43405-013: Updated Environmental Assessment and Review Framework
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Updated Environmental Assessment and Review Framework ______________________________________________________________________________ Project Number: 43405 May 2015 GEO: Urban Services Improvement Investment Program Prepared by United Water Supply Company of Georgia LLC of the Ministry of Regional Development and Infrastructure for the Asian Development Bank. ABBREVIATIONS ADB - Asian Development Bank AP - Affected Person CWRD - Central and West Asia Region Department DREP - Division of Resettlement and Environmental Protection EA - Executing Agency EARF - Environmental Assessment and Review Framework EEC - Environmental Expertise Conclusion EIA - Environmental Impact Assessment EIP - Environmental Impact Permit EMP - Environmental Management Plan GoG - Government of Georgia GRC - Grievance Redress Committee USIIP - Urban Sector Improvement Investment Program IA - Implementing Agency IEE - Initial Environmental Examination MDDP - Municipal Development and Decentralization Project MDF - Municipal Development Fund MFF - Multi-tranche Financing Facility MoENRP - Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources Protection MoRDI - Ministry of Regional Development & Infrastructure NGO - Non-Governmental Organization OSPF - Office of the Special Project Facilitator OCRP - Office of the Compliance Review panel PIU - Project Implementation Unit IPMO - Investment Project Management Office REA - Rapid Environmental Assessment UWSCG - United Water Supply Company of Georgia NOTE In this report, “$” refers to US dollars. This resettlement framework is a document of the borrower. The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent those of ADB's Board of Directors, Management, or staff, and may be preliminary in nature. Your attention is directed to the “terms of use” section of this website. In preparing any country program or strategy, financing any project, or by making any designation of or reference to a particular territory or geographic area in this document, the Asian Development Bank does not intend to make any judgments as to the legal or other status of any territory or area. CONTENTS I. INTRODUCTION 1 II. ASSESSMENT OF LEGAL FRAMEWORK AND INSTITUTIONAL CAPACITY 4 A. National Legislation 4 B. ADB Policy 6 III. ANTICIPATED ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS 8 IV. ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT FOR PROJECTS AND COMPONENTS 16 A. Environmental Assessment Procedure 16 B. Preparation of Initial Environmental Examinations (IEE) 18 C. Preparation of Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA) 18 D. Procedure to be followed for Projects requiring EIP 20 V. CONSULTATION, DISCLOSURE AND GRIEVANCE REDRESS 21 A. Consultation & Disclosure 21 B. Grievance Redress Mechanism 22 VI. INSTITUTIONAL ARRANGEMENTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES 25 A. Responsibilities and Authorities 25 B. Institutional Capacity and Development 26 C. Staffing and Budget 28 VII. MONITORING AND REPORTING 31 APPENDICES Appendix 1: Map of Protected Areas in Georgia (List and Map) Appendix 2: Government of Georgia Surface Water Guidelines Appendix 3: Government of Georgia Drinking Water Guidelines Appendix 4: Government of Georgia Wastewater Disposal Standards Appendix 5: REA Checklists – Water Supply & Sewerage Appendix 6: Outline of EIA/IEE Report Appendix 7: DREP Organizational Chart Appendix 8: Environmental Safeguard Compliance Process Flowchart Appendix 9: Organizational Capacity Assessment of DREP Appendix 10: Terms of Reference for Environmental Management Specialist (DC) Appendix 11: Terms of Reference for Environmental Management Specialist (SC) Appendix 12: Terms of Reference for Environmental Management Specialist (DREP) LIST OF TABLES Table 1: Other National Environmental Legislations and Applicability Table 2: Anticipated Environmental Impacts & Mitigation Measures Table 3: The anticipated environmental impacts during construction and operation Table 4: Environmental Criteria for Project Selection Table 5: Training Plan Table 6: Main Item for IEE preparation and EMP 1 I. INTRODUCTION 1. This document is the Environmental Assessment and Review Framework (EARF) for the Asian Development Bank funded Urban Services Improvement Investment Program (or the Investment Program). This is prepared to adequately address the ADB Safeguard Policy Statement (2009) requirements and is to be endorsed by the Georgian government. The objective of preparing this EARF is to provide a formal structure through which the environmental impacts of new and amended subprojects can be assessed and mitigated by the Executing Agency in the future, in compliance with the ADB policy. 2. The Investment Program was developed as the Government’s response to the lack of adequate and/or safe water supply, sewerage and sanitation in urban areas of Georgia. This is intended to optimize social and economic development in select urban areas (provincial capitals and secondary towns) through improved urban water and sanitation (WSS) services, and will be financed by the ADB through its Multi-tranche Financing Facility (MFF).With a total cost of $625 million, this Investment Program will be implemented in seven selected towns (Figure 1) in six Tranches of funding over a period of 9 years beginning in 2011. 3. The Investment Program will improve infrastructure through the development, design and implementation of a series of subprojects, each providing improvements in a particular sector (water supply and/or sewerage) in one town. Subprojects will rehabilitate existing infrastructure and/or create new and expanded infrastructure to meet the present and future demand. Water supply improvements will include source augmentation and headworks, pumping systems, treatment facilities, transmission and distribution network; and, sewerage improvement works will include sewer network, trunk sewers and sewage treatment facilities. 4. The Investment Program will improve the health of residents in the urban centers of Kutaisi, Poti, Marneuli, Zugdidi, Anaklia, Ureki and Mestia. The outcome of the Investment Program is improved WSS services in these urban centers. It will also improve the institutional effectiveness of organizations delivering services and regulating service delivery. It will support physical and non-physical interventions through the following components: (i) Component 1: Infrastructure Improvement (Physical - Physical investments will help address the shortfall in infrastructure financing for the sector and ensure long-term system operations and maintenance and will include: (a) water supply intake, pumping, treatment, transmission, storage and distribution systems; (b) sewerage network, pumping and treatment plants and septic tanks for low-density areas; and (c) WSS system maintenance equipment and machinery. (ii) Component 2: Institutional Effectiveness (Physical and non-physical) - This includes providing management contractor support to improve management and technical capabilities of UWSCG and construction of an office premise of UWSCG. Also, it considers capacity development of Ministry of Regional Development and Infrastructure, Ministry of Environment and National Resources Protection, Ministry of Agriculture, Georgia National Energy Water Supply Regulatory Commission. (iii) Component 3: Project Implementation Support (Non-physical) - This includes appointment of Detailed Design Consultant for preparing detailed designs for all the project towns, appointment of Construction Supervision Consultant for supervision of constructions in all the project towns, appointment of individual consultants for Implementation of Projects, preparation and implementation of Gender Action Plan (GAP). 2 5. Ministry of Regional Development and Infrastructure (MoRDI) is the Executing Agency (EA) and United Water Supply Company of Georgia (UWSCG), is the Implementing Agency (IA) of the Investment Program. The EA will be responsible for compliance with ADB procedures, including environmental and social safeguards as required under ADB’s Safeguard Policy Statement (SPS) 2009. This EARF assesses the requirements of Georgian environmental law and ADB safeguards policy, and describes the procedures that both the EA and IA will follow to ensure safeguard compliance by all projects under every Tranche of the Investment Program. Before Investment Program appraisal this EARF will be translated into Georgian and distributed to all interested stakeholders and the English version will be posted on the ADB website. 4 II. ASSESSMENT OF LEGAL FRAMEWORK AND INSTITUTIONAL CAPACITY A. National Legislation 6. The Georgian system of environmental assessment and environmental permitting was established in 1997 through the enactment of Laws “On Environmental Permits” and “On State Ecological Expertise”. At present, the environmental permit procedure in Georgia is set-out in the following laws: (i) Law of Georgia on Environmental Impact Permit, 2008. This Law supersedes the earlier Law on Environmental Permit, 1997, and establishes the procedure of obtaining Environmental Impact Permit (EIP), and notifies activities or projects that are subject to ecological expertise (EE, see below) for issuing EIP. The Law describes the procedures and duties and responsibilities of the project proponent and the permit issuing authority, Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources Protection (MoENRP). (ii) Law of Georgia on State Ecological Expertise, 2008. This Law supersedes the previous Law on Ecological Expertise, 1997, and defines the basic principles of ecological expertise. Ecological expertise is a review of the EIA document, submitted in support of an EIP application