Second Power Transmission and Distribution Project (Kampot to Sihanoukville 230 Kv Transmission Line) in Cambodia
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SUMMARY INITIAL ENVIRONMENTAL EXAMINATION Project Number: 26194 January 2006 The Second Power Transmission and Distribution Project (Kampot to Sihanoukville 230 kV Transmission Line) in Cambodia CURRENCY (as of 30 November 2005) Currency Unit – riel/s (KR) KR1.00 = $0.00024 $1.00 = KR4,120 ABBREVIATIONS ADB – Asian Development Bank AP – affected people ASEAN – Association of Southeast Asian Nations asl – above sea level CITES – Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora DCC – design and construction contractor EDC – Électricité du Cambodge EC – environmental coordinator EMF – electromagnetic field EMP – environmental management plan IBA – important bird area IEE – initial environmental examination IMO – independent monitoring organization IPP – independent power producer IRC – Interministerial Resettlement Committee IUCN – World Conservation Union KCWMP – Kbal Chhay Watershed Management Project KV – Kilovolt MIME – Ministry of Industry, Mines and Energy MOE – Ministry of Environment NGO – nongovernment organization NR – National Route PDGMS – Power Distribution and Greater Mekong Subregion Project PMO – project management office ROW – right-of-way RP – resettlement plan SIEE – summary initial environmental examination TA – technical assistance UXO – unexploded ordnance WEIGHTS AND MEASURES km – kilometer ha – hectare MVA – megavolt-ampere (1,000 kilovolt-amperes) kV – kilovolt (1,000 volts) kWh – kilowatt-hour MW – megawatt GWh – gigawatt-hour NOTE In this report, “$” refers to US dollars. CONTENTS Page I. INTRODUCTION 1 II. DESCRIPTION OF THE PROJECT 1 III. EXISTING ENVIRONMENT 2 A. Physical Resources 2 B. Ecological Resources 2 C. Economic Development 4 D. Social and Cultural Resources 4 IV. SCREENING OF POTENTIAL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT AND MITIGATION MEASURES 5 A. Land Acquisition 5 B. Resettlement 5 C. Tree Removal 5 D. Land Use Restrictions and Disruption 5 E. Habitat Loss and Impact on Wildlife 6 F. Protected Area Impact 7 G. Greenhouse Gas Emission and Airborne Pollutant Reduction 7 H. Soil Erosion 7 I. Pollution 8 J. Noise 8 K. Historic and Religious Sites 8 L. Health Hazards 8 M. Secondary Project Benefits 8 N. Regional Impact 9 O. Cumulative Impact 9 V. INSTITUTIONAL REQUIREMENTS AND ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING 9 VI. PUBLIC CONSULTATION AND DISCLOSURE 27 VII. FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 29 VIII. CONCLUSIONS 30 APPENDIXES 1. REFERENCES 32 2. List of Participants at IEE Public Consultation Sessions 34 3. Minutes of IEE Public Consultation Sessions 36 I. INTRODUCTION 1. Electricité du Cambodge (EDC) is investigating the feasibility of constructing a 230- kilovolt (kV) transmission line from a proposed substation at Kampot to Sihanoukville. The 77.7- kilometer (km) transmission line would be built under the proposed Second Power Transmission and Distribution Project (the Project), thereby underpinning local economic development. In the short to medium term, this line would deliver power from the national grid to Sihanoukville, improving the reliability of the supply. In the long term, it would enable the export of power from large generating plants planned near Sihanoukville to the capital, Phnom Penh. The proposed Project aims to facilitate international power transfers and stimulate equitable economic growth across the country. 2. Consultants, with the assistance of EDC, conducted the initial environmental examination (IEE) for the Project under technical assistance (TA)1 financed by the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The Project is classified as environment category B. 3. Fuelwood is the primary source of energy for domestic use in Cambodia, while imported petroleum products are the main source of energy for commercial activities. The ASEAN Centre for Energy estimated that Cambodia’s installed capacity was 145 megawatts (MW) in 2003, with annual production of electricity from all sources estimated to be 472 gigawatt-hours (GWh). Electricity supply is restricted to 22 small isolated power systems, divided between (i) Phnom Penh (150,000 customers) and six provincial towns served by EDC; and (ii) the remainder of the country served by the Ministry of Industry, Mines and Energy (MIME), or private companies under contract to MIME with unreliable supply and limited distribution. Cambodia imports only small quantities of electricity over medium-voltage electricity lines from Thailand and Viet Nam to border areas. Within Phnom Penh, EDC distributes 110 MW from its own generators and from independent power producers (IPP). Aside from electricity produced by the 12 MW Kirirom hydroelectric plant, EDC distributes power generated by imported heavy fuel oil or light diesel oil. As a consequence, electricity consumption is constrained by supply availability and price, with a high cost of mains electricity ranging between $0.09-0.27c/kWh across the country. II. DESCRIPTION OF THE PROJECT 4. The high-voltage Kampot-to-Sihanoukville transmission line (Figure 1.1) component of the Project will facilitate the importation of electricity from Viet Nam to Sihanoukville. Viet Nam will supply electricity to this line via the Viet Nam-Phnom Penh line and the proposed Takeo- Kampot line. Electricity also will be supplied to selected villages near the proposed Veal Renh and Sokimex ridge substations, which are not serviced by mains electricity. Villages along the transmission line route probably will be supplied with electricity by a lower-cost single wire earth return line. 5. The high-voltage transmission line will consist of a 230 kV, double-circuit transmission line connecting to a 9.8 km, 22 kV distribution line that will provide the final connection into the city. Substations will be installed at Veal Renh and on Sokimex ridge, north of Sihanoukville. 6. The double-circuit, 230 kV line will comprise single aluminum steel-reinforced conductors, recommended to be hung from self-supporting steel lattice towers. The towers are likely to be between 34–40 meters (m) high, with an average span of around 350 m. The 1 ADB. 2003. Technical Assistance to the Kingdom of Cambodia for the Preparing the Power Distribution and Greater Mekong Subregion Transmission Project. (TA 4078). Manila 2 conductors will be selected to provide 200 megavolt-amperes (MVA). The 230 kV line will be set within a 30 m wide right-of-way (ROW), where no structures will be permitted and vegetation will be restricted to 3 m high. 7. The conventional three-wire, 22 kV distribution line will be constructed on concrete poles. Poles will be about 13 m high and spaced at an average distance of 100 m. 8. Alternative options were considered for the transmission line route, line design, easement width, and line clearance, as well as the substation site, based on economic, engineering, environmental, social, and safety factors. The selected design options avoid environment impacts where possible, significantly minimizing the likely cumulative harm of the Project. III. EXISTING ENVIRONMENT A. Physical Resources 9. The proposed route crosses three types of landscape: coastal plain, riverine floodplain, and low hills. The initial 51 km of the route from Kampot is flat, ranging in elevation between 2 and 20 m above sea level (asl), while the final 27 km through the hills ranges in elevation from 5 to 120 m asl. 10. The climate of the project area is dominated by monsoons, described as tropical wet and dry due to a distinct seasonal variation. Approximately 70–80% of annual rainfall occurs during the southwest monsoon from mid-May to late September or early October, followed by a pronounced dry season from December to early May. Annual reported rainfall for Kampot is 2,148 millimeters (mm,) while Sihanoukville receives an average of 3,397 mm. 11. Geology along the transmission line route consists of Cenozoic pediments from Kampot to Kampong Chen (39 km); Cenozoic coastal plains on the Kampong Smach River floodplain (10 km); and generally Mesozoic sandstone above 10 m asl through the hills, with the lower sections of four valleys having Cenozoic tidal flat deposits and pediments. Within the Veal Renh to Stueng Hav valley are dispersive and highly erodible subsoils. B. Ecological Resources 12. Land use/cover within the ROW is largely a function of soil type, and consists of grassland (41.4%), shrubland (16.1%), degraded/regrowth forest (17.4%), paddy (20.2%), riverine features (4.1%), roads and rail (0.5%), and settlement (0.3%). Grassland primarily consists of ground cover species on slopes of 0–5%, though it also supports low-growing shrubs of thin density, light dryland field cropping, and degraded land. Shrubland generally consists of dense shrubs between 1–3 m in height, commonly on footslopes where the forest has been removed or severely degraded. Degraded/regrowth forest ranges from highly degraded forest with scattered remnant trees among regrowth, to immature regrowth forest around 4–5 m in height containing only two forest layers and little species diversity. Paddy land is mainly used to grow a single annual crop of lowland rain-fed (wet season) rice, with fields left fallow for the remainder of the year. 13. More than 20 km of the proposed transmission line route crosses the southern part of the buffer zone of Bokor National Park (established in 1993) up to 1,100 m inside the park. This traversed landform consists of coastal plain and the lower end of three slopes of foothills. 3 Managed by the Ministry of Environment (MOE), Bokor National Park is classified as the equivalent of World Conservation Union Category II2 or “a protected area managed