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RSPO NOTIFICATION of PROPOSED NEW PLANTING This RSPO NOTIFICATION OF PROPOSED NEW PLANTING This notification shall be on the RSPO website for 30 days as required by the RSPO procedures for new plantings (http://www.rspo.org/?q=page/53). It has also been posted on local on-site notice boards. Date of notification: Tick whichever is appropriate √ This is a completely new development and stakeholders may submit comments. This is part of an ongoing planting and is meant for notification only. COMPANY: Golden Veroleum (Liberia) Inc. SUBSIDIARY (If any): RSPO Membership No .: 1-0102-11-000-00 Ordinary member Approved 29/08/2011, Location of proposed new planting: Garraway and Grand Cess Wedabo Districts, Grand Kru County, Republic of Liberia (See location map) Figure 1. Location map of New Planting Area within Garraway and Grand Cess Wedabo, reference to the Republic of Liberia Figure 2: Location Map: Project Area in Garraway and Grand Cess Wedabo Districts Figure 3: Forest & Agriculture Land Use area map of New Planting Block 1.0 SUMMARY FROM SEIA ASSESSMENTS GOLDRN VEROLEUM (LIBERIA) entered into a concession agreement in 2010 with the Government of Liberia for the development of oil palm plantation in five (5) counties in Liberia: Grand Kru, Sinoe, Maryland Rivercess and Grand Kru. The signed and ratified Concession covers five counties in Southeastern Liberia with a total of approximately 500,000 acres (220,000 hectares). The concession agreement provides for the Government and GVL to implement a social and community development program, which include employee housing, education and medical care. Additionally, a Liberian smallholder program is to develop 100,000 acres (40,000 hectares) of oil palm in support of local Liberia oil palm farming initiatives in the fourth year of the company’s operation. In addition, the project provides that in 15 years’ time, the project will generate 35,000 jobs in these 5 counties with Grand Kru (one of the counties having 35,000 jobs). The project covers a total area of interest of 97,000 hectares. The concession also provides for GVL to construct about 16 mills and 2 seaports within 15 years. The concession agreement from which this project derives has a period of 65 years with an option for renewal. An Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) was mandated through the agreement to be undertaking by the company in fulfillment of the terms and agreement of the concession. Accordingly, annex 1 section 6 of The Act Adopting the Environmental Protection and Management Law of the Republic of Liberia, approved November 26, 2002 calls for such project to be subjected to an environmental impact assessment. In compliance to the act, Golden VerOleum (Liberia) Inc, in Jul 2011 commissioned the ESIA study of 97,000 hectares of land from which the company was expected to cultivate its actual planting areas as provided and agreed by the local communities. The new planting area of 37.981 hectare was inclusive of this study area. As a result of the evaluation of the report by stakeholders including governmental and local and international non governmental organization both within the agriculture and environmental sectors; validation and presentation of the report within the project communities and the subsequent approval of the content of the report by communities, a two-year environmental permit: EPA/EC/ESIA/001-1111 was then granted to the company on November 23, 2011 by the EPA. The permit serves as an official and legal endorsement from the Government of Liberia that the area studied satisfies all environmental requirements in line with the Government of Liberia and that land cultivation can begin in line with the company own policy. Assessment within the new planting of 37, 891 hectares found out that there issue of concession overlapping with other concession was not found as the local communities are willing to give land free of any local dispute whether insignificant and localized. In regards to GVL international compliance with the Round Table for Sustainable Oil Palm that calls for the fulfillment of its New Planting Procedure (NPP) by all its member, the company on July 2013 commissioned an independent HCV assessment of the 37,985 ha proposed new planting area. The assessment of the area was meant to identify, demarcate and map areas of high conservation value. These processes were achieved by means of site assessment, consultation with local communities and stakeholders and random transect walk within the proposed new planting area. The activities involved in the assessment centered on the evaluations of project communities, forest areas, surface waters, sacred areas etc. The assessment enlisted the support and participation of the representatives of local communities and GVL teams. Effort from this study was essential in building upon reports from previous High Conservation Value assessment conducted during the ESIA study in 2011. Prior to the assessment local communities were informed and sensitize on the importance of the study, its contribution toward protecting their livelihood forest areas, waters and sacred sites as well as identifying and demarcating important forest environments. The HCV assessment was conducted through the use of satellite imagery and GIS analysis. The study also included field surveys to identify, demarcate and involved participatory mapping of sacred sites, old towns, community cemetery and environmental sensitive areas in reference to high Communities were also informed and sensitized about the entire NPP process, HCV assessment and the process steps and activities of the high level flow chart of the RSPO Procedure for New Planting. This was done through focus group discussion, broad and local level stakeholders meetings and community town hall consultations. All of these were achieved through working along with representatives from GVL and the local communities. Town representatives were selected to work with the team in identifying and demarcating HCV 1-6. Other processes leading to the HCV assessment include the analysis of satellite imagery and data generated through the use of GIS, field surveys to identify and demarcate sacred sites, community cemetery, and environmental sensitive areas, The process involved the support of all the communities and GVL representatives. 1.1 Project Area and Location The proposed project area is part of the 97,000 hectares permitted area, which lies within Thren Statutory District, Garraway and Grandcess-Wedabo Districts. The land area within Garraway district spread through six major towns of Genoyah, Nyanbo, Piddy, Nemiah (Wilsonville and Andrewville), Weteken and Garraway Beach. These towns fall under a single umbrella of towns called the Jaboh people. The rest of the land area falls in Grand Cess Wadabo District within the towns of Gbarken, Weteken and Gbanken (Wadebo) B. The area is encompassed with six vegetation types which include agricultural areas mixed with patches of scattered forest (predominantly young fellow bushes), agriculture degraded forest, closed dense forest, littoral ecosystem, open dense forest and area already cultivated by the local for agriculture Most of the streams and creek are surrounded by long stretch of secondary and intermediate forests serving as riparian management zones for most of the surface water. The remaining vegetation of the areas are made of savanna land, inland wetlands and mangrove swamps along the coast.. There are few steep slopes where the vegetation found are considered ecologically sensitive to flora and fauna species. Climbers and vines are scattered throughout the area, especially in the intermediate forests belts. The project area is well drained with a network of braided streams and rivers running across the area. The Dewea River, the Thren River, Norr River, Po River, the Lo Creek, the Joda River, Gen, Killay, Kullor, Doeh, Kulor, Jloh, Nippy, Hene Creek Deyea Creek and Wettiken are few of the major surface water bodies in the area. 1.2 Need The Southeastern part of Liberia where the project is based is considered poverty stricken recorded in the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) prepared for Liberia. The information on the country poverty index, shows a poverty head count of more than 67.2-76.7% for this region, which includes Grand Kru County. The poor road condition and lack of major infrastructural development, couple with the large migration of most of its citizens for better living condition has made the county Grand Kru the poorest in the region, despite its large land size and resource potential. The low population and high poverty rate in the area is largely due to the lack of infrastructure and investment, which is compelling the youthful population that are not attracted to farming and mining to migrate to other areas of the country. Moreover, until lately the county has been largely isolated from the rest of the country, due to the lack of roads and with many of the major bridges damaged. The inaccessibility of the county remains one of the major challenges to the country’s agriculture productivity. This has left many of the population in the area without food. The County Development Agenda notes that more than 70% of households are said to be food insecure or vulnerable to food insecurity. In light of the above condition of the county, it is clear that this project fits within the framework of the Poverty of Liberia Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRS) prepared in 2007. The PRS is a home –grown strategy for overcoming poverty in the country through a sustainable development program of socio-economic growth. In support of the PRS, the project has potential to create jobs, provide basic social services, add value to Liberia’s oil palm sector and generate sufficient revenues from taxes to support GOL post war development agenda. The Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) prepared for by the Liberian Government in 2007 points out that the South-Eastern region, which includes Grand Kru County is one of the highly ranked regions on the nations poverty index; recording a poverty head count of between 67.2-76.7% poverty ranking.
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