INTEGRATED SAFEGUARDS DATASHEET APPRAISAL STAGE I. Basic Information Date prepared/updated: 11/22/2009 Report No.: AC4740 Public Disclosure Authorized 1. Basic Project Data Country: Sri Lanka Project ID: P118870 Project Name: Sri Lanka: Emergency Northern Recovery Project Task Team Leader: Nihal Fernando Estimated Appraisal Date: November 25, Estimated Board Date: December 17, 2009 2009 Managing Unit: SASDA Lending Instrument: Emergency Recovery Loan Sector: Irrigation and drainage (60%);Water supply (15%);Roads and highways (15%);General agriculture, fishing and forestry sector (10%) Theme: Conflict prevention and post-conflict reconstruction (100%) IBRD Amount (US$m.): 0.00 Public Disclosure Authorized IDA Amount (US$m.): 65.00 GEF Amount (US$m.): 0.00 PCF Amount (US$m.): 0.00 Other financing amounts by source: BORROWER/RECIPIENT 0.00 0.00 Environmental Category: B - Partial Assessment Simplified Processing Simple [] Repeater [] Is this project processed under OP 8.50 (Emergency Recovery) Yes [X] No [ ] or OP 8.00 (Rapid Response to Crises and Emergencies) Public Disclosure Authorized 2. Project Objectives The Project Development Objective (PDO) is #to support the Government of Sri Lanka#s efforts to rapidly resettle the IDPs in the Northern Province#. It will be achieved through: (A) Emergency Assistance to IDPs; (B) a Work-fare Program; (C) Rehabilitation and Reconstruction of Essential Public and Economic Infrastructure; and (D) Project Management Support. 3. Project Description Component A: (Emergency Assistance to IDPs) would be focused on providing assistance to resettled households to re-engage in livelihood activities such as agricultural farming and marine fishing. Specifically it will provide financing to: (i) meet costs related with mobile land task forces, surveys and studies required to rapidly restore contested property rights of the resettled people; (ii) conduct demining awareness to Public Disclosure Authorized IDPs, project staff and contractors; (iii) clear thick vegetative growth of paddy lands to be able to resume land preparation for cultivation; and (iv) provide seeds, basic and miscellaneous agricultural and fishing implements to the people to be able to start paddy farming and marine fishing immediately after the resettlement. Component B: (Work-fare Program) - is designed to provide labor employment to the returnees immediately after their resettlement in the form of small scale labor intensive repair and rehabilitation works of village level infrastructure and facilities. Through the program, about 45,000 IDPs, one member from each IDP household will be employed as daily wage laborers to provide a minimum of about 50 labor days of guaranteed work employment. Fulfilling a dual objective, the work-fare program will provide short-term and immediately required cash to the people; and supply the urgent labor intensive repair works that are essential to restart the social and economic activities. This component would also cover the costs of construction material and implements and administration of the work-fare program. Component C: (Rehabilitation of Essential Public and Economic Infrastructure) - This component will provide assistance to repair, reconstruct and restore vital public and economic infrastructure and facilities damaged by the war and that are dysfunctional or partly functional at present. This would enable the resettled and conflict affected people to: reestablish inter-village connectivity; have access to schools, markets, and safe drinking water; and have access to essential public and technical services from the Government#s civil administration. Specifically it will provide assistance to (i) rehabilitate damaged irrigation schemes to enable the returnee farmers to have reliable supply of irrigation water for crop production; (ii) rehabilitate rural roads; (iii) restore drinking water schemes to improve reliable and adequate supply of clean drinking water to beneficiaries; and (iv) rehabilitate and reconstruct public buildings and facilities. Component D: (Project Management, Oversight, Monitoring and Evaluation, and Special Studies) - This component will support the Government in implementing the project, coordinating all project related activities, monitoring and evaluating project inputs, outputs and results, carrying out financial management, technical, procurement and safeguard audits. All incremental staff hired, incremental operating costs, and procurement of goods associated with the implementation of the project, such as vehicles, equipment and office facilities, would be financed under this Component. 4. Project Location and salient physical characteristics relevant to the safeguard analysis The Project will be located in the Northern Province of Sri Lanka. Northern Province has an area of 8,884 square kilometers. The province is surrounded by the Gulf of Mannar and Palk Bay to the west, Palk Strait to the north, the Bay of Bengal to the east and the Eastern, North Central and North Western provinces to the south. The province is divided into two distinct geographic areas: Jaffna peninsula and the Vanni. Jaffna peninsula is irrigated by underground aquifers fed by wells whereas the Vanni has irrigation tanks fed by perennial rivers. Major rivers include: Akkarayan Aru, Aruvi Aru, Kanakarayan Aru, Kodalikkallu Aru, Mandekal Aru, Nay Aru, Netheli Aru, Pali Aru, Pallavarayankaddu Aru, Parangi Aru, Per Aru, Piramenthal Aru, and Theravil Aru. The province has a number of lagoons, the largest being Jaffna Lagoon, Nanthi Kadal, Chundikkulam Lagoon, Vadamarachchi Lagoon, Uppu Aru Lagoon, Kokkilai lagoon, Nai Aru Lagoon and Chalai Lagoon. Most of the islands around Sri Lanka are to be found to the west of the Northern Province. The largest islands are: Mannar Island, Kayts, Neduntivu, Karaitivu, Pungudutivu and Mandativu. The Northern Province tends to be hot and dry in the dry season (February to September), and moderately cool and wet in the wet season (October to January) when the North-East monsoons take place. The climate of the Province is tropical and therefore during monsoons there is always the chance of a deluge. In the lowlands the climate is typically tropical with the average temperature is around 28º Celsius to 30º Celsius for the year. Relative Humidity varies from 70% during the day to 90% at night. Annual rainfall is less than 1250 mm in the north west and south east of the Inland. Majority of the people earn their livelihood as farmers, fishers and professionals in the civil and business sectors. Agricultural is the prominent source of income for the people of the province. The major agricultural crops produced in this province are Paddy, Chilli, Red Onion, Black gram, Green gram, Cowpea, Groundnut, and Bombay Onion. Other agricultural products are fruits such as Banana, Mango, Papaya, Lime, Orange, and Guava. Major vegetables grown here are Beans, Capsicum, Tomato, Cabbage, Beet root, Carrot, #Vendakkai#, Snakeguard, Bitterguard, #Brinjal#, Ashplantain, Long Beans, Manioc and Sweet Potatoes. The Province has a wide range of flora and fauna, although there are hardly much information of their status. The Province has wide range of ecosystems spanning from deep jungles in the interior lands, scrub forest, thorn forest, drylands, wetlands and as well as beaches, estuaries, salt marshes, mangroves, and to coral reefs of the Bay of Bengal and Gulf of Mannar that provide habitat to diverse array of fauna and flora. 5. Environmental and Social Safeguards Specialists Mr Sumith Pilapitiya (SASDI) Ms Asta Olesen (SASDI) Ms Darshani De Silva (SASDI) 6. Safeguard Policies Triggered Yes No Environmental Assessment (OP/BP 4.01) X Natural Habitats (OP/BP 4.04) X Forests (OP/BP 4.36) X Pest Management (OP 4.09) X Physical Cultural Resources (OP/BP 4.11) X Indigenous Peoples (OP/BP 4.10) X Involuntary Resettlement (OP/BP 4.12) X Safety of Dams (OP/BP 4.37) X Projects on International Waterways (OP/BP 7.50) X Projects in Disputed Areas (OP/BP 7.60) X II. Key Safeguard Policy Issues and Their Management A. Summary of Key Safeguard Issues 1. Describe any safeguard issues and impacts associated with the proposed project. Identify and describe any potential large scale, significant and/or irreversible impacts: The potential for adverse and irreversible environmental and social impacts by the proposed project are expected to be negligible since the Project supports the following activities: (a) economic security through rehabilitation of damaged agriculture and other livelihood assets, including restoration of property rights, clearing farmlands, provision of seeds, essential agriculture activities (b) community work fare program where the community will be involved in small scale, labor intensive, village and hamlet level public works such as cleaning abandoned dug wells, clearing construction debris from the aftermath of the conflict and clearing access roads; and (c) rehabilitation and improvement of essential infrastructure, such as rural roads, drinking water supply and sanitation facilities, reconstruction and renovation of existing public buildings. None of the above activities would give rise to significant adverse environmental issues if environmental management is mainstreamed within the activities during implementation. From a social safeguards perspective, the project activities are expected to have limited negative impact, if any, provided the social management framework is followed during implementation. The potential impacts that may likely to arise from Component