Natchigal Hydropower Project Country: Cameroon
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Language: English Original: English PROJECT: NATCHIGAL HYDROPOWER PROJECT COUNTRY: CAMEROON RESETTLEMENT ACTION PLAN (RAP) SUMMARY Date: August 2017 Team Leader: Ngom Aida Chief Investment Officer, PISD.1 Frederick Reveiz Transaction Expert, PESR E&S Members: Bakia Mbianyor Senior Compliance and Safeguards Officer, SNSC Appraisal Aimee Bella-Corbin Chief Safeguards Compliance Officer, Team SNSC Sector Manager: Raubil Durowoju Manager, PISD.1 Sector Directors: Kodeidja Diallo Director, PISD Wale Shonibare Director, PESR Regional Director: Ousmane Doré Director General, RDGC 1 FULL RESETTLEMENT ACTION PLAN (PAR) - SUMMARY Project Title: Nachtigal Dam Construction PROJECT Project Number: P-CM-F00-003 Country: Cameroun Department: PISD Division: PISD.1 Project Category: 1 Project Task Manager: Aida NGOM, Chief Investment Officer Safeguard and Compliance E&S Officer: Mbianyor BAKIA & Aimee BELLA-CORBIN 1. Background The run-of-the-river Upstream Nachtigal Project is located on the Sanaga River, 65 km north of Yaoundé and 200 km upstream of Song Loulou. The project – financed by a consortium with the Government of Cameroun, IFC, EDF and Rio Tinto Alcan – consists of a hydroelectric power plant at Nachtigal and a 225 kV power transport line between the production site and reception station Nyom 2 in the outskirts of Yaoundé. The consortium is in charge of two parts, treated in two separate RAPs: (1) the hydroelectric plant and its ancillary constructions and (2) le high voltage powerline. The 225 kV substation in Nyom is not managed by the consortium but by the government of Cameroon for the power transport manager SONATEL. The site of the Nachtigal upstream dam was identified in the 1950s, and described more explicitly in 1974 under pre-project studies carried out by EDF-Dafeco on behalf of Electricité du Cameroun (later known as SONEL). The possibility to equip the site with a high power hydroelectric facility has since been reviewed severally, especially on behalf ALUCAM between 2006 and 2012. These studies identified the main features of the facility taking into account technological developments since the first studies of the 1970s and Cameroon's growing energy demand. 2. Description of the project, project area and area of influence A. Dam: The Upstream Nachtigal Project includes (1) a rolled concrete dam of a length of 1.400 m and an average height of 11 m (2) a reservoir of 4.21 m², (3) a canal of 3.3 km to transport the water 2 to (4) the hydroelectric plant comprising 7 turbines of each 60 MW and (5) the construction camp with offices within the area declared of Public Utility. Overall, the project’s main components include: . A roller compacted concrete dam on the Sanaga River, comprising of an overflow section with a total length of 1455 m and maximum height of 13.6 m, and a non-overflow section with a length of 553 m and a maximum height of 16 m to create a 27.8 million m3 reservoir with a surface of 4.21 km2 at normal operating level; . A headrace lined canal about 3.3 km long and 14m deep on average to transfer water to the hydroelectric power plant with a maximum flow rate of 980 m3/s corresponding to the design flow of the hydroelectric power plant equipment; . A hydroelectric power plant with an installed capacity of 420 MW (seven 60 MW Francis turbines able to operate either as a run of river plant or an intermediate peaking plant); and . A secondary 4.5 MW power plant to generate electricity from the environmental flow (riparian release) to be discharged downstream of the dam. Figure 1: The Nachtigal Upstream site The four villages directly affected are on the east bank (1) Minkouma and (2) Ndokoa- Ekombitié in the Haute Sanaga Department and (3) Ndji in the Lékié; on the right bank (4) Bindandjengue of which the hamlet of Ombandene is situated in the Haute Sanaga Department and the remainder (including Ndowe hamlet, 15 km from the center of the village) in the Bam and Kim department. The total population of the four villages is estimated at 1.470, based on extrapolations from the last National census. The Dam area is located in the cultural limits of the Beti population of central Cameroon, and the Mvoute (Babouté) of eastern Cameroon. Migrant populations have come for fishing in the Sanaga (foreigners from Mali, natives of 3 northern Cameroon, and Tikar and Gbaya from southern Cameroun. Others have come for business and agriculture. B. Transmission Line The 25 villages are affected are affected by the powerline and 2 of them equally by the permanent basecamp. They are mainly located in the Lékié department with a few villages in Mefou & Afamba, and the arrival in Mfoundi department. The main economic activities remain agriculture based on cocoa and food crops, mainly tubers with some market gardening, small scale animal husbandry, except for a few main fowl producers, small scale businesses and craftsmen. The population is estimated at 22.000 according to a statistical update of the 2005 census. The powerline area is in the cultural Beti zone, with as main ethnic groups Eton and Ewondo, but its proximity to the capital Yaoundé attracts many migrants from other parts of Cameroon. Figure 2: Layout of the project – Villages along the Transmission Line 4 3. Potential impacts Description of the project components or activities that would give rise to resettlement, zone of impact of such activities, and the alternatives considered to avoid or minimize resettlement. The Nachtigal project is a 420 MW run-of river hydropower plant (HPP) located in the Sanaga River, 65 km NE of Yaoundé (Cameroon). The project is being developed by Nachtigal Hydro Power Company (“NHPC”) whose shareholders are EDFI (40%), the Republic of Cameroon (30%) and IFC (30%). Construction of the project is estimated to cost around 1.05 billion EUR. Figure 3: Layout of the project – Dam area of influence Figure 4: Dam construction area of influence 5 Construction of the dam is expected to start in early 2018 and commissioning of the last turbine is expected in 2022. The main environmental and social issues associated with these activities have been outlined in section [3] of the RCM and include impacts on: geology/hydrogeology; soils, run-off, hydrology and flooding; pollution of soils and watercourses; impacts on air quality; noise and vibration; impacts from electric and electro-magnectic fields; waste and resource use; loss, fragmentation and degradation of habitats and the severance of animal migration routs and pathways; direct impacts on terrestrial and aquatic flora and fauna; impacts from induced access; issues of bush meat hunting, invasive species; economic development and employment; physical and economic displacement of people, property, assets and resources; impacts on cultural heritage, community health, safety and security; impacts on social structures and community life; labour and working conditions and human rights etc. Some of the above mentioned impacts are likely to significant and/or irreversible. 4. Organizational responsibility The institutional arrangements for the compensation and organisational structure for both the dam and the transmission line is provided below. Figure 5: Compensation and Resettlement Organizational Structure Supervision & Coordination - RAP Steering Committee ↓ Project Management Team ↓ E&S implementation by NGOs for implementing ↔ Local Authorities The provision of adequate resources to this institution are extensively discussed and all inter- agency coordination are described in the RAP reports. The capacity and commitment of the institution to carry out the resettlement plan have be evaluated and activities for strengthening of this institution are considered and the steps that will be taken, together with a timetable and budget have been described at the project preparation phase for both the dam construction and transmission line. There has been considerable scope for involving the local people and a local NGOs - ASSEJA in the planning, implementing and monitoring of the RAPs. 6 Supervision and coordination. – The RAP Resettlement and Compensation Monitoring Committee will include the SPV management and official stakeholders such as Ministries: MINDCAF (domains, cadaster and land), MINADER (agriculture and rural development), MINEPIA (animal husbandry; fishing and animal industries, MINHDU (housing and urban development) and MINCULT (culture). The steering committee is in charge of: (1) review, comment and validate the RAP (2) monitoring resettlement progress and revision of strategies, (3) coordinate between the involved Ministries. Project management. – Management of the Project Company will be in charge of financing the RAP and authorizing payments Resettlement Management Team. – The team will be managed by environmental and social unit of the Project Company, and may be assisted by NGOs for implementing the mitigation measures. The team’s main functions are: RAP implementation, coordination, management, managing and monitoring sub-contractors. 5. Socio-economic Studies for both the Dam and Transmission Line i) Survey Methodology: This RAP includes the following surveys and inventories: (1) socio-economic description of village (2) inventory of people and households affected by fishing, fish trade, agriculture or dwelling (sometimes several activities in the same household), (3) the asset inventory conducted jointly by the government appointed CCE and the subcontractor ENDA, on behalf of the project. The report includes the methodology of assessing compensation tariffs, the description