Environmental Impact Assessment: Proposed Onsite Secure Landfill (Prescribed Premise) for the Storage of NUF Solids within the Existing LAMP Site located on PT 17212, Gebeng Industrial Estate, Kuantan, Pahang 6 EXISTING ENVIRONMENT 6.1 INTRODUCTION This section provides a description of the physical, chemical, biological and social aspects of the environment within the Zone of Impact (ZOI) of the proposed secure landfill Project. It highlights the components of environmental concerns of the Project site and its surroundings. The term ZOI is used to describe the area most likely to be impacted by the Project. The ZOI represents the surrounding area within a 5 km radius from the boundary of the LAMP site. The information provided within this chapter forms the basis of the impact assessment in Chapter 7. The description provided in this chapter is based on site visits and environmental monitoring data at the LAMP site, undertaken by Permulab (M) Sdn. Bhd., a laboratory accredited by the Department of Standards, Malaysia under the Skim Akreditasi Makmal Malaysia (SAMM), Malaysian Meteorological Department and publications by DOE, Kuantan Municipal Council, Pihak Berkuasa Perancang Tempatan (PBPT) Daerah Kuantan. Data from past studies, including the “Preliminary EIA and Quantitative Risk Assessment of the Proposed Advanced Materials Plant in Gebeng Industrial Area, Kuantan, Pahang, by Enviro Sdn Bhd, 2007” was also referenced. 6.2 TOPOGRAPHY Regionally, the GIE is located in the Kemajuan Tanah Merah area where Bukit Tanah Merah was flattened to construct the industrial estate. The GIE is located within the low-lying and predominantly swampy Sungai Balok catchment area with an average land elevation of 7m above mean sea level. Several hilly areas are located beyond the 5 km ZOI including Bukit Balok, which is located about 6 km southwest of the GIE, at a height of 230 m above mean sea level (MSL) and Bukit Pangram which rises 197 m above MSL and is located 7.5 km southeast of the industrial estate. Topographically, the site is relatively flat with ground levels generally ranging between 7.4 m to 7.8 m above MSL. 6.3 HYDROLOGY AND HYDROGEOLOGY 6.3.1 Catchment and River System The hydrology and drainage system of the LAMP site is characterised by the Sungai Balok catchment with the main tributaries of rivers in the area being Sg. Balok and Sg. Tunggak. Figure 6.1 shows the river network in the Balok catchment area, where the proposed Project is located. Chapter 6 : Existing Environment 6-1 Environmental Impact Assessment: Proposed Onsite Secure Landfill (Prescribed Premise) for the Storage of NUF Solids within the Existing LAMP Site located on PT 17212, Gebeng Industrial Estate, Kuantan, Pahang Sg. Balok originates as Sg. Batang Panjang from the hilly area northwest of the Project site and serves as the catchment area for the Project site. Sg. Balok catchment is estimated to be 10 km long and km wide. Sg. Tunggak on the other hand originates from the Tanah Merah peat swamp forest and flows south along the eastern boundary of the Project site. Sg. Tunggak catchment is somewhat smaller than Sg. Balok; at 7 km in length and 4.2 km in width. Sg. Balok is located 3 km west from the LAMP site and flows in a south easterly direction and eventually discharges into the South China Sea. The coastline is located 3km east of the Project site. There is no impoundment or river water abstraction for potable water supply within the catchments of Sg. Balok and Sg. Tunggak. 6.3.2 Hydrogeology 6.3.2.1 General Hydrogeology The LAMP site is situated on alluvial deposits with very high aquifer potential based on the Hydrogeological Map of Pahang (2007) published by Jabatan Mineral dan Geosains (JMG) Malaysia (Figure 6.2). The extent, nature and composition of the alluvium vary at different localities. Along the stretch of the Gebeng coast from Sg. Ular to Beserah in the south, it is known to be highly productive aquifers of more than 20 m thick and consists of sand/gravel. However, there is no deep drilling carried out in the area, other than in Sg. Ular area where groundwater wells are capable of producing 15 – 20 m3/hour. Areas underlain by granite and sedimentary rocks have lower groundwater potential. Generally, sand/gravel aquifers are capable of yielding up to 50 m 3/hr/well with a few metres of drawdown. For less extensive or lower transmissivity aquifers, yield of between 15 – 25 m3/hr/well is common. Along the coast, groundwater could be brackish/saline as a result of connate seawater trapped within the alluvial materials or influenced by the quality of sea water. The groundwater levels isopach indicated the lowering towards the coast line, as a consequent, the regional groundwater flows to the sea. However, the local groundwater most likely flows into the rivers (Sg. Balok and Sg. Tunggak) nearby, other than towards the sea in areas close to the coastline. Further inland, sedimentary and volcanic rocks aquifers are represented by fractures within sandstone, quartzite, conglomerate and volcanic rocks are normally less productive, however, wells in sedimentary/volcanic rocks may occasionally yield up to 20 m 3/hr/well, averaging 5-15 m3/hr/well. Aquifers in fractures within crystalline igneous generally give lower yield of up to 10 m3/hr/well. The water from these aquifers is generally of medium to good quality but has moderate to high total dissolved solids due to soluble minerals. Chapter 6 : Existing Environment 6-2 Environmental Impact Assessment: Proposed Onsite Secure Landfill (Prescribed Premise) for the Storage of NUF Solids within the Existing LAMP Site located on PT 17212, Gebeng Industrial Estate, Kuantan, Pahang 6.3.2.2 Site Hydrogeology Field tests conducted in 2007 for the Preliminary EIA and Quantitative Risk Assessment of the Proposed Advanced Materials Plant within the Gebeng Industrial Area, Kuantan, indicated that the clay and silty sand hydraulic conductivity is in the range of 10-7 to 10-8 m/s, and 10-6 m/s respectively. During this investigation, seven (7) monitoring wells (MW1 – MW7) were constructed, and measurement of groundwater levels and sample collection were carried out. The groundwater levels range from 0.95 to 3.5 meter below ground level. From the groundwater level measurements, it shows that the shallow groundwater within Lynas flows to the south or southeast. These monitoring wells were used from 2007 to 2008. From 2012, another set of monitoring well were used for groundwater sampling and analysis and some of the earlier constructed well MW4, MW6 and MW7 were decommissioned, and 3 new wells were constructed; labelled as GW11, GW12 and GW13. Subsequently, all the wells are labelled as GW instead of MW, hence, the monitoring wells are identified as GW1, GW2, GW3, GW5, GW11, GW12 and GW13. Based on the groundwater level from the wells, the deduced groundwater flows from the LAMP site to the south and southwest, as shown in Figure 6.2a. 6.4 GEOLOGY AND SOIL 6.4.1 Geology The LAMP site is located within Gebeng Industrial Estate (GIE) which was founded on the Kemajuan Tanah Merah land. The general geology of the Kuantan area consists of three (3) main geological units. These include: (i) Quaternary Alluvium deposits; (ii) Marine Sand; and (iii) Granite bedrock According to the Geology map of Peninsular Malaysia (2014), the Quaternary deposits consist of marine and continental sediments made up of clay, silt and gravel. The marine Gula formation occupies most of the coastal areas throughout the peninsular. In the coastal area in Kuantan, including the GIE where the Project site is located, the Quaternary deposits is estimated to be up to a depth of approximately 38 m and consist of peat, humic clay and silts of the Beruas and continental Simpang Formations. As described in the previous sub-section, the alluvial deposits in the area have an estimated potential yield of between 4,000 and 6,000 gallons/hour/well. The Quaternary Alluvium layers overlay the granite bedrock formed in the Cretaceous period. This granite intruded into both the older Lower Carboniferous strata and older beds of the Arenaceous Series, and forms much of the bedrock underlying the GIE, with the most prominent outcrop found in Bukit Pangram, about 3 km southeast of the site. Similarly, Basalt of Pliocene Chapter 6 : Existing Environment 6-3 Environmental Impact Assessment: Proposed Onsite Secure Landfill (Prescribed Premise) for the Storage of NUF Solids within the Existing LAMP Site located on PT 17212, Gebeng Industrial Estate, Kuantan, Pahang age (1.7 ê 0.3 Ma by K-Ar dating) are also present in Kuantan, Pahang (Geology Map of Peninsular Malaysia 2014). The main episode of granitic emplacement took place during the Triassic period coincides with the major orogenic events during which all of the older strata were folded and deformed The geological map of the Project site and surrounding areas are presented in Figure 6.3. 6.4.2 Soil 6.4.2.1 Secondary Soil Data The Kuantan Series is a member of the Kuantan Family which is a very fine, oxidic, iso- hyperthermic, brown Tipik Akrolemoks. It typifies the family which developed over basalt. These are deep (>100 cm), very friable and uniformly brown soils with thin dark brown to brown A horizons and dark yellowish brown, clayey B oxic horizons. The depth of this type of soil exceeds two metres deep where iron-coated basalt parent material normally occurs. The Effective Cation Exchange Capacity (ECEC) value is less than 1.5 centimole/kg in the oxic horizon. The Reconnaissance Soil Map of Peninsular Malaysia (Figure 6.4) indicates that surface soils at the site and its surrounding areas are alluvial in nature and mainly consist of peat and underlain by alluvium to a depth of 2 meters (Table 6.1).