp Cyprus Geological map Available GIS data layer, original format retained 27 geologipaphosfores Paphos Geological map of search Derived from available GIS data layer t.shp Forest area (Basal Group and (ID=26) Diabase in Paphos Forest) 28 Geoscreening.shp Paphos Results of the geological Field work Forest screening 29 detailed geological Selected Results of the detaileed Field Work a map.shp quarry zone geological mapping 29 Geologically Selected Area suitable for quarrying Field work b suitable area.shp quarry zone considering solely geological criteria 30 Faults.shp Selected Epigenetic and syngenetic Field work and aerial photograph quarry zone faults interpretation 31 Forests250k.shp Cyprus Forest areas Available GIS data layer, original format retained 32 paphosforest.shp Paphos Delineation of Paphos Derived from available GIS data layers forest (ID=7 and ID=26) 33 Vegetation250k.shp Cyprus Vegetation map Available GIS data layer, original format retained 34 Paphosnatura.shp Paphos forest Habitats as indicated on Available GIS data layer, original format NATURA map retained 35 5cynatura2000 Paphos SAC areas for Available GIS data layer, original format Pafos_region.shp NATURA2000 retained 36 Bird Paphos SPA areas for Available GIS data layer, original format areas_region.shp NATURA2000 retained 37 Forest Status Pafos Paphoz Location of nature resvers Available GIS data layer, original format District_region.shp and national forest parks retained
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38 Cetaurium Paphos Distribution and population Available GIS data layer, original format maritimum_ellipse.s Forest size of Cetaurium retained hp maritimum 39 Crepis Paphos Distribution and population Available GIS data layer, original format zacintha_region.sh Forest size of Crepis zacintha retained p 40 Datisca Paphos Distribution and population Available GIS data layer, original format cannabina_point.sh Forest size of Datisca cannabina retained p 41 Ephedra Paphos Distribution and population Available GIS data layer, original format nebrodensis_region Forest size of Ephedra retained .shp nebrodensis 42 Erodium Paphos Distribution and population Available GIS data layer, original format botrys_region.shp Forest size of Erodium botrys retained 43 Euphorbia Paphos Distribution and population Available GIS data layer, original format aleppica_point.shp Forest size of Euphorbia aleppica retained 44 Gaundiniopsis Paphos Distribution and population Available GIS data layer, original format macra_region.shp Forest size of Gaundiniopsis retained macra 45 Glinus Paphos Distribution and population Available GIS data layer, original format lotoides_point.shp Forest size of Glinus lotoides retained 46 Heliotropium Paphos Distribution and population Available GIS data layer, original format supinum_region.sh Forest size of Heliotropium retained p supinum 47 Hypericum Paphos Distribution and population Available GIS data layer, original format hircinum_region.sh Forest size of Hypericum hircinum retained p 48 Hypericum Paphos Distribution and population Available GIS data layer, original format perfoliatum_point.s Forest size of Hypericum retained hp perfoliatum 49 Kickxia Paphos Distribution and population Available GIS data layer, original format spuria_region.shp Forest size of Kickxia spuria retained 50 Lathyrus Paphos Distribution and population Available GIS data layer, original format setifolius_region.sh Forest size of Lathyrus setifolius retained p 51 Lotus Paphos Distribution and population Available GIS data layer, original format conibricensis_regio Forest size of Lotus conibricensis retained n.shp 52 Nigella Paphos Distribution and population Available GIS data layer, original format unguicularis_point.s Forest size of Nigella unguicularis retained hp 53 Onosma gigantea Paphos Distribution and population Available GIS data layer, original format var Forest size of Onosma gigantea retained hipida_point.shp var hipida 54 Origanum Paphos Distribution and population Available GIS data layer, original format cordifolium_region. Forest size of Origanum retained shp cordifolium
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55 Paronychia Paphos Distribution and population Available GIS data layer, original format echinulata_point.sh Forest size of Paronychia retained p echinulata 56 Phillyrea Paphos Distribution and population Available GIS data layer, original format latifolia_point.shp Forest size of Phillyrea latifolia retained 57 Phlomis cypria Paphos Distribution and population Available GIS data layer, original format occidentalis_point.s Forest size of Phlomis cypria retained hp occidentalis 58 Ranunculus Paphos Distribution and population Available GIS data layer, original format creticus_point.shp Forest size of Ranunculus creticus retained 59 Sclerochloa Paphos Distribution and population Available GIS data layer, original format dura_point.shp Forest size of Sclerochloa dura retained
Tourism 60 tourist Part of Location of tourist attractors Digitised from hardcopy touristic map attractors.shp Paphos (church, monastery, picnic (1/100.000) district site, nature trail, museum, accomodation, etc) 61 Pafos Camping Paphos Location of camping sites Available GIS data layer, original format Sites_font_point.sh district retained p 62 Pafos E4 Paphos Location of E4 trail Available GIS data layer, original format Trail_polyline.shp district retained 63 Pafos Picnic Paphos Location of picnic sites Available GIS data layer, original format Sites_font_point.sh district retained p
For the most important derived and new GIS data layers, a more detailed explanation of the content and the procedures followed to compile these maps is given below. The metadata of all data layers were also entered in the ArcCatalog application.
5.2.1 Consumption Centers (ID=14)
Based on information from the Mines Department, two principal consumption centers were delineated: the area near Androlykou and the area near Antoliko east of Paphos. The delineation of consumption centers in the GIS should be considered as indicative rather than as strict boundaries. Every consumption center includes several RMC (Ready Mix Concrete Plants) plants.
5.2.2 Geologically Suitable and Potential Quarry Zones (ID = 16/17)
There are two maps with potential quarry zones. One contains a pre-selection of eleven quarry zones for which geological characteristics were mapped in some more detail. The second map contains the final selection of potential quarry zones. These zones were investigated in more detail: this analysis not only considered the geology, but also environmental, economic and social issues. The following attribute data are recorded:
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For the eleven geologically suitable quarry zones:
Ranking of the eleven zones according to geological suitability; Latitude; Longitude; Included in final selection of potential quarry zones or not.
For the potential quarry zones:
Ranking of the zones according to: . Geological suitability; . Ecological suitability; . Transport cost / Distance to consumption centers; . Accessibility; . Topography; . Social suitability; Overall ranking based on all criteria; Geological characteristics: . Dominant rock; . Tectonic setting; . Alteration degree; Topography (hilly, rough, etc.).
5.2.3 Strategic Pit Design of Selected Quarry Zone (ID=18a and b)
For the finally selected quarry zone, a strategic pit design is elaborated. This design is also included in the GIS as a polygon data layer presenting:
The new topography in the pit: elevation contour lines with an interval of 10 m in Z direction; Contour of waste dump sites.
5.2.4 Detailed topography (ID=19b)
The elevation contours of the 1/5.000 topographical map were digitised for the selected quarry zone and its immediate surroundings. This was accomplished by scanning the hardcopy map, georeferencing it with respect to the 1/50.000 contour lines and transferring the coordinate system to Universal Transverse Mercator projection (UTM) for zone 36N, using the reference ellipsoid WGS84.
5.2.5 Dams and reservoirs (ID=23), Kannaviou reservoir (ID=24) and protection zone (ID=25)
The approximate location of dams and reservoirs was digitised based on a general road map. The dams.shp data layer is therefore best used at a scale of approximately 1:100.000, i.e. for mapping the total search area, Paphos Forest. Only dams present in the direct neighbourhood of Paphos Forest were digitised, i.e. the area north of the line
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Polis – Evretou dam. The dam and reservoir that is being constructed near Kannaviou is also included.
The exact extent of the Kannaviou reservoir is not yet known. For more detailed planning, it was assumed that the water level would reach up to 360 m.a.s.l. A preliminary delineation of the Kannaviou reservoir was derived from available digital elevation data.
According to the water development department, a protection zone of 200m around the highest possible water level in reservoirs has to be taken into account. The data layer ‘bufferkannaviou.shp’ contains this protection zone for the Kannaviou dam. 420m was considered as the highest possible water level for this reservoir.
5.2.6 Geological screening (ID=28)
This data layer contains the results of the geological screening. It contains 126 sample points scattered over the search area. The following attribute data are included: ‘ID’; ‘Observer’: name of observer; ‘Date’: date of observation; ‘Location’: additionnal information about the location e.g. crossroad; ‘Latitude’; ‘Longitude’; ‘Elevation’; ‘Owner’: private public or unknown; ‘Rock_type’: description of rock type; ‘Secondary’: Secondary or metamorphic minerals; ‘Alteration’: alteration degree (very high to very low); ‘Quality’: quality of the rock (very good to very poor); ‘Tectonic_E’: Tectonic elements; ‘Thickness’: Thickness of overburden (indicated as a range, expressed in m); ‘Depth_of_G’: Depth of groundwater; ‘Topograph’: Topographic suitability (very good to very poor); ‘Evaluation’: Overall evaluation of geological suitability (very poor to very good); ‘Remarks’.
5.2.7 Geological Observations in Selected Quarry Zone (ID=29a-b, 30)
These data layers contain the results of the detailed geological mapping of the selected quarry zone. The attribute data of the detailed geological map.shp are similar to the attributes of the geological screening map (ID=28), though the sampling density is much higher in the detailed map. Faults were also mapped based on field observations together with the interpretation of aerial photographs. Based on these two data layers, the area that is suitable for quarrying from a geological point of view was delineated.
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5.2.8 Tourist Attractors (ID=60)
The approximate location of landmarks and tourist attractors has been digitised based on a hardcopy touristic map of Paphos district (scale: 1/100.000). The following attributes were recorded:
Name; Type of attractor: picnic site, museum, church or monastery, start of nature trail, accomodation, other place of interest; Remarks: any additionnal available information.
Only attractors present in the direct neighbourhood of Paphos Forest were digitised, i.e. the area north of the line Polis – Evretou dam.
Note that for picnic sites and camping sites, separate data layers are available with the exact location (ID=61 and 63).
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6 DETERMINATION OF CONSTRAINT AND EXCLUSION CRITERIA
The potential quarry zones are delineated following a three-step procedure:
Excluding stage: areas where quarrying is not legally allowed or where the desired geology is absent are excluded; Suitability Stage: based on a geological and environmental screening, a limited number of potential quarry zones is proposed; Feasibility stage: the potential quarry zones are ranked according to the feasibility of quarry development.
Finally, one potential quarry zone is retained which will in a next stage of the project be compared to alternative ways for meeting the demand for quarry products.
In the following, the criteria used throughout the differente stages are discussed.
6.1 Excluding Stage
In this stage, areas where quarries are legally not allowed or where the desired geology is absent are identified. These areas are excluded from the search area.
Different legislations put restrictions on quarrying activities. The following sites are legally protected:
Wells and surrounding protection zones (depending on the use of the water); Surface waters; Built-up zones; Landmarks such as Agios Merkourios which act as tourist attractors; Dams.
Next to these, areas with a high ecological value should also be excluded from the search area. As already mentioned, several sites within the Paphos Forest were proposed for inclusion in the NATURA2000 network. It is expected that an agreement on the final delineation of these zones will be reached by Spring 2006. Further, as the whole of the Paphos Forest has been designated as SPA (Special Protection Area), effectively the whole of Paphos Forest constitutes a NATURA2000 site. Although European Directives and local legislation do not completely exclude human activities inside NATURA2000, there are several biodiversity hotspots present in this zone within which it is rather unlikely that activities, such as quarrying, can get a valid license. The concentration of these hotspots is the largest in the nature reserves and the special areas of conservation. Therefore, these areas are excluded from the search area.
Besides the exclusion of the special areas of conservation (SACs), the nature reserves and the protected sites around wells, built-up areas, etc., the search area is limited by geological constraints: only the areas indicated as ‘Basal Group’ with a high percentage of diabase dykes or ‘Diabase’ on the geological map are considered.
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6.2 Suitability Stage
This stage comprises a screening of the total search area, delineated in the previous step. Criteria are based on the geological field survey and on existing data layers about environmental constrains. The following criteria area used:
Geology and topography
. rock type; . texture; . alteration degree; . mineralization; . presence of faulting or fractures; . thickness of overburden; . topography;
These criteria are aggregated into one general ordinal score summarising the geological suitability. The aggregation of these criteria is based on expert knowledge, evaluating and weighting the scores of the aforementioned geological characteristics. Table 12 indicates how the scores per characteristic are aggregated into the overall suitability score. For this first screening stage, the type of rock, the degree of alteration and the presence of syngenetic major fault zones are the most important characteristic. Topography is considered as less important at this stage.
Table 12: Relative importance of geological and geomorphological criteria used for assessing the overall geological suitability Characteristic Weight Evaluation procedure Rock type Diabasic and Microgabbro rock 25% types most suitable Texture Very fine textures are less 5% suitable Alteration degree 25% Higher alteration is less suitable Mineralization High degree of mineralization 5% decreases suitability Presence of faulting or Faulting and fracturing fractures accompanied with extensive 25% alteration and oxidisation decrease suitability Thickness of overburden Thickness is negatively correlated 10% with suitability Topography 5% Steep topography is not suitable
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Environmental characteristics
. Habitat types: presence of priority habitats (as indicated on existing maps); . Current vegetation following 1/250.000 vegetation and NATURA2000 map: presence of reforested areas; . Accessibility and distance to consumption center: areas close to the forest boundary are considered more suitable because the overall environmental impact due to the transport of rock material will in this case be smaller.
Density of protected sites: protected areas around water wells, landmarks, villages, etc. Areas are scattered over the entire forest area, though the density of protected sites is spatially variant. At this stage, zones with a lower density of protected sites are favoured over zones with many protected sites. In the feasibility stage, protected zones are excluded, taking a buffer zone into account.
Geological and environmental criteria are combined with data about the density of protected sites, in a qualitative way. This leads to the proposal of multiple potential new quarry zones that are examined in more detail in the next step, i.e., the Feasibility Stage.
6.3 Feasibility Stage
The selected subareas are examined and investigated in more detail to identify the most suitable location for quarry development. The following criteria are taken into account for selecting this area:
Geology (50%); Ecology (20%); Transport cost (5%); Accessibility (5%); Topography (5%); Social impacts (15%).
Figures between brackets represent the weights. For each criterion, a score is assigned to each zone. The weights are then used to make an overall ranking of the quarry zones.
The selection of weights for the five criteria is the result of a subjective choice. Different stakeholders may prefer different weights depending on their background and interests, e.g., biologists might prefer a higher weight for ecology. To assess the effect of this variation in weights for different groups of stakeholders, a sensitivity analysis is performed. To this end, every weight is varied between +5% and -5%, and the effect on the ranking of the potential quarry zones is examined. This way, one can identify the quarry zone which is considered as the best by most stakeholder groups.
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The most important criterion is the quality of the rock and the quantity of material that is present. The procedure for evaluating geological suitability described in Table 11 is used.
Because of the high ecological importance of Paphos Forest, ecological criteria are considered as the second most important. Diabase quarries are generally deep, and take up less land in proportion to the amount of material quarried.However, there is a total loss of vegetation cover where soils are removed to access minerals or locate plant and equipment and where overburden or quarry waste is dumped. Impacts beyond the operational area are relatively minor although there is evidence of adverse effects of dust deposition on plants close to some operational quarries. In the evaluation of the effects on fauna and flora, attention is given to the habitats listed in Annex I of the Habitat Directive (92/43/EEC)( Annex 1).
Transport cost and accessibility are not only important from an economic point of view; these variables are related to many environmental issues and so determine the overall environmental profile. For example, the closer a site is located to a consumption center, the less transport is required, leading to a smaller impact on human health (decreased noise impact due to transport, etc). Besides, sites closer to the consumption centers will also be located closer to the forest boundary. This means that less ecologically valuable areas will be crossed during the transport of quarry products.
Social impacts are related to the impact of quarry development on the inhabitants of Paphos district, and include amongst others the distance of the quarry site from development areas and impact on traffic in developed areas, esp. safety issues. The impacts on communities of heavy goods traffic can be significant. Roads bypassing communities may have to be constructed.
Noise from mineral operations is currently not a major environmental issue due to the relative remoteness of most sites from dwellings. It is however an issue that should be taken into account in the delineation of new quarry zones.
Dust from quarries is considered to be a nuisance rather than a health hazard and routine mineral operations do not give rise to significant airborne fine particulate matter (PM10). Dust-fall however can have a negative affect on vegetation immediately surrounding a mineral working. It is expected that dust concentrations may, on occasions, exceed legal standards in communities that are situated very close to quarries. The main source of dust is vehicle movement over unmade roads and as a result many operators have paved their access and approach roads. Crushing and screening plants are also a significant source of dust emissions.
Topography is very important also, both for environmental and exploitation point of view. The topography of the areas covered by diabase and basal group is rugged in general. The topography of the search area is characterized as steep to very steep and therefore it is considered as less suitable.
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7 DETERMINATION AND ANALYSIS OF POTENTIAL QUARRY ZONES
7.1 Excluding Stage
FIG. 17 presents the search area that is retained after applying the exclusion criteria. As stated earlier, the desired geological formations only appear in the northern and eastern part of the district. From these geologically suitable areas, the nature reserves, and special areas of conservation are excluded. These include:
1. Tripylos and Mavri Gremmi which have been designated by the Council of Ministers as Nature Reserves; 2. The areas of Plati valley, Stavros – Karkavas and Agiatis have been designated as Special Areas of Conservation (SACs).
Finally, dams and reservoirs, water wells, landmarks and built-up zones as well as the protection zones around these landscape elements must also be excluded.
7.2 Suitability Analysis
7.2.1 Geological screening
The geological survey of such an extensive area within a limited time period required the application of a multi-geological parameter method for fast and accurate determination of potential quarry zones. The main geological parameters include petrology, mineralogy, tectonic setting and metamorphosis of the various Diabase and Basal Group outcrops.
The petrology of the outcrops is very well related with the suitability of the material for aggregates. The Swarm of the Multiple Diabase Dyke complex is formed by microcrystallic diabase and microgabbro, which is the most suitable rock type. The deeper the outcrop is in the unit, the less weathered, altered and oxidised are the dykes. The depth of crystallization is reflected also in the coarseness of the textures, the micro- mesocrystallic varieties are harder and less weathered and altered than the fine and more “glassy” varieties.
In contrary, the transition zone from the Swarm of the Multiple Diabase Dyke complex to the Lower Pillow Lava extrusions, which is occupied by the Basal Group, consists of a percentage of diabase dykes with a higher degree of alteration and mineralization than the Diabase. In addition, there are pillow lava screens and extensive gossans, which are deleterious material for aggregate production.
Another important parameter is the hydrothermal and metamorpic events within the Diabase and Basal Group Units. Diabase is metamorphosed in the low grade greenschist phase, while the Basal Group is metamorphosed in the zeolite phase. This is reflected by the degree of mineralization, the Basal Group rock types are considerably more mineralized and altered than the Diabase.
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The Tectonic setting of the various Diabase and Basal Group outcrops is very important for selection of the most suitable areas as potential quarry zones. Areas in proximity with major syngenetic fault zones, associated with intense hydrothermal activity and mineralization have been defined. In such areas, the material is less suitable than in areas less affected by hydrothermal alteration. Based on existing information, aerial photograph analysis and field work, the broader survey area has been divided in three major petrologically, mineralogically and metamorphically distiguishable subareas: South Area, between WGS 84 463000,3865000/466000,3865000 and 459000,3873000/460000,3873000, North Area, between 456000,3755000/459000,3875000 and 456000,3887000/459000,3887000, and East Area, which is defined as the area where the massif lower diabase outcrops, east of the WGS 84 easting 466000. The most intense alteration and mineralization is observed in the North subarea. Epigenetic faulting is not associated with large scale alteration and metamorphosis
The geological screening is based on data gathered during a large-scale field survey. FIG. 18 presents the results of this field survey. Dots represent the GPS positions at the sample and description locations and summarize the overall geological suitability. This judgement is based on the observation of multiple geological attributes, as listed in previous paragraphs.
7.2.2 Environmental and socio-economic screening
The environmental and socio-economic screening is based on available (GIS) data and results in the following qualitative statements:
The area around Stavros tis Psokas, close to the northern forest boundary (i.e. the north-eastern district boundary) has a high density of landmarks, tourist attractors and ecologically valuable areas (including priority habitats). Therefore, and because the larger distance to consumption centers and limited accessibility, this area can be considered as incompatible with as well as unsuitable for quarry development; The area north of Gialia is also less suitable because firstly it is located at a large distance of the main consumption centers, especially in areas near Paphos City. Further, the acess road is highly sensitive to quarry related heavy traffic due to its tourist and residential activity and proximity to the beachfront; Areas closer to the southern forest boundary are to be preferred because they tend to have better accessibility, and are located closer to consumption centers. In addition, this avoids intrusion in the deeper parts of the forest which can produce indirect additional impacts as well as development pressures.
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In general, the interior of Paphos Forest is consdered unsuitable for a variety of reasons, for example:
Problems with accessibility; Ecological sensitivity of this area; Higher concentration of tourist attractors (Stavros tis Psokas); Greater distance to consumption centers.
7.2.3 Pre-selection of potential quarry zones
The environmental and socio-economic issues are taken into account when delineating potential quarry zones based on the results of the geological screening. This implies that not all geological sample points which were labelled as ‘very good’ in the geological screening result in the delineation of a potential quarry zone. Because the delineation of SPAs and, to a lesser extent, of SACs is not exactly known yet, ecologically valuable areas are not completely excluded. However, if several potential quarry zones can be delineated within a small region, then only the potential quarry zones outside ecologically valuable areas will be retained. The resulting 11 Potential Quarry Zones (PQZ) are presented in FIG. 19 . The numbering of the 11 PQZ is in descending order based mainly on rock quality criteria but also on topographic and accessibility criteria.
FIG. 20 presents the results of the geological screening relative to the delineation of 11 potential quarry zones in the northern, central and southern part of the search area. SACs and SPAs as well as a buffer zone of 500m around all village centers are also indicated because these also affect the delineation of potential quarry zones, as discussed in previous paragraph.
In the northern part of the search area, four potential quarry zones are defined: 5A, 5B, 5C and 1. These all contain at least one geological sample point with good rock quality. Zone 5A and 5B are located close to each other; their suitability for quarry development will most probably be similar. Therefore, one larger ‘area for PQZ’ has been delineated around these areas, representing an area in which the indicated PQZ may be expanded in the future. Near the potential quarry zones 5A, 5B, 1 and 5C, there are three sample points which were evaluated as ‘very good’ in the geological screening but did not lead to the delineation of a potential quarry zone, i.e. sample points with ID 105, 89 and 85. Sample point number 105 is very close to the village ‘Agia Marina’, close to a river and close to an ecologically valuable area (SAC area). As a result, there is insufficient space to delineate a potential quarry zone. Sample points 89 and 85 are both located close to PQZ 1, with the first one closer to the coast and the latter one further inside the forest. Based on these two sample points a larger ‘area for PQZ’ has been delineated around PQZ 1.
In the southern part of the search area, very good rock quality only appears near the valley of Argakis tis Agia. Of all these good sample points, only sample point no. 51 and 52 are located outside ecologically valuable areas. A potential quarry zone was delineated near these sample points (PQZ 3). However, this PQZ is located relatively close to villages (Asprogia and surrounding area), and might cause a considerable social impact. Further upstream the Argakis tis Agia river, two more potential quarry Ecorem nv – E01/0079.040.R5 – 27/03/2006 - SH/GHE 46
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zones were delineated (PQZ 4 and 5). These zones were preferred over the zone near sample point no. 53, because no. 53 is located very close to the river. However, because of the short distance between PQZ 4 and PQZ 5, and the proximity of the sample point with very good rock quality no. 53, an ‘area for PQZ’ has been delineated, representing an area for possible future expansion of PQZ 4 and 5.
Because all very good sample points are clustered either in the northern or in the southern part of the area, four additional quarry zones are considered having a more central location and an acceptable (good or moderate) rock quality: PQZ 6A, 7, 2B and 2A.
PQZ 7 is located outside SAC and SPA areas and far from village centers. Therefore, quarry development is not expected to cause a significant environmental or social burden. The rock quality is not excellent (the area is located in the Basal Group), but it can be considered as moderately suitable and it is clearly better than the surrounding Basal Group area. Therefore, PQZ 7 is considered as a potentially interesting alternative within the Basal Group at this stage. The suitability and quantity of the rock material should be evaluated in more detail in order to assess whether it meets the objectives of this project (quarry with a lifetime of 20 years).
PQZ 6A is located partly outside the SAC and SPA areas. Comparable to zone 7, PQZ 6A also has rock material of moderate quality, however, as can be seen on FIG. 20 , the material in the delineated PQZ is considerably better than the material in the area surrounding PQZ 6A, which has been evaluated as poor or very poor.
The rock material in PQZ 2A is also evaluated as moderately good. South, east and west of this PQZ, the rock quality is evaluated as poor to very poor, however, towards the north, rock quality seems to be acceptable (evaluated as moderate). Consequently , the available reserves of acceptable quality may be larger compared to PQZ 6A or 7. However, PQZ 2A is located in a SPA area, so quarry development will entail a relatively larger ecological impact. PQZ 2B is located inside a SAC and a SPA area, consequently, the ecological impact of quarry development will be larger in this case. However, the rock quality is evaluated as good (other PQZ in the central part only have moderate rock quality). Therefore, PQZ 2B is also considered for further analysis.
7.2.4 Geological characteristics of potential quarry zones (pre-selection)
PQZ 1 is located on southeast of Gialia. It is characterised by diabase dykes deep in the unit (characteristic “Tripilos Type” of diabase), with micro to micro-mesocrystallinc texture, slight alteration and with no disseminate mineralization. The rockmass is fairly homogeneous and the rock is hard to very hard.
PQZ 2A is located in Zacharia Area. The Diabase is hard to very hard with homogeneous micro to micro-mesocrystallic texture, low alteration, surface iron oxide coating and little dessiminate mineralization. The outcrop is in contact to the west with lavas and Kannaviou Formation with a major north-south syngenetic fault zone.
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PQZ 2B is located to the north in proximity with the Lysos-Stavros tis psokas asphalt road. The diabase outcrop is similar to zone 2A but with more frequent alteration zones and faulted contacts with Basal Group.
PQZ 3 is located in the area of Kannaviou Dam. It is characterized by numerous epigenetic faulted contacts, which juxtaposite lower unit diabase and melagabbro dykes and megadykes with uppermost unit dykes and Basal Group. Alteration is limited along the fault zones and there is no disseminate mineralization. The rockmass consists of hard to extremely hard, dark grey diabase and it is intensely fractured by a multi-joint system.
PQZ 4 consists of similar to the zone 3 low unit diabase dykes and megadykes with very limited alteration and no disseminate mineralization. The Dykes are almost vertical and the texture is micro to micro-mesocrystallic. The topography of the area is very rough. Some gabbro apophyses occur also.
PQZ 5 is almost identical to area 3 but with more frequent uralite gabbro apophyses. The faulting of the area is mostly epigenetic, juxtaposed high level gabbro with the lower unit diabase.
PQZ 5A is close by Gialia and is characterized by medium to uppermost unit Diabase dykes. The rockmass is highly heterogeneous with alternative zones of unaltered dark grey very hard diabase and highly altered and oxidised dykes. There are also cavities filled with leucocratic minerals, most likely calcite. The area is bounded by major syngenetic fault zones and forms a northward sub-graben continuation of the Agios Merkourios Graben Area.
PQZ 5B is located close to Gialia village. It is similar to area 5A but with higher alteration and more frequent weathered and highly altered and oxidised alternating zones. Its west limit is a syngenetic faulted contact with highly altered and oxidised Basal Group outcrop.
PQZ 5C is located on an elevated area at the northeast limit of the Agios Merkourios Graben. The diabase outcrop is bounded by a series of NW-SE trending major epigenetic fault zones juxtaposite it with highly altered and oxidised Basal Group and Pillow Lava outcrops. The dykes are mainly iron oxide surface coated with occasional highly altered zones. The rockmass consists of grey hard to very hard diabase dykes and megadykes.
PQZ 6A is located northeast of Lysos village and east of Agios Merkurios area. It is on a narrow southeast-northwest ridge, forming the west boundary of the Agios Merkourios graben. Its east and west contacts with Basal Group outcrops are syngenetic fault zones. Its northmost limit is an elevated outcrop of hard lower unit diabase and microgabbro dykes. The rockmass is highly heterogeneous and it consists of highly altered and leached dykes and grey hard diabase dykes.
PQZ 7 is located north of Anadiou village. It consists of a high percentage of diabase dykes with a smaller percentage of basaltic dykes and a high percentage of lava screens. The rockmass consists of hard diabase dykes with microcrystallic texture and dark brown lava screens with numerous vesicles filled with zeolites. Ecorem nv – E01/0079.040.R5 – 27/03/2006 - SH/GHE 48
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7.2.5 Final selection of potential quarry zones for further analysis
To facilitate a further detailed analysis of the feasibility of quarry development in Paphos forest, the shortlist of 11 PQZ presented in previous paragraph should be reduced to come to a smaller number of overall most suitable PQZ
Table 13a summarizes the geological, environmental, social and economic characteristics of the 11 PQZ. For every zone and every characteristic, a general evaluation is given ranging from moderately suitable (+) to very suitable (+++). This general evaluation will be refined after a more detailed analysis in the feasibility assessment. At this stage, the evaluation is made as follows: For rock quality, topography and reserves: . +++: most of the samples are evaluated as good or very good . ++: mixture of good samples with moderate or poor sample locations . +: sample points evaluated as moderate For environmental constraints: . +++: (partly) outside forest or close to forest boundary and outside SAC or SPA area . ++: inside forest and close to SAC or SPA . +: entirely in SAC or SPA area or very deep inside forest For social constraints: . +++: No impact on villages or tourist attractors . ++: Some impact on villages or tourist attractors . +: Very close to village center For transport cost: . +++: Close to main access road . ++: Main access road at < 5 km . +: Main access road at > 5km
Table 13a: Evaluation of potential quarry zones Decision criteria Rock quality, Environmental Social Transport cost Zone topography constraints constraints and reserves 1 +++ + ++ + 2A ++ + ++ ++ 2B +++ + ++ ++ 3 +++ ++ + +++ 4 +++ + ++ ++ 5 +++ + ++ ++ 5A ++ +++ ++ ++ 5B ++ +++ + +++ 5C ++ +++ ++ ++ 6A + ++ ++ +++ 7 + +++ +++ +++
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It is clear that there is no single quarry zone in Table 13a that performs the best for all decision criteria. Therefore, the final selection of PQZ for the feasibility study aimed at providing a subset of zones.
For selecting the zones, the following procedure, which is based on the Pareto principle, was used: 1. For a given decision criterion X, select the best ranked zones i.e. zones that score +++ for that decision criterion in Table 13a. Compose a set S containing these best ranked zones. 2. Compare the performance of the zones belonging to this set S for the three decision criteria other than X; 3. Retain the zone that has the best overall performance for the three decision criteria other than X; 4. Repeat previous three steps three times, replacing X with one of the remaining three decision crtieria.
This procedure leads to the selection of four zones (step 3), one for each decision criterion:
- Zone 3 is selected because It is among best ranked rock quality It performs relatively good for environmental constraints It performs good for transport costs - Zone 5B is selected because It is among best ranked for environmental constraints It has a relatively good rock quality It has a low transport cost - Zone 7 is selected because It is among best ranked for social constraints It has little environmental constraints It has low transport costs - Zone 6A is selected because: It is among best ranked for transport cost It has relatively little environmental constraints It has relatively little social constraints
Besides the analysis presented above, a total score is calculated for each zone as the sum of the scores for all criteria. The four overall best performing zones are also retained, if these are not already included in the selection.
Zones 5A and 5C are also retained because these two zones have a total score of 9, which ranks them in the top 4 of overall best performing potential quarry zones. Finally, this leads to the selection of 6 potential quarry zones that will be analysed in the feasibility assessment: zones 3, 5A, 5B, 5C, 6A and 7 ( Table 13 b ). Table 14 summarizes the geological characteristics of the six selected zones.
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Table 13b: Final selection of potential quarry zones
Zone Selection Y: retained N: not retained 1 N 2A N 2B N 3 Y 4 N 5 N 5A Y 5B Y 5C Y 6A Y 7 Y
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Table 14: Geological characteristics of the selected potential quarry zones. Location of the quarry zones is indicated on FIG. 20.
No QUARRY ZONES DOMINANT ROCK TYPE TECTONIC SETTING ALTERATION TOPOGRAPHY
Major NE-SW epigenetic Dark grey fine to medium fine extremely hard fault zone, less syngenetic 1 3 diabase and dark grey to black extremely Low Rough faulting in NW-SE hard mesocrystallic Melagabbro direction Very heterogeneous diabase dykes Low, consisting of unaltered dark grey very hard Major syngenetic fault 2 5A moderately to Hilly to even diabase and highly altered and oxidised zones high in places dykes Dark grey medium grained hard Diabase and microgabbro dykes with surface iron staining Major NW-SE syngenetic Rough to Moderate to 3 5B in parts and some vesicles filled with fault zone. Associate moderately high in places leucocratic minerals, possibly zeolites and disseminate mineralization rough calcite Occasional Grey hard to very hard diabase dykes and Major NW-SE epigenetic Rough to very 4 5C highly altered megadykes, iron oxide surface coated fault zones Rough zones Dark grey, very hard Diabase with oxidised Major NW-SE syngenetic Low, dykes. In depth, very hard microgabbro and Rough to very 5 6A fault zones. Associate moderately to diabasic dykes with disseminate pyrite Rough disseminate mineralization high in places mineralization Diabase consists of grey hard dykes with iron Low, Major NW-SE syngenetic 6 7 oxide coating with a high % of basaltic dykes moderately to Hilly to even fault zones. and pillow lava screens high in places
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7.2.6 Presentation of the selected quarry zones
Zone 5B, 5A and 5C are situated in the north (east of Gialia area). Zone 5B is located 400 m southeast of Gialia village ( FIG. 21 , left) and about 2.5 km of Agia Marina village (FIG. 21 , right). Zones 5A and 5C are located deeper inside Paphos forest, at a considerable larger distance from the village centers. Zone 6A is located 750m northwest of “Prosefchi” Fire Look Out Station, near Fassera location ( FIG. 22 , left), which is a famous hunting place, and has an unobstructed view to Chrysochou bay (FIG. 22 , right, top). Its southwest part is adjacent to private agricultural land ( FIG. 22 , right, bottom).
FIG. 21: Surroundings of zone 5B, 5A and 5C
FIG. 22: Surroundings of zone 6A
Both zone 5B and zone 6A are situated in the west of the search area in Paphos Forest. This western part does not contain any priority habitats. Some reforested areas occur, which are not very vulnerable from an ecological point of view. The socio-economic acceptability of quarrying in the neighbourhood of these reforested areas is however questionnable.
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Potential quarry zones 3 and 7 are situated in the south-central part (west of Argaki tis Agias valley). The centre of zone 3 is located about 1.5 km east of Kannaviou dam (FIG. 23 , left), close to the old quarry zone (1990), 1.5 Km from Panagia at “Pahnoutis” location ( FIG. 23 , right). Zone 7 is located about 1.8 km southwest of Anadiou village (FIG. 24 , left) and private agricultural land extends in the southwest, at about 1.5 km from the centre of the site (FIG. 24 , right).
FIG. 23 : Surroundings of zone 3: Kannaviou dam (left) and the old quarry at “Pahnoutis” location (right)
FIG. 24: Surroundings of zone 7
Close to zones 3 and 7, some areas are indicated as ecologically valuable habitats (mixtures of pine forests with scrub and low forest vegetation), which makes these less attractive from the ecological point of view.
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8 FEASIBILITY ANALYSIS OF SELECTED AREAS
First, the ranking of the selected areas according to each of the six criteria is explained. This ranking can deviate slightly from the more general comparison made in the suitability assessment, because the feasibility assessment takes additional information into account gathered during field visits
8.1 Geological Characteristics
8.1.1 Potential Quarry Zone 3
The area north of the old diabase quarry consists of lower SDC diabasic and gabbro dykes and megadykes. The diabase is dark grey, hard to extremely hard, micro to micro-mesocrystallic and with no dessiminate mineralization.
The microgabbro dykes are hard to extremely hard micro to mesocrystallic meso- melanocratic types. Occassionally there are dykes consisting of very to extremely hard and solid, melanocratic, mesocrystallic gabbro.
Most of the fault zones are epigenetic and they slightly altered the rockmass in a very limited area along the fault planes. There are 8 sets of joints, 5 of them parallel to the main epigenetic fault direction.
The SDC is in faulted contact to the west and to the south with highly altered and oxidised Basal Group, with numerous gossans. The contact to the west is in the area of the old quarry. The south faulted boundary juxtaposite the lower unit SDC with Lower Pillow Lavas, which are covered by thick Havara.
Zone 3 has very steep slopes and is therefore considered as the least suitable from a topographical point of view. The steep topography may lead to difficulties in the exploitation of the area: large volumes of material must be excavated to enable the installation of the processing plants and there is relatively limited space for storing overburden and waste material.
According to the reserve estimation, Area 3 has the necessary quantity and the quality of the material to support Paphos District with aggregates.
8.1.2 Potential Quarry Zone 5A
PQZ 5A consists of hard to very hard diabasic dykes with iron and manganese surface staining. The alteration degree is rather low and the tickness of the overburden is limited. Consequently, the overall quality of the rock material can be labelled as good for PQZ 5A.
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8.1.3 Potential Quarry Zone 5B
The eastern part of the area consists of iron oxide stained, grey to dark grey moderately hard to hard microcrystallic diabase with occasional very hard and dense, micro to mesocrystallic meso to malanocratic gabbro dykes. Secondary minerals include clays in highly altered zones and cavities filled with calcite.
The majority of the contacts to the west and to the southwest are syngenetic fault zones, juxtaposite the diabase with highly altered and oxidised Basal Group formed mostly by highly altered diabase and basaltic dykes and from a high percentage of lava screens.
The topography of zone 5B is relatively less ‘difficult’ than the one of zone 6A and 3.
8.1.4 Potential Quarry Zone 5C
PQZ 5C contains a massive rockmass consisting of yellowish brown to brownish yellow Diabase megadykes and dykes. The Megadykes consist of dark grey very to extremely hard medium diabase with surface iron and manganese oxide staining. The alteration degree is low, the tickness of the overburden is limited, so that the overall quality of the material present in PQZ 5C can be considered as good.
8.1.5 Potential Quarry Zone 6A
The south part of the northwest-southeast elongated area, including the top 576, consists of highly altered and oxidised Sheeted Dyke Complex (SDC) diabase dykes and of highly altered and oxidised Basal Group dykes with a very low percentage of lava screens. In this part there is considerable overburden, 5 to 10 m and in many occasions more than 10 m.
The central part of the area consists of oxidised and moderately weathered diabase dykes (SDC), which is bounded to the south ENE-WSW epigenetic fault zones. The east and west boundaries of the SDC are major sygenetic NNW-SSE fault zones. The Rockmass along these zones is highly altered and oxidised, highly leached in places and with frequent disseminate mineralization.
The northmost part of area 6A, top 569, consists of lower SDC unit, dark grey, very to extremely hard, micro to micro-mesocrystallic diabase dykes with frequent very hard, mesocratic, mesocrystallic gabbro dykes. This part of the area forms an epigenetic block faulted horst, which is in tectonic contact with all the surrounding formations, the Lower Pillow Lava Series to the North and to the southwest and with the Basal Group to the east and west.
Zone 6A is characterised by a very steep topography and a rough terrain which may cause difficulties of exploitations.
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8.1.6 Potential Quarry Zone 7
Potential quarry zone number 7 consists of Basal Group with very limited outcrops of diabasic dykes and a high percentage of pillow lava screens. It is the area with the highest frequency of occurrence of diabasic dykes within the Basal Group.
In the initial screening stage, this area 7 was considered as a Potetial Quarry Zone concerning material quality and topography, due to the most frequent appearance of Diabasic (Db) dykes in the area. The dykes can be traced from the foot of the hills to the top and petrologically are formed by grey to dark grey hard diabase with some iron oxide staining, mainly on dyke and joint surfaces.
According to the detailed investigation, dykes include also a high percentage of basaltic dykes, which are distiguished from the Db dykes by their finer texture and dark brown colour.
The boundaries of the PQZ7 were defined according to the detailed mapping as the area indicating the higher frequency of occurrence of diabasic dykes, the lower occurrence of pillow lava screens and the the least mineralization and alteration.
Zone 7 has considerably less steep slopes than all other zones, and is therefore the preferred zone for quarrying if only topography would be considered. However, the overall quality of the material is rather poor.
8.1.7 Final Evaluation
Based on the geological screening, the potential quarry zones can be ranked as follows (starting with the preferred zone):
1. zone 3 2. zone 5C 3. zone 5A 4. zone 6A 5. zone 5B 6. zone 7
Table 15 presents an overview of the geological evaluation of the selected potential quarry zones.
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Table 15: Geological evaluation of the selected potential quarry zones
Potential quarry zone Evaluation Weight % No Characteristic Weight 3 5A 5B 5C 6A 7 3 5A 5B 5C 6A 7 Moderately hard Very hard Moderately to Hard to very Hard dB dykes Hard to very Db and basaltic diabasic dykes hard diabase hard diabase (SDC) and 1 Rock Type 25% hard Diabasic dykes of the BG 20 17 13 18 15 2 (Sheeted Dyke dykes (SDC) and dykes and Dykes Basal Group with a high % of Complex SDC) BG megadykes (BG) lava screens Fine to medium Medium to 2 Texture 5% Very fine to fine Medium to fine Very fine to fine Very fine 5 4 2 5 3 1 grained fine Moderately to Low to Overall low, Moderately to high in Db dykes Alteration moderate, occasionally Low in SDC but 3 25% Very low to low high in SDC but and extremely 20 17 13 17 15 5 degree occasionally highly altered very high in BG very high in BG high in lava high zones screens Low in Db dykes Moderate Low in SDC but but high % of mineralization in 4 Mineralization 5% non mineralized Moderate Moderate high to very zeolite phase 4 3 2 3 3 1 SDC but high in minerals in lava BG high in BG screens Presence of Major Mostly Mostly Mostly Mostly Syngenetic and 5 faulting or 25% syngenetic 20 10 10 16 10 10 epigenetic syngenetic epigenetic epigenetic fractures fault zones syngenetic Very thin, Thin, mostly Very thin, Very thick, Thick to very Thickness of Very thick, 6 10% mostly less less than 10 mostly less mostly over thick, depending 8 6 3 8 3 2 overburden mostly over 10m than 5 m m than 5 m 10m on the petrology Very to Very to Very to extremely Rough to very 7 Topography 5% extremely Hilly to even extremely Hilly to even 1 4 1 3 1 4 rough rough rough rough
CUMULATIVE EVALUATION % 78 61 44 70 50 25
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8.2 Topography
Based on a visit of the selected quarry zones, the topography of the zones can be evaluated with respect to suitability for quarry development. The general topographical setting is evaluated in the light of possible future expansion of the PQZ.
Zones 3, 5C and 6A are located in an area with relatively steep slopes. Consequently, expansion of the PQZ will be difficult in these areas. The topography near PQZ 5A, 5B and 7 is less pronounced and thus provides better opportunities for quarry development.
This results in the following ranking: 1. zone 7 2. zone 5A 3. zone 5B 4. zone 3, 5C and 6A
8.3 Ecological characteristics
An ecological screening was performed based on a site visit of the selected potential quarry zones and on a review of the relevant literature. The ecological screening is based on the following characteristics:
Presence and representativity of habitat types; Flora; Fauna.
For the ecological assessment, zone 5A and 5C are inventoried in less detail, as these are expected to be similar to PQZ 5B. If 5A or 5C would finally be retained as the best alternative, one should perform a more detailed assessment of the environmental impact of quarry development in these zones.
8.3.1 Presence and Representativity of Habitat Types
Table 16 gives an overview of the habitat types and their representativity in each potential quarry zone. Zone 3 contains the largest number of habitat types, followed by zone 6A. Contrary to zone 3 and 6A, zone 5B and zone 7 do not show an excellent representativity for any habitat type.
Annex 1 contains additionnal information about the distribution of habitat types in the potential quarry zones.
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Table 16: Presence and representativity of habitat types in each potential quarry zone (A: excellent representativity, B: good, C: significant, D: not significant)
Zones Habitat type 3 5Β** 6Α 7 Thermo-Mediterranean and pre-steppe brush C B C (5330) Phrygana (5420) C B A B Pseudo-steppe with grasses and annuals B B B (Thero-Brachypodietea) (6220*) Eastern Medeterranean Screes 8140 D Siliceous rocky slopes with chasmophytic A B B vegetation (8220) Platanus orientalis and Liquadambar orientalis B woods ( Platanion Orientalis ) (92C0) Southern riparian galleries and thickets ( Nerio- D Tamaricetea and securinegion inctoriae (92D0) Olea and Ceratonia forests (9320) C B A B Mediterranean pine forests with endemic A B B B Mesogean pines (9540) * priority habitat ** zone 5A and 5C are expected tohave an ecological value similar to 5B
8.3.2 Flora
Floristic elements were inventoried for the potential quarry zones. The important plant taxa are those falling in the following categories:
Endemic plant taxa; Taxa with a protection status: these are protected by EU Directives, international conventions or they are considered rare or threatened.
Endemic species are listed in Table 17 for all potential quarry zones. As for the habitat types, zone 6A and 3 show the largest diversity of endemic species.
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Table 17: Endemic plant species recorded at the potential quarry zones
Zone Latin name 3 5Β* 6Α 7 1. Allium willeanum + + + 2. Anthemis plutonia + 3. Arabis purpurea + + 4. Asperula cypria + + + + 5. Carlina involucrata subsp. cyprica + + 6. Carlina pygmaea + + 7. Cyclamen cyprium + 8. Helianthemum obtusifolium 9. Lindbergella sintenisii + 10. Micromeria chionistrae + + + 11. Phlomis cypria var. occidentalis + 12. Ptilostemon chamaepeuce var. cyprius + 13. Scutellaria cypria ssp. elatior + + + 14. Sedum cyprium + 15. Silene galataea + + + 16. Silene laevigata + 17. Teucrium cyprium ssp. cyprium + 18. Teucrium divaricatum ssp. canescens + + + + 19. Thymus integer + + + + Total 11 8 15 4 * zone 5A and 5C are expected tohave an ecological value similar to 5B
Concerning the presence of species with a special protection status, Phlomis cypria var. occidentalis , which occurs in the zone 6A, is included in the Annex II of the 92/43/EEC Directive. Annex II includes animal and plant species of European Community interest whose conservation requires the designation of special areas of conservation. P. cypria var. occidentalis is also included in the Appendix I of the Bern Convention (Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats). The taxa of the Appendix I are characterised as “strictly protected”. It is noted that the Bern Convention was ratified by the Government of Cyprus in 1988. Moreover, P. cypria var. occidentalis is characterised by the IUCN as a “Rare” taxon.
In the quarry zone 6A the orchid Barlia robertiana was also recorded. This species is protected by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES). It is noted that all the zones host several orchid species, nevertheless it was not possible to identify these species in the winter period, when the inventory for this study was made. It is noteworthy that all the orchids are protected by the CITES.
Overall, considering also the number of endemics, the flora of zone 6A can be considered as the most valuable, followed by zone 3, 5B and finally 7.
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8.3.3 Fauna
The fauna composition in the potential quarry zones is more or less similar and presents the main species occurring in the entire Paphos Forest. The most important characteristics of the fauna in the study sites are given in Annex 1. For the evaluation of faunistic elements, the following was taken into account:
Mammals; Birds; Amphibians and Reptiles; Invertebrates.
As for fauna, the protection status and the presence of endemic species was used for evaluating the value of faunistic elements.
Overall, faunistic elements are most valuable in zones 3 and 6A, followed by 7 and finally 5B.
8.3.4 Final Evaluation of Ecological Suitability
A summary of ecological characteristics is given in Table 18 .
The screening finally leads to the following ranking (starting with the ecologically least sensitive zone, which is preferred for quarrying):
1. zone 7 2. zone 5B 3. Zone 5A 4. zone 5C 5. zone 3 6. zone 6A
It is noted that the low marking of all zones indicate that all areas have a high environmental value and quarry development is associated with significant potential environmental problems for all zones.
As stated earlier, the ecological impact of zones 5A and 5C is considered similar to 5B. However, because these two zones are located deeper insde the forest, their ecological impact is expected to be somewhat higher, leading to a slightly lower score for the suitability for quarrying.
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Table 18: Overview of the ecological value of the potential quarry zones
Potential Quarry Vegetation (Habitats) Flora Fauna Zone 8 habitat types, 2 of which have excellent representativity 11 endemic taxa Hosts the snake Coluber cypriensis Hosts the amphibians Bufo viridis 3 and Rana ridibunda Hosts the freshwater crab Potamion potamios
Hosts the bat Rousettus 5 habitat types with good representativity 8 endemic taxa 5B aegyptiacus 6 habitat types, 2 of which have excellent representativity 15 endemic taxa, one of Very important for the Cyprus them is Phlomis cypria var. moufflon occidentalis (92/43/EEC Dir 6A Nesting area for Bonelli’s Eagle Annex II, Bern Convention, Hieraaetus fasciatus IUCN – rare) Hosts the rare butterfly Charaxes jasius 5 habitat types, 4 of which with good and 1 with significant 4 endemic taxa Very important for the Cyprus 7 representativity moufflon
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8.4 Distance to Consumption Centers
The criterium ‘distance to consumption centers’ is evaluated based on three subcriteria:
Transport distance (in km); Travel times (in minutes); Transport cost (in CYP per ton).
Two main consumption centers can be distinguished (FIG. 25 ):
Zone near Anatoliko, south of Paphos; Zone near Androlykou, in the north of Paphos district.
These two zones contain several RMC plants, where the crushed aggregates are used for the production of concrete. The location of these plants and of the selected quarry zones is presented on FIG. 25 . Approximately 60% of the aggregates is processed near Anatoliko; the remaining 40% * is processed near Androlykou. Based on these weighting factors, the average distance from quarry site to the consumption center can be calculated for each of the selected zones. The results are presented in FIG. 26 . Taking the existing ** road network into account, one can calculate the average transportation time for each quarry zone. Transportation times between quarry site and consumption center are presented in FIG. 27 .
70
60 Quarry Zone 50 zone 3
40 zone 7
(km) 30 zone 6 A 20 zone 5B
10 zone 5A
zone 5C 0 Distance to consumption center center consumption to Distance Anatoliko Androlykou Average
Consumption center
FIG. 26: Distance from quarry sites to consumption centers
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90 80 Quarry Zone 70 60 zone 3
50 zone 7
40 zone 6 A 30 zone 5B 20 zone 5A 10 center (one-way, minutes) (one-way, center
Travel time to consumption consumption to time Travel zone 5C 0 Anatoliko Androlykou Average Consumption center
FIG. 27: Transportation time from quarry sites to consumption centers
The average distance from quarry site to consumption center amounts between 30 and 50 km for all quarry zones. In average, zone 3 is the closest to the consumption centers, followed by zone 7, 6A and 5B. Zone 5A and 5C are considerably further from the main consumption centers than all other zones. Zone 6A and 5B are relatively closer to Androlykou (only 16-18 km), but the distance from these quarry zones to Anatoliko is larger than 45 km. Quarry zones 3 and 7B are at a distance of 28 km from Androlykou and about 36 km from Anatoliko. Overall, zone 3 is the preferred zone when considering distance to consumption centers, though the difference between the zones is relatively small.
As is the case for travel distances, average travel times are also quite similar for the quarry zones. These amount about one hour. Zone 6A is the overall preferred zone with respect to travel times. Travel times from zones 6A, 5A, 5C and 5B are relatively small for the Androlykou consumption center (33-36 minutes) and relatively large for the Anatoliko center (73-84 minutes).
In general, the widespread distribution of rock resources and their relatively low price, means that transport costs significantly affect the distance to markets. There is relatively little international trade, apart from some multinational companies which supply more distant markets. For EU countries, the average transport distance from the point of extraction to the point of sale was 33 km on roads, 148 km by rail, and 142 km by water *. In the EU, approximately 89 % of all material is transported by road, 6% by rail, and 5% by water. Travel distances for construction minerals are considerably smaller than the EU-average distances for industrial minerals (about 245 km by road).
For the considered potential quarry zones, materials will be trasported by road. The travel distances for the considered quarry zones are comparable to EU averages.
* according to the ‘EU Non-Energy Extractive Industry — Sustainable Development Indicators 2001-2003’, Luxembourg: Office for Official Publications of the European Communities, 2006, ISBN 92-79-00380-1.
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The transportation cost depends on the transportation distance: larger distances result in a lower per km cost, as demonstrated in FIG. 28 . Using the transportation costs per km and per ton, and the distance between the quarry zones and consumption centers, the transportation cost can be calculated for each quarry zone ( FIG. 29 ). Differences between transportation costs for the quarry zones show the same overall trend as transport distances ( FIG. 26 ), though cost differences are smaller. The difference in average transportation cost (considering both consumption centers) is negligible: the average cost amounts about 2 CYP per ton for all quarry zones. Based on transport distances, travel times and travel costs, the quarry zones can be ranked as follows (starting with the preferred zone):
1. zone 3 2. zone 7 3. zone 6A 4. zone 5B 5. zone 5A and 5C
0,25 0,2 0,2 0,15 0,15
0,1 0,1 0,075 0,06 0,05 (CYP / km / ton) 0,04 transportation costtransportation 0,05 0,035 0,033
0 0-5 5-10 10-20 20-30 30-40 40-50 50-70 70-100 > 100 transportation distance (km) FIG. 28: Transportation cost by road per km and per ton of transported material (based on current transportation contracts) 3
zone 3
2 zone 7
zone 6A zone 5B 1 zone 5A zone 5C
(cyp/ton) Transport cost 0
Anatoliko Androlykou Average
Consumption center
FIG. 29: Cost for transporting rock material from potential quarry zones to consumption centers by road (CYP per ton)
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8.5 Accessibility
The proximity of the road network and the type of roads determines the overall accessibility of the potential quarry zones. According to their accessibility, the potential quarry zones can be ranked as follows, from best to worst accessible:
1. zone 5B 2. zone 3 3. zone 5A 4. zone 5C 5. zone 6A 6. zone 7
In order to facilitate access to zone 3, an existing dirt road now serving the site will need to be widened and paved for a length of roughly three km. This road branches off from the Panagia – Paphos road just north of the Kanaviou dam, passes through the abandoned quarry at Pahnoutis and stretches further east towards the zone 3.
Zone 6A will be accessed from Lysos. An existing road runs along the western border of the area towards Lysos which, however, will need to be improved as at some sections it is too narrow and curvey.
Access to zone 7 is provided by poorly conditioned dirt roads. One runs across Anadiou village and the other extends southward from the quarry towards the Panayia – Paphos road. This road will need to be upgraded for access by quarry related traffic.
The access roads to PQZ 5A and 5C are narrow and require improvements which will result in serious environmental impacts along the access route.
8.6 Social Impact
The transport of rock material can have a significant social impact: when transportation routes cross villages, noise impacts and safety problems might arise. Moreover, activities inside the quarry area may affect inhabitants of nearby villages. For the evaluation of the social impact, the following issues are considered:
Impacts on development trends; Nuisance and safety issues from quarry operations; Nuisance and safety issues from quarry related traffic; Impacts on the landscape.
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8.6.1 Impacts on Development Trends
Zone 3 is at a relatively close distance from several villages, but the site is not visible either from developed areas or from the Panagia-Paphos road. Furthermore, the area does not include or boarder privately owned land. Direct impacts on development trends at the nearby villages are therefore not expected to be significant.
Zone 5B (as well as zones 5A and 5C) lie within close range from the Gialia and Pano Gialia villages. 5B is even visible from these villages. The area along the branch road from the Pyrgos – Polis road towards the proposed quarry shows some new residential development, probably utilized as vacation housing. Several of the existing houses will be practically adjacent to the quarry development. It is therefore considered that it will have a strong negative influence on the character and quality of life in the area. The area appears rather deteriorated and shows some new residential and minimal tourist development. It is expected that the presence of the quarry together with the impact from the heavy vehicle traffic will have a significant negative impact on the area’s future development.
Zone 6A boarders private land to the southwest which stretches to the Lysos area. The private land is used mostly for agricultural purposes. However, as in many other urban areas, there is an increasing trend of second-home development in the area, with associated trends in rising land values. The presence of the quarry is not believed to threaten the presence of the local population. However, it is likely that it will slow down future second-residence development.
Zone 7 is not visible from any present development and is quite remote given the poor access to the site. Thus no significant impacts on development trends are expected. The only possible area to be affected is Anadiou village where noise and dust are likely to negatively affected area. Though any such effects will have a negative impact on the quality of life of the residents, it is unlikely that it will affect current development trends.
8.6.2 Nuisance and Safety Issues from Quarry Operations
Due to the proximity of some villages to zone 3, especially Asprogia and Panagia, it is likely that noise produced from explosions and dust will constitute a source of nuisance. If appropriate mitigation measures are applied, the impact on surrounding villages can be minimised. Similar problems arise for zone 5B, 5A and 5C.
In zone 6A, quarry operations will produce noise and dust which are likely to be a source of nuisance in the residential areas of Lysos and Kinousa. The very frequent westerly winds and the fact that most activity will be located on the western side where noise propagation is protected by topography, reduces the likelihood of significant impacts. However, noise and dust will affect the neighboring privately owned areas with likely impacts on agricultural productivity.
8.6.3 Nuisance and Safety Issues from Quarry Related Traffic
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Transportation routes from the potential quarry zones to the consumption centers are presented in Annex 2.
Transportation routes from zone 3 to the consumption centers, cross several villages which creates numerous problems. Safety is a serious concern in village centers, with roads being narrow and curvey.
For zones 5A, 5B, and 5C the quarry related traffic is expected to have a negative impact on the development along the coastal road between Gialia and Polis tis Chrysochous. Along this road, numerous new housing developments as well as tourist development mostly in the form of villa apartments are taking place. However, the noise, amenity and safety problems that will occur are expected to undermine such future development. In addition to the built-up infrastructure, the heavy vehicle traffic will have an impact on the several organized beaches that are situated adjacent to the access road.
For zone 6A, transportation will need to pass through several village centers. A lot of these centers have very narrow curvey roads. This causes both safety and nuisance problems. Bypass roads will need to be examined for a large section of the routes to client centers. Lastly, significant resistance from residents may be expected both regarding traffic and loss of land value near the quarry.
Heavy vehicle traffic from zone 7 to quarry clients will utilize the same routes as in the case of zone 3. Thus impacts from the transportation of materials are the same and concern the passage through several village centers.
8.6.4 Impacts on the Landscape
The area, where zone 3 is situated, is characterized by steep mountain slopes reaching more than one hundred meters. These steep mountain slopes constitute an important landscape including dike formations as well as a rather rare rock formation of basaltic flow with characteristic columnar jointing. The area therefore is rated with a high value of landscape character and aesthetic value.
The landscape around zone 5B, 5A and 5C is characterized by linear development of the Gialia village along the east side of the river that crosses the village and the access route to the proposed quarry. The area is dominated by the steep forested hills along both sides of the access route. The quarry will cause a serious impact on the west side of the access road and will deteriorate the landscape character of Gialia. Further, the quarry area will be visible from nearby beachfront areas thus minimizing the visual amenity and attractiveness of the area, especially for tourism purposes.
For zone 6A, the steepness of the topography and the narrow width of the hilltops where the quarry will be located mean that, for a large part, development of the quarry will need to be undertaken throughout the hilltop. It is therefore inevitable that a serious alteration of the topography and on the skyline of the area will occur. This will have a significant visual impact as the site has an unobstructed view for large distances to the north, west and east and will be visible from many developed areas from Lysos to Chrysochou Bay. Ecorem nv – E01/0079.033.R4 – 27/03/2006 - SH/GHE 69
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Zone 7 is located in a valley and surrounded by high hills. Visual impacts to neighboring areas are therefore minimized. In addition the area, though forested and generally unaffected by human activity does not present features of significant aesthetic or morphological value as do the remaining sites. Lastly, the site presents smoother topography than the remaining three alternative locations thus quarry development will be easier to achieve and will require less groundworks to prepare the necessary working areas for the quarry. In short, this areas will produce the least impacts on the landscape and aesthetics.
8.6.5 Final Evaluation of Social Impact
Table 19 presents the scores of the quarry sites for each of the social impact issues. Lower scores present a lower impact. The site receiving the lowest scores is thus the most suitable for quarry development, if only social impacts are considered.
Table 19: Social impact of quarry development in the potential quarry zones Zone Type of impact 3 5B, 5A, 5C 6A 7 Impacts on development trends 40 10 20 50 Nuisance and safety issues from quarry 60 10 30 70 operations Nuisance and safety issues from quarry 40 10 20 40 related traffic Impacts on the landscape 10 40 10 40 AVERAGE 37.5 17.5 20 50
According to the expected social impact, the quarry zones can be ranked as follows, from less to relatively more social impact:
1. zone 7 2. zone 3 3. zone 5B, 5A, 5C and 6A
8.7 Final Ranking of Potential Quarry Zones
Aggregating the rankings for the six criteria leads to the following overall ranking (starting with the most preferred quarry zone):
1. Zone 3 2. Zone 5C 3. Zone 5A 4. Zone 7 and 5B 5. Zone 6A
This overall ranking is insensitive to small changes in the weights assigned to the six criteria. For changes in weights between + 5% and –5%, zone 3 remains the best possible zone and zone 6A the worst possible zone. Ecorem nv – E01/0079.033.R4 – 27/03/2006 - SH/GHE 70
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Zone 3 can thus be considered as the overall best performing zone. Zones 5A and 5C, and, to a lesser extent, 5B can be considered as interesting alternatives. Therefore, these zones are examined in more detail in the next sections. For zones 5A, 5B and 5C, the limiting factors for quarry development are considered in more detail in chapter 9, in particular the location of these zones relative to areas indicated as residential area on the town planning map. For the best zone, zone 3, a detailed geological map (including faults) is compiled as well as a strategic pit design (chapter 10).
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9 POSSIBILITIES FOR QUARRY DEVELOPMENT IN ZONES 5A, 5B AND 5C
FIG. 30 presents a general overview of the possibilities for quarry development near zones 5A, 5B and 5C. Note that areas that are not indicated on the town planning map, have a protection status ‘Z4’ if located inside the forest, and ‘G3’ if located outside the forest.
One of the most important limiting factors for quarry development is the proximity of residential areas (area near Gialia village and along the coastline), especially for zones 5A and 5B. Transport of aggregates from the potential quarry zones to the consumption centers would pass through these residential areas, which will cause a considerable social impact.
Overall, the rock quality near the selected zones is acceptable, though not excellent. This means that possibilities for future expansion of the potential quarry zones are rather limited. Topography may be another restriction for the further expansion of the potential quarry zones. As can be seen from FIG. 31 , the topography becomes rather steep deeper inside the forest. Near zone 5A, the topography is less pronounced and thus more suitable for quarry development. However, 5A lies close to a river thus quarry development at this site may have undesired effects on water quality (erosion and sedimentation in river).
GIALIA 100m
520m
QZ 5C 340m 370m QZ 5A 120m 900m
FIG. 31: 3D view of the topography near quarry zones 5A and 5C (view to the NW)
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10 STRATEGIC QUARRY DESIGN FOR ZONE NUMBER 3
A strategic quarry design is elaborated based on digital elevation data and the required quarry size as calculated earlier. Assuming a growth rate of 2%, the required dimension of the quarry has been estimated at 65.800.000 tons, corresponding with an area of about 70 hectares. The digital elevation data consist of contour lines with an interval of 20m in the Z direction ( FIG. 2 ). Based on these data, a 3D-view of the current topography has been prepared ( FIG. 32 ).
In Table 20 , the design parameters and resulting dimensions of the quarry pit and waste dumps for quarry development in zone 3 are presented. Total area needed is 759.000 m2. This area can be reduced if a portion of waste deposited in the pit area.
Table 20 : Design parameters and volume and area calculations for quarry development in zone 3
Design parameters Pit slope 45 O Bench slope 70 O Berm width 6.4m Bottom elevation 460m Top elevation 645m
Quarry pit Pit area 478000 m2 Pit volume 25000000 m3 Average depth 52,3 m Pit tonnage 61000000 tons (S.G=2,44tons/m3) Pit area 478000 m2
Waste dumps (1&2) Waste dump 1 area 167000 m2 Waste dump 1 volume 5150000 m3 Average depth 30,8 m Waste dump 1 tonnage 8760000 tons (S.G=1,70tons/m3) Waste dump 2 area 114000 m2 Waste dump 2 volume 4640000 m3 Average depth 40,7 m Waste dump 2 tonnage 7900000 tons (S.G=1,70tons/m3) Waste dump total area 281000 m2 Waste dump total volume 9790000 m3 Average depth 34,8 m Waste dump total tonnage 16660000 tons (S.G=1,70tons/m3)
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FIG. 32: 3D view of current topography in zone 3. The blue line indicates the main road to Panagia
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FIG. 33 presents the future topography, when the quarry has been developped, in 3D- view. Two possible sites for waste dump are indicated. One of these sites is located outside the forest boundary. As can be seen on FIG. 34 , there is no special protection zone indicated on the town planning maps for the area where the quarry pit and the waste dump sites are located. However, close to the quarry zone, there are several zones with a protected town planning status (residential areas, riverbeds and toruistic places.
FIG. 35 presents a detailed geological map of the quarry pit and its immediate surroundings.
As indicated on these figures, the quarry is located near the forest boundary, and is accessible from the existing road network. However, existing access roads will need to be widened and asphalted.
As stated earlier, quarry zone number 3 is located quite close to the Kannaviou dam. This reservoir normally reaches up to an elevation of 414 - 415m. In case of extreme rainfall events (with a recurrence period of 1 per 10 000 years), the water level might reach up to an elevation of 420 m. Moreover, an additional protection zone of about 200 m has to be considered. The bottom elevation of the strategic quarry design is therefore set at 460m, respecting the prescribed buffer zone width.
The two processing plants are to be located in the pit bottom area, at an altitude of 460m. 860.000 m³ of material needs to be excavated to make a flat area of 40.000 m² for installing processing plants. Creeks draining towards the future processing plants area will have to be redirected to channels along the side of the area.
10.1.1 Possible extension of quarry zone 3
There are three possible scenarios for extending the proposed quarry zone at location 3: Expansion downwards to an elevation of 400m; Expansion towards the north-east; Expansion towards the north-east and downwards to an elevation of 400m.
Table 21 presents the additional tonnage that can be excavated for these three scenarios.
Table 21: Possible extension of quarry zone 3 To 400m North-east To 400m and north-east Additional tonnage 20.000.000 22.000.000 49.000.000 Total tonnage 81.000.000 83.000.000 110.000.000
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WASTE DUMP 1
700 MAIN ROAD TO PANAGIA WASTE DUMP 2
700 700
QUARRY 460 ACCESS ROAD TO QUARRY
420
KANNAVIOU DAM
FIG. 33: 3D view of the topography after quarry development in zone 3 (values refer to elevation in m)
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11 ALTERNATIVE SCENARIOS
Next to quarry development in zone number 3, the following alternative scenarios are considered:
1. expanding the existing quarry zone at Androlykou 2. importing quarry products from Limassol (Parekklisia-Vasa area) by flat barge; 3. importing quarry products from Limassol (Parekklisia-Vasa area) by road; 4. importing rocks from overseas by barge.
In this paragraph, the feasibility of the alternative scenarios is discussed and the social and environmental impact of each alternative is assessed and compared with quarry development within Paphos district (in zone number 3). Transport routes for all scenarios are given in Annex 3.
11.1 Expanding the existing quarry zone at Androlykou
The current reserves at Androlykou amount approximately 5Mtons. Possibilities for expanding this quarry zone are very limited, however, the current zone might be expanded in order to maintain the supply for aggregates until a new quarry zone can be developped in Paphos forest or elsewhere.
In general, the geological and environmental setting of the area around the current quarry zone does not favour the expansion of the quarry zone. Concerning the geological characteristics, the limestone which is available at Androlykou is of poorer quality compared to the diabase in Paphos forest or of the Limassol quarries. Moreover, the limestone reserves are shallower (tens of meters compared to hundreds of meters for diabase), which implies that a much larger area needs to be excavated in order to meet the demand. As a consequence, expansion of the quarry zone at Androlykou causes a relatively large environmental impact. In addition, the Androlykou quarry zone is located close to a gorge with a high ecological/environmental value, which could be affected by an expansion of the quarry zone.
11.2 Import from Limassol by Road
The current reserves in Vasa and Parekklisia amount to 11 and 79 megaton respectively, taking into account that the quarry area near Parekklisia can be expanded towards the northwest. At Vasa, there is a possibility to expand the existing quarry area. A new quarry zone will have to be developped to this end. In this case, the reserves at Vasa can rise up to 20Mton instead of 11 Mton. The overall expected lifetime of the Limassol quarries (including expansions of the quarry areas) will then amount 21 years. Moreover, there is a possibility for an additionnal expansion of the Parekklisia area towards the northwest, as diabase rocks are present here. This would require the establishment of a new quarry zone.
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Overall, the available resveres near Vasa and Parekklisia are sufficient to meet the project objectives, however, the reserves near the Limassol quarries are considerably smaller than the reserves in Paphos forest.
Increasing quarry activities in Limassol to meet the demand in Paphos will increase the environmental pressure around the quarry zones. In particular, the expansion of the quarry site may have a considerable ecological impact, as the surrounding forest area is indicated as a NATURA2000 site. Consequently, the environmental impact caused by expansion of Limassol quarries is similar to the impact caused by developping a new quarry zone in Paphos. Next to the ecological impact, the expansion of existing quarry sites will have an impact on inhabitants of nearby villages (traffic, dust, noise, etc.).
The traffic generated by the transport of quarry products through Parekklisia Village amounts about 2.100.000 tons per year, which corresponds with 33 loaden truck passes per hour. To mitigate the impact due to the transport of material, a bypass road can be constructed with approximetly 5 km length along the west side of the existing road. However, some houses are located in this area. If Paphos quarry zone would not be developed, the load will be doubled to one pass per minute (or 2 passes/min if we account the empty trucks).
Currently, the noise and vibration impact from the quarries is monitored. Measures are taken to minimise this impact (use of NONEL initiation system in 2 of the 3 quarries in Parekklisia).
Dust impact is also monitored. Dust measurements seem to be within acceptable limits as prescribed by government services.
The presence (and possible expansion) of the quarry may reduce the attractiveness of the area and so affect development trends.
FIGs. 36, 37 and 38 compare the distances, travel times and transportation costs to consumption centers when importing rocks from Limassol (Parekklisia -Vasa area) by road with the development of a new quarry zone in Paphos (zone 3). Average transport distances and travel times are clearly lower when a new quarry zone is developped. The difference between the two scenarios, especially for the travel times and transportation cost, is quite small for the Anatoliko consumption center south of Paphos. As a result, importing quarry products may be an economically viable alternative for meeting the demand in the southern part of the district, but it is less interesting for the western part (Androlykou consumption center and area between Polis and Pomos). Contitions will change in favour of zone 3 if the new Paphos-Polis Highway is constructed.
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120
100
80 Quarry Zone 60 zone 3 (km) Parekklisia 40 20
0
center consumption to Distance Anatoliko Androlykou Average Consumption center FIG. 36: Distance to consumption center when importing quarry products from Limassol compared to the development of a new quarry zone in Paphos
160
140 120 Quarry Zone 100 zone 3 80 Parekklisia 60
40
20
center (one-way, minutes) (one-way, center Travel time to consumption consumption to time Travel 0 Anatoliko Androlykou Average Consumption center FIG. 37: Travel times for importing aggregates from Limassol to consumption centers in Paphos compared to the development of a new quarry zone 4
3
2 Quarry zone ZONE 3 1 PAREKKLISIA
Transportation(CYP/ton) cost 0 ANATOLIKO ANDROLYKOU AVERAGE Consumption center
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FIG. 38: Transportation cost for importing aggregates from Limassol to consumption centers in Paphos compared to the development of a new quarry zone
11.3 Import from Limassol by Flat Barge
For meeting the demand near Androlykou, which accounts for up to 40% of the total Paphos consumption, transport by large capacity flat barges is a feasable, cost effective option.
Under this scenario, material from Parekklisia and Vasa would first be transported by truck over a distance of respectively 24 and 18 km to either Vassiliko industrial port or a loading jetty, both located along the southern coastline. The use of 5000 t capacity flat barges would facilitate loading by direct tipping from trucks. The flat barges would then be towed by tugboat to an offloading jetty located on the Polis Chrysochous coast. The towage time is approximately 60 to 70 hours for a return trip under fair sea and weather conditions.
With present fuel costs, the price per ton for transportation of 5000 t of aggregate form the Vasilikos coast to the Polis coast would be in the order of less than 2 CYP per ton. This cost is comparable to the cost for transporting aggregates from a potential quarry zone within Paphos forest to the consumption centers by road. Road transportation from the source to the loading jetty and from the offloading jetty to the Androlikou area increase the cost of the barge scenario.
Considering the relatively deep waters along polis Chrysochouse coast, the jetty would be small in scale, less than 40m long, in order to reach water depths of at least 5m required by a fully loaded flat barge. Such a structure could be built using mass concrete blocks with a reinforced concrete slab at an acceptable cost of less than 150,000 CYP.
Permission for construction of such a jetty would be sought from the Minstry of Transportation and Works and the Local Planning Department.
11.4 Import from Overseas Areas
As mentioned earlier, presently there is little or no international trade of aggregates. The average transport distance for transport by water amounts approximately 142 km for EU countries, which is considerably smaller than the distance in case of overseas import of aggregates to Paphos district. This means that transport costs will be very high for this alternative. Moreover, port dues will have to be paid. Because of this, importing aggregates from overseas is not considered as a feasible alternative from an economic point of view.
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11.5 Conclusion: Comparing Alternative Scenarios
Import from overseas areas is not considered as a viable alternative for the development of a new quarry zone in Paphos district. Import from Parekklisia can be an interesting option. The available reserves in Limassol quarries are sufficient to meet the objectives of this project, i.e. a quarry with a lifetime of at least 20 years. Moreover, there is a possibility for an additionnal expansion of the Parekklisia area towards the northwest, as diabase rocks are present here. This would require the establishment of a new quarry zone. Import from Limassol causes a lower impact on ecology than the development of a new quarry zone. Dust and noise problems are similar for the Parekklisia and zone 3. Because Parekklisia is further away from the consumption centers, the traffic impact will be larger, especially for the consumption center in the west of Paphos. To minimize the impact due to the traffic to the consumption centers in western Paphos, rock material may be transported by barge from Vasilliko industrial port to a jetty near Limni. The minor environmental impact on the coast as a result of constructing a small jetty is expected to be insignificant compared to the major environmental and ecological impact of developing a quarry in zone 3. However, a more detailed assessment of the environmental impact of the construction of the jetty is desirable when the import by barge scenario is retained. In addition to the environmental impact caused by the construction of the jetty, transportation via sea would result in a reduction of heavy vehicle road traffic between Limassol and the Paphos area.
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12 MITIGATION MEASURES
12.1 Mitigation of Noise and Vibration Impact:
Noise and vibration related to quarry activities can be caused by:
transport of rock material from quarry to consumption center; blasting.
12.1.1 Transport of Rock Material
Noise and vibration caused by transport can be mitigated by:
Introduction and enforcement of speed limits; Lorry routing agreements ; Regular maintenance of road surfaces; Construction of new roads to bypass villages: the main road from the quarry to Paphos-Panagia, having a length of about 4 km, passes through Panagia village where it becomes very narrow and consequently not suited to be used by heavy trucks. A bypass road may be needed here. Alternatively, trucks can follow the road through Kannaviou. In this case, there is no need to construct any bypass.
12.1.2 Blasting
The severity of noise and vibration impact from blasting depends on:
The quantity of explosives to be exploded at the same moment . In case of large blasting, the total explosives quantity can be splitted into smaller ones, using “relays” with a delay time larger than 8 msec. In this case the vibrations due to the consequent explosions do not accumulate; The distance from explosion point to the point of interest. The further away from the explosion point, the lower the vibrations. The decrease of vibrations with the distance from the explosion point is also related with geology (direction of dykes, faults, discontinuities, etc.); Noise impact is also related with the quantity of explosives, the initiation system, the weather conditions (wind, temperature, low clouds, etc.) and the visibility of the explosion.
In general, for distances of more than 200 m and if the amount of explosives per delay is less than 100kg, the ground vibrations are below the L2 limit, i.e. the vibration limits as prescribed by the German standard DIN4150 * for more senstive structures. The villages Panagia and Asprogia are located at a distance of 800-1500 m from quarry zone 3, so that ground vibrations in the nearby villages will almost certainly be below the L2 limit.
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For noise control, the use of NONEL initiation system instead of CORDEX reduces dramatically the air vibration. The air vibrations can be reduced from 125-135 dB to 110-120 dB at distances up to 250m with optical visibility. The applied limit (unofficially) by mines department is 135 dB.
In most countries, there is a tendency to make explosions as rare as possible (leading to larger explosions) in order to reduce the impact on inhabitants of nearby villages. Therefore, it is suggested to minimise the amount of blasting events. The amount of blastings is also related to the bench height (the larger the height of the benches, the smaller the number of explosions), with the maximum bench height varying between 8-15 m.
Given a demand of 15.000m³ of material per week, and assuming a bench height of 15m, about 100 blastholes are needed, which can be blasted in two portions. As a result, two blastings per week will be effected.
12.2 Mitigation of Dust Impact
Dust impact can be mitigated by:
Spraying water on stockpiles and service roads; Use of sheeting over lorries; Coverage of conveyor belts; Enclosure of dust producing equipment, like screens, crushers. This will also reduce noise impact; More sophisticated dust control methods, such as foam technologies may provide better dust control and use less water than conventional water spray systems.
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12.3 Mitigation of Landscape Impact
Sites should be concealed from public view as much as possible e.g. by considering alternative quarry designs. Following the traditional quarry design, the quarry pit designed for zone 3 is slightly visible (the higher eastern benches) from the nearby villages ( FIG 39 ). The waste dump sites are visible from the villages and occupy a considerable area. The required waste area could be significantly reduced, if facilities for in pit deposition are taken into account in the detailed quarry design. This would also mitigate the impact of the project on landscape aesthetics.
Alternative quarry designs should involve shallower excavations covering a larger area. As such, quarries can fit in with the present topographical setting. For example, in zones with a steep topography this may entail the deepening of concavities whereas in areas with wide valleys, this may entail the softening of convexities ( FIG. 40 ).
Valley Valley
Hilltop
FIG. 40: Examples of alternative quarry designs for steep terrain (left) and wider valleys(right)
12.4 Mitigation of Impact on the Water Environment
Construction of a gravel filter; Equip processing and storage facilities with bunds or measures to prevent pollutants leaving the site; Prevent that run-off from mineral processing and washing plants introduce contaminants and sediments to surface (lakes, streams) and ground waters e.g., by capturing runoff in a drainage system surrounding the plant area and isolating this drainage system from surface and groundwaters.
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HILL AT THE NORTH SIDE OF THE RIVER
EAST QUARRY HIGHER BENCHES
WASTE DUMP PANAGIA MAIN ROAD
QUARRY EAST BENCHES
FIG. 39: Visibility of quarry zone 3 from Panagia village (uppermost figure, view from Panagia towards north) and from Kannaviou dam overflow (below)
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13 REHABILITATION SCENARIOS FOR THE POST-MINING PERIOD
When quarry activities come to an end the quarried site(s) should receive a new destination.
Three post-mining scenarios are considered:
Passive nature restoration; Active nature restoration; Eco-tourism.
For all of these possible scenarios the formerly quarried territory (or territories) may be managed by competent Cyprus authorities.
In case of passive nature restoration, an ecosystem will develop itself at the site through natural processes. The possibilities for passive nature restoration depend on the presence of seed sources at the quarry site (seed bank in the soil) and its surroundings (herbs and adult trees in neighbouring forest stands). Regeneration from the seed bank will most probably be very limited because soils will be heavily disturbed. Passive nature restoration is a relatively slow process, but the resulting system is in equilibrium with the site’s carrying capacity, which is a prerequisite for long-term sustainability. Passive nature restoration can be encouraged by protecting seedlings from herbivory e.g. by placing fences.
Active nature restoration entails the creation of habitats for certain target species (e.g., lizards or snakes) through human interventions. For example, one could create a habitat for the Cyprus Whip Snake ( Coluber cypriensis ), an endemic reptile species of Cyprus occurring in the Paphos Forest. It mainly lives near streams on dry, stony terrain covered with bushes.
A third scenario is the development of eco-tourism. This can include active or passive nature restoration, but relicts of mining activities may also act as tourist attractions. In a controlled way, more “active” recreation, such as rock climbing, mountain biking, etc. may be considered. With relatively small investments self-interpretative trails, picnic areas, and maybe a small visitor centre with basic facilities, can be realised on the former quarry site.
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14 CONCLUSION
From the geological point of view, the most suitable area for establishing a quarry zone is located in the Diabase formations, i.e., in the central part of the Paphos Forest. The interior of the forest is not suitable for quarrying, amongst others because of problems with accessibility and the high ecological value of the area. Therefore, all potential quarry zones that were investigated in detail were located near the forest boundary.
Quarry development will always have a considerable environmental impact, however, from all possible locations, zone 3, located upstream the Kannaviou reservoir, was identifed as the area with the least constraints. The main drawbacks of this zone are its high ecological value, the steep topography and the proximity of villages that also have some importance for tourists. Potential quarry zones 5C and 5A were identified as potentially interesting alternatives, especially for supplying the Androlykou consumption center.
Import of rock material from Parekklisia was identified as a viable alternative for the development of a new quarry zone. The available reserves in Limassol quarries are sufficient to meet the objectives of this project, i.e. a quarry with a lifetime of at least 20 years. Compared to the avialable reserves inside Paphos forest, however, the reserves available near the existing Limassol quarries are limited. There is a possibility for an additionnal expansion of the Parekklisia area towards the northwest, as diabase rocks are present here. This would require the establishment of a new quarry zone.
Import from Limassol will have a lower impact on ecology, but the impact due to the transport of rock material (impact on the road network) will be higher than for zone 3. This impact can be mitigated by transporting rock material by flat barge. There might be some minor impact on the coast as a result of constructing a small jetty. The ecological impact is minimal since the jetty can be constructed outside ecologically sensitive areas. However there might be some impact on the attractiveness of the coastal area for tourists, but because of the small extent of the jetty, this impact will be restricted to a small area. In total, the impact of transportation via sea (construction of the jetty along the coast) is expected to be insignificant compared to the major environmental and ecological impact of developing a quarry in zone 3. However, a more detailed assessment of the environmental impact caused by the construction of the jetty should be effected. In addition to the impact caused by the jetty, transportation via sea would result in a reduction of heavy vehicle road traffic between Limassol and the Paphos area. The impact due to road transport will not be larger than the impact caused by the transport of aggregates by truck from a new quarry zone in Paphos forest to the consumption centers.
Transportation costs are clearly higher for the scenario entailing the import of aggregates than for the scenarios involving the development of a new quarry zone. The main ‘costs’ caused by the development of a new quarry zone, are the environmental and social costs, which are hard to express in financial terms. So one can conclude that the preferred scenario depends on the valorization of ecological and social issues: if these issues are considered to be of major importance, then quarry development in zone 3 should get a relatively high ‘cost’, and import of aggregates from Parekklisia is
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preferred. If social and ecological issues are less valorized, then quarry development in zone 3 is the most interesting alternative.
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15 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Due to growing economic activities, there is an increasing demand for building materials in Paphos district. Until now, this demand is partly met by importing quarry products from other regions, such as the Parekklisia – Vasa area in the Limassol district. Importing building materials entails a considerable environmental impact because these materials have to be transported over long distances. Therefore, there is an increasing interest in establishing new quarry zones within the Paphos district. However, the areas that are suitable for quarrying within paphos district are mostly covered by semi-natural forests that are important for biodiversity conservation. Thus, albeit new quarry zones within the Paphos district may decrease the environmental impact due to the transportation of building materials, this may endanger the ecological status of Paphos Forest.
The aim of this work is to identify the scenario for meeting the demand for quarry products during the next 20 years, which causes the lowest impact on the environment. The project consists of two main parts:
- delineation of scenarios; - strategic environmental assessment: comparing the environmental impact of all retained scenarios.
A first set of scenarios entails the creation of a new quarry zone in Paphos district. The best possible location for this quarry zone is defined by a multi-step procedure.
In a first step (excluding stage), all areas where quarrying is not legally allowed, or where the desired geology is absent are excluded. Concerning geology, only the areas indicated as Diabase or Basal Group on the geological map are retained. Because quarry development is not legally allowed in nature reserves or in SACs (special areas of conservation, implementation of the Birds Directive), these areas are also excluded.
In a second step, the suitability of the remaining search area for quarry development is assessed. A geological screening is performed to evaluate the rock quality. Mainly based on this geological screening, a pre-selection of 11 potential quarry zones was compiled. Potential quarry zones located deep inside the forest are not suitable because of problems with accessibility, the high ecological value of Paphos forest and the large costs for transporting aggregates to the consumption centers. Taking these economic and ecological criteria into consideration, a subset of six potential quarry zones is retained.
For these selected zones, the environmental impact of quarry development is compared to a set of alternative scenarios which entail the import of aggregates from outside Paphos district.
Initally, three import scenarios are considered: import from Parekklisia (Limassol district) by barge, import from Parekklisia by road or import from abroad by barge. The latter seemed not to be economically viable, because of the port dues that have to be paid. Import from Parekklisia is also more expensive than the development of a new quarry zone within Paphos, however, the difference in cost is much smaller in this case.
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Therefore, both import from Parekklissia by barge and by road are considered as alternative scenarios.
Table 22 presents the results of the comparative environmental assessment of the different scenarios for quarry development in Paphos district, and two alternative scenarios entailing import of aggregates from Limassol.
From a geological point of view, import from Limassol and quarry development in zone 3 are to be preferred. The main drawback of quarry development in zone 3 is the impact on the ecological value of Paphos forest and the social impact on the nearby villages (Asprogia and Pano panagia). These villages are also important tourist attractors. Shifting the potential quarry zone towards the north (deeper inside the forest), might mitigate the social impact, however, the area north of zone 3 is indicated as a SAC (special area of conservation) thus quarrying is not legally allowed in this area.
Quarry development in zones 5C and 5A may also be an interesting option. These potential quarry zones have good quality rock material, but are located quite close to Gialia village. Trucks transporting aggregates from the potential quarry zones to consumption centers will pass through Gialia and the villages along the coastline. Consequently, quarry development will have a considerable social impact. Because PQZ 5C and 5A are located inside Paphos forest, quarry development in these zones will have a considerable ecological impact. However, these zones are not located inside a SAC or a SPA.
Social and ecological impacts are clearly lower for the scenarios entailing the import of aggregates from Limassol. The main drawback of these scenarios is the higher transportation cost. The impact caused by the construction of a jetty for the import by barge scenario is expected to be minor, however, a more detailed impact assessment should be effected when this scenario is retained. Moreover, although the reserves available near the Limassol quarries are sufficient to meet the project objectives (quarry with a lifetime of 20 years), they are considerably smaller than the reserves available in Paphos forest.
Quarry development in zone 6A or 7 is less interesting than quarry development in zone 3. Zone 7 is the most interesting when ecology and topography are considered, however, the detailed geological mapping indicated that this zone does not have sufficient good quality rock material for developing a quarry with a lifetime of 20 years. Zone 6A has good quality rocks, but comparable to zone 3, zone 6A is of high ecological importance. Moreover, the expected social impact is clearly higher for zone 6A than for zone 3.
In conclusion, there are three interesting scenarios for meeting the demand for quarry products. The first one entails the development of a new quarry zone in zone 3. This is the most attractive scenario from an economic point of view (low transport cost), however, it will entail a relatively high ecological and social impact. The second option is to import aggregates from Limassol by barge. This would entail a considerably lower ecological and social impact; however, the financial cost for the transport of rock material from quarry to consumption center will be higher. The finally most attractive scenario thus depends on the valorization or willingness-to-pay for ecological and social issues. If these issues Ecorem nv – E01/0079.033.R4 –27/03/2006 - SH/GHE 90
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are considered of major importance, then import of aggregates will be the most attractive scenario, otherwise the development of a new quarry zone in zone 3 is to be preferred. Quarry development near zones 5C and 5A may be an interesting alternative, especially for the consumption centers near Androlykou.
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16 LITERATURE
Anonymous (2006). EU Non-Energy Extractive Industry — Sustainable Development Indicators 2001-2003’, Luxembourg: Office for Official Publications of the European Communities, ISBN 92-79-00380-1.
Anonymous (2004). Implementation of SEA directive (2001/42/EC): Assessment of the effects of certain plans and programmes on the environment. Guidelines for regional authorities and planning authorities.
Anonymous. Strategic plan for tourism development 2003-2010.
Anonymous. Geological map of Cyprus (scale 1/250.000).
Anonymous (2004). Sustainable development indicators for the EU non-energy extractive industry in 2001. Final report.
Biocyprus 1999: Database with information on the ecological characteristics of the areas that were proposed to be included in the Natura 2000 network as SACs.
Birdlife Cyprus (Cyprus Ornithological Society): Bird reports 1993-2004. Nicosia, Cyprus.
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of wild fauna and flora (CITES), 1973.
Council of Europe, 1992. Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats, Directorate of Environment and Local Authorities, Strasbourg.
Craven, J. & Mackey I. 1987. The complete hedgehog. Chatto & Windus, London.
Cyprus Ornithological Society (1957), 1997. Birds of Cyprus Checklist 1997. Table of monthly sightings & yearly occurrences 1991-1996.
Davis, P. H. 1965 -1988. Flora of Turkey, Vols 1-10. Edinburgh University Press.
Δημητρόπουλος Α & Ιωανίδης Γ , 2002, Τα ερπετά της Ελλάδας και της Κύπρου , Μουσείο Γουλανδρή Φυσικής Ιστορίας , Αθήνα 2002
Economic Commision for Europe 1991. European red list of globally threatened animals and plants. United Nations, New York.
Eddie J. 2000. Butterflies of Cyprus 1998 (Records of a year's sightings). The Amateur Entomologists' Society Pamphlet No.15. European Union (1979). Council directive of 2 April 1979 on the conservation of wild birds (79/409/EEC).
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European Union (1992). Council directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora.
European Union (2001). Directive 2001/42/EC of the European parliament and of the council on the assessment of the effects of certain plans and programmes on the environment.
Feinbrum-Dothan, N. 1978. Flora Palaestina, Part III. The Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities.
Feinbrum-Dothan, N. 1986. Flora Palaestina, Part IV. The Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities.
Flegg, J. & Hosking, D. 1993. Birds of Britain and Europe (Photographic field guide). New Holland publishers, London.
Flid, P. & Stewart, P. 1992. The birds of Cyprus. B.O.U. Check-list No 6 (2nd Edition). British Ornithologists Union.
Greuter W., Burdet H.M. & Long G. 1984, 1986, 1989. Med-Checklist. A critical inventory of vascular plants of the circum-mediterranean countries. Vols 1, 3, 4. Geneve: Conservatoire et Jardin Botanique, Med-Checklist Trust of OPTIMA.
Hadjikyriakou G. 1997. The Flora of Cyprus through catalogues and tables. Limassol, Cyprus. p. 232.
Hadjikyriakou G. (2003). In: Supplementary notes to the flora of Cyprus III. Hand R. (ed). Willdenowia. 33: 305-325.
Hand R. (2004). Supplementary notes to the flora of Cyprus IV. Willdenowia. 34: 427- 455.
Huston, M. A. (ed) 1994. Biological diversity. The coexistence of species on changing landscapes.
IUCN, World Conservation Monitoring Centre 1997. Cyprus: Conservation status listing of plants. WCMC, UK.
Kadis C. 1995. On the reproductive biololgy of the strictly proteced plants of Cyprus. University of Athens.
Kluyver, H.M. Geological map of part of the Pahos District (scale: 1/10.000).
Kourtellarides L. 1998. Breeding Birds of Cyprus with check-list of the birds of Cyprus. Bank of Cyprus Group and Cyprus Ornithological Society. Nicosia, Cyprus. p. 299.
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Meikle, R. D. 1977. Flora of Cyprus. Vol. 2. The Bentham - Moxon Trust Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
Meikle, R. D. 1985. Flora of Cyprus. Vol. 2. The Bentham - Moxon Trust Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
Pantazis, Th. M. 1967. The geology and mineral resources of the Pharmakas-Kalavos area. Geological Survey Department. Memoir no. 8.
Tsintides T. & Kourtellarides L. 1998. The Endemic Plants of Cyprus. Bank of Cyprus & Cyprus Association of Professional Foresters. Nicosia. p. 123.
Took, J. M. E. 1992. Birds of Cyprus. A simple, concise and fully illustrated guide. Proodos Printing & Publishing Co. Ltd.
Wardell Armstrong (2004). Strategy for sustainable quarrying and mining development of Cyprus – Final Report. Ministry of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environment, Geological Survey Department.
Wiedl, H. J. & Eugster, A. U. 1994. Exhibition of amphibians and reptiles of Cyprus. The herpetological society of Cyprus.
Zohary, M. 1966. Flora Palaestina, Part I. The Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities.
Zohary, M. 1972. Flora Palaestina, Part II. The Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities.
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Internal quality control executed, 27 March 2006
Signature
Done at Aartselaar, 27 March 2006
Dr. W. Mondt general manager
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LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1 Overview of search area: roads and villages
Figure 2 Topography of the search area
Figure 3 Location of NATURA2000 sites
Figure 4 Location of existing diabase quarry sites (Vasa, Zoopigi and Parekklisia) in Limassol district
Figure 5 Monthly cement consumption in Cyprus (1995-2005)
Figure 6 Annual cement consumption (1995 – 2005)
Figure 7 Quarry product sales in Cyprus
Figure 8 Cement vs total aggregates consumption
Figure 9 Area of issued construction permits
Figure 10 Paphos district quarry products sales
Figure 11 Aggregates consumption in Paphos district
Figure 12 Limassol district quarry products sales
Figure 13 Projection of quarry product sales in Cyprus
Figure 14 Projection of Paphos district aggregates consumption
Figure 15 Projection of Limassol district quarry products consumption
Figure 16 Projection of Limassol and Paphos quarry products sales
Figure 17 Exclusion criteria
Figure 18 Results of the geological screening
Figure 19 Potential quarry zones
Figure 20 Geological and environmental constraints for the suitability assessment
Figure 21 Surroundings of zone 5B, 5A and 5C
Figure 22 Surroundings of zone 6A
Figure 23 Surroundings of zone 3: Kannaviou dam (left) and the old quarry at “Pahnoutis” location (right)
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Figure 24 Surroundings of zone 7
Figure 25 Location of consumption centers
Figure 26 Distance from quarry sites to consumption centers
Figure 27 Transportation time from quarry sites to consumption centers
Figure 28 Transportation cost by road per km and per ton of transported material
Figure 29 Cost for transporting rock material from potential quarry zones to consumption centers by road (CYP per ton)
Figure 30 Overview of potential quarry zones 5A, 5B and 5C
Figure 31 3D view of the topography near quarry zones 5A and 5C (view to the NW)
Figure 32 3D view of current topography in zone 3. The blue line indicates the main road to Panagia
Figure 33 3D view of the topography after quarry development in zone 3 (values refer to elevation in m)
Figure 34 Quarry pit design for zone 3
Figure 35 Detailed geological map for zone 3
Figure 36 Distance to consumption center when importing quarry products from Limassol compared to the development of a new quarry zone in Paphos
Figure 37 Travel times for importing aggregates from Limassol to consumption centers in Paphos compared to the development of a new quarry zone
Figure 38 Transportation cost for importing aggregates from Limassol to consumption centers in Paphos compared to the development of a new quarry zone
Figure 39 Visibility of quarry zone 3 from Panagia village (uppermost figure, view from Panagia towards north) and from Kannaviou (below)
Figure 40 Examples of alternative quarry designs for steep terrain (left) and wider valleys (right)
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LIST OF TABLES
Table 1 Air Quality legislative limits (all values in μg/m 3 at T= 293 Κ and pressure = 101,3 kPa)
Table 2 Typical noise levels for main roads
Table 3 Typical noise levels for lateral roads
Table 4 Preliminary criteria for evaluating noise levels
Table 5 Consumed total bulk cement and the amount of cement in bags in the Paphos district (tons)
Table 6 Assumptions made to calculate the total amount of aggregates form the data in Table 5
Table 7 Aggregates consumption projection for Limassol and Paphos (2000- 2005: actual data; 2006-2025: forecasts)
Table 8 a Limassol quarries (Parekklisia + Vasa + Zoopigi) lifetime b Parekklisia quarry zone equivalent past figures (data from Mines Dpt)
Table 9 Area needed for quarry development assuming a growth rate of 2%
Table 10 Sensitivity analysis of quarry size
Table 11 GIS data layers
Table 12 Relative importance of geological and geomorphological criteria used for assessing the overall geological suitability
Table 13a Evaluation of potential quarry zones
Table 13b Final selection of potential quarry zones
Table 14 Geological characteristics of the selected potential quarry zones. Location of the quarry zones is indicated on FIG. 19
Table 15 Geological evaluation of the selected potential quarry zones
Table 16 Presence and representativity of habitat types in each potential quarry zone (A: excellent representativity, B: good, C: significant, D: not significant)
Table 17 Endemic plant species recorded at the potential quarry zones
Table 18 Overview of the ecological value of the potential quarry zones
Table 19 Social impact of quarry development in the potential quarry zones
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Table 20 Design parameters and volume and area calculations for quarry development in zone 3
Table 21 Possible extension of quarry zone 3
Table 22 Scenario delineation and strategic environmental assessment: procedure and results
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LIST OF ANNEXES
Annex 1 Ecological characteristics of Paphos forest and the selected potential quarry zones
Annex 2 Transportation routes from the selected potential quarry zones and from Limassol quarries to the consumption centers
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
1 PROBLEM AND OBJECTIVES ...... 1 2 DESCRIPTION OF THE STUDY AREA ...... 3 2.1 Topography and Hydrology ...... 3 2.2 Geology ...... 3 2.3 Ecology ...... 6 2.4 Socio-Cultural Aspects ...... 8 2.5 Road Network ...... 9 2.6 Air Quality ...... 9 2.7 Noise ...... 11 3 PROJECT DESCRIPTION ...... 13 3.1 Correlation Between Cement Consumption and Aggregates Sales...... 13 3.2 Paphos Aggregates Consumption: Period 1993 –2005 ...... 16 3.3 Future Aggregates Demand and Required Size of New Quarry Zone ...... 19 3.4 Conclusion ...... 25 4 LEGISLATIVE FRAMEWORK ...... 26 4.1 Town and Country Planning Law ...... 26 4.2 Environmental Planning Law...... 27 4.3 Fauna and Flora ...... 28 4.4 Water Resources ...... 29 4.5 Other Legislation ...... 29 5 DATA ...... 31 5.1 Fieldwork ...... 31 5.2 GIS ...... 32 6 DETERMINATION OF CONSTRAINT AND EXCLUSION CRITERIA ...... 40 6.1 Excluding Stage ...... 40 6.2 Suitability Stage ...... 41 6.3 Feasibility Stage ...... 42 7 DETERMINATION AND ANALYSIS OF POTENTIAL QUARRY ZONES ...... 44 7.1 Excluding Stage ...... 44 7.2 Suitability Analysis ...... 44 8 FEASIBILITY ANALYSIS OF SELECTED AREAS ...... 55 8.1 Geological Characteristics ...... 55 8.2 Topography ...... 59 8.3 Ecological characteristics ...... 59 8.4 Distance to Consumption Centers...... 64
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8.5 Accessibility ...... 67 8.6 Social Impact ...... 67 8.7 Final Ranking of Potential Quarry Zones...... 70 9 POSSIBILITIES FOR QUARRY DEVELOPMENT IN ZONES 5A, 5B AND 5C ...... 72 10 STRATEGIC QUARRY DESIGN FOR ZONE NUMBER 3...... 73 11 ALTERNATIVE SCENARIOS ...... 77 11.1 Expanding the existing quarry zone at Androlykou ...... 77 11.2 Import from Limassol by Road ...... 77 11.3 Import from Limassol by Flat Barge ...... 80 11.4 Import from Overseas Areas ...... 80 11.5 Conclusion: Comparing Alternative Scenarios ...... 81 12 MITIGATION MEASURES ...... 82 12.2 Mitigation of Dust Impact ...... 83 12.3 Mitigation of Landscape Impact ...... 84 12.4 Mitigation of Impact on the Water Environment ...... 84 13 REHABILITATION SCENARIOS FOR THE POST-MINING PERIOD ...... 86 14 CONCLUSION...... 87 15 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ...... 89 16 LITERATURE ...... 92
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Ministry of Agriculture Natural Resources and Environment Cyprus Geological Survey Department
Feasibility Study and Strategic Environmental Assessment Possible Creation New Quarry Zone in Paphos District GSD/2005/06
Final Report
File number E01/079.40.R5 March 2006 Ecorem nv – Kontichsesteenweg 38 – 2630 Aartselaar-Belgium Ph. +32 (0)3/87.10.900 – Fax. +32 (0)3/87.10.901
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