IEE: Sri Lanka: Jaffna and Kilinochchi Water Supply and Sanitation Project
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Jaffna and Kilinochchi Water Supply and Sanitation Project (RRP SRI 37378) Initial Environmental Examination Document Stage: Draft for Consultation Project Number: 37378 October 2010 Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka: Jaffna and Kilinochchi Water Supply and Sanitation Project This Initial Environmental Examination 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. CONTENTS Page I. INTRODUCTION 1 A. Background 1 B. Purpose of the Report 1 C. Extent of the IEE Study 4 II. POLICY, LEGAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE FRAMEWORK 6 A. ADB Policy 6 B. National Law 7 III. DESCRIPTION OF THE PROJECT 12 A. Type of Project 12 B. Need and Justification for the Project 12 C. Description and Context of the Project 13 IV. DESCRIPTION OF THE ENVIRONMENT 22 A. Physical Resources 22 B. Ecological Resources 26 C. Economic Development 32 D. Social and Cultural Resources 42 E. Natural Disasters 48 F. Post War Situation 50 V. ANTICIPATED ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS AND MITIGATION MEASURES: WATER SUPPLY 52 A. Environmental Impacts Related to Location and Design 52 B. Environmental Impacts Related to Construction 58 C. Impacts of Operation and Maintenance 64 D. Mitigation of Environmental Impacts 66 VI. ANTICIPATED ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS AND MITIGATION MEASURES: SEWERAGE AND SEWAGE TREATMENT 73 A. Environmental Impacts Related to Location and Design 73 B. Environmental Impacts Related to Construction 77 C. Impacts of Operation and Maintenance 79 D. Mitigation of Environmental Impacts 81 VII. ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT PLAN 85 A. Mitigation 85 B. Monitoring 96 C. Implementation Arrangements 99 VIII. GRIEVANCE REDRESS MECHANISM 101 IX. PUBLIC CONSULTATION AND INFORMATION DISCLOSURE 102 X. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 104 A. Water Supply 104 B. Sanitation 106 C. Conclusion 108 D. Recommendations 108 Appendices APPENDIX 1 Proposed sites of water supply and sewerage infrastructure – summary 110 description from visits in 2006, 2009 and 2010 APPENDIX 2 Description of proposed sites of key infrastructure facilities 113 APPENDIX 3 Current Sri Lankan Effluent Discharge Standards 117 APPENDIX 4 Details of Consultations held During Project Preparation 119 Figures Figure 1 Procedure for obtaining Environmental Clearance 11 Figure 2 Procedure for CCD Permit 11 Figure 3 Schematic drawing of the proposed water supply sub-project 15 Figure 4 Proposed improvements to the bund of Iranamadu tank 17 Figure 5 Plan view of existing spillway from Iranamadu tank, showing location of proposed new radial gates 18 Figure 6 Layout of proposed Water Treatment Plant 20 Figure 7 Average rainfall in Jaffna and Iranamadu 22 Figure 8 Grievance Redress 101 Tables Table 1 Summary of procedure for obtaining the main environmental permits 9 required by Sri Lankan law Table 2 Characteristics of the agro-ecological regions of Sri Lanka 23 Table 3 Ambient Air Quality measurements in Anuradhapura, 1999 23 Table 4 Marine fish catch in Jaffna and Kilinochchi (MT) 27 Table 5 Inland and aquaculture fish production in Jaffna and Kilinochchi (MT) 27 Table 6 Fish production by major commercial groups (MT) 27 Table 7 Numbers of waterbirds recorded in Jaffna and Sri Lanka, 2006 29 Table 8 Total numbers of waterbirds in Jaffna and Sri Lanka, 1999 - 2006 29 Table 9 Northern Province’s contribution to GDP and the composition by sector 32 Table 10 Jaffna NWSDB water scheme details for the month of November, 2009 33 Table 11 Buses managed by Northern Region Transport Board, Jaffna – 2008 36 Table 12 Number of Registered Vehicles, Jaffna District 36 Table 13 Land use of Jaffna District (ha) 37 Table 14 Land use of Kilinochchi District (ha) 37 Table 15 Existing electricity generation capacities 38 Table 16 Annual electricity consumption by area, 2008 39 Table 17 Growth of usage of telephones in Northern Province 39 Table 18 Population, annual growth rate and population density by district 42 Table 19 Incidences of notifiable diseases in Jaffna District 45 Table 20 Member wise Population Summary as of 31 October 2009, Jaffna District 47 Table 21 Important archaeological, historic and cultural sites in coastal parts of the 47 project area Table 22 Some of the historical earthquakes in and around Sri Lanka 49 Table 23 Damages due to Tsunami 50 Table 24 Details of resettlement, Jaffna District (as of 31 January 2010) 51 Table 25 Details of resettlement, Kilinochchi District (as of 24 February 2010) 51 Table 26 Demining summary (as of 31 December 2009) 52 Table 27 General water quality of Iranamadu Tank, 2004-05 54 Table 28 Microscopic algae in Iranamadu Reservoir, 2005 55 Table 29 Measures recommended to mitigate impacts of construction activities 68 Table 30 Environmental Management Plan for water supply & sanitation subprojects 87 Table 31 Environmental Monitoring Plan for water supply component 97 Table 32 Environmental Monitoring Plan for Sanitation component 98 ii Photographs Photo 1 Iranamadu Tank spillway, radial gates and spill cushion 19 Photo 2 Existing water tower in Jaffna 19 Photo 3 Sewage treatment ponds 21 Photo 4 Destroyed water tower, Kilinochchi 35 Photo 5 Backhoe digger excavating a trench alongside a minor road 60 Photo 6 Hand excavation and pipe installation using a simple pipe jack 60 Photo 7 Metal reinforcing 61 Photo 8 Wooden shuttering 61 i EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1. The Jaffna and Kilinochchi Water Supply and Sanitation Project is part of efforts to assist the Government of Sri Lanka in social and physical reconstruction in the north subjected to almost two decades of internal conflict. Supported by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Agence Française de Développement (AFD), with the Ministry of Water Supply and Drainage (MWSD) as the executing agency, and the National Water Supply and Drainage Board (NWSDB) as the main implementing agency, the project began with a feasibility study in 2005- 2006. Security concerns then precluded further development until the end of the conflict in May 2009, after which ADB appointed new consultants to review and revise the feasibility study documents to reflect changes in the intervening period. This document is the revised Initial Environmental Examination (IEE), prepared according to ADB’s Safeguards Policy Statement (2009). 2. There are no perennial rivers in Jaffna and groundwater, which is the main source of domestic and irrigation water, is in limited supply and is polluted because of inadequate sanitation and seawater intrusion. There is also no sewerage system and the widespread use of pit latrines and malfunctioning septic tanks causes public health problems and environmental damage. The project will deliver major sustainable improvements in these basic services for a significant proportion of the population, via components to (i) rehabilitate and expand water and sanitation infrastructure; (ii) strengthen water resources management; and (iii) build capacity of key institutions and support project management and implementation. 3. The new water supply system will serve the Jaffna Peninsula and parts of the adjacent mainland and will involve (i) repairing and raising the bund and head-works of Iranamadu Tank to store and abstract an additional 27,000 cubic meters per day (m3/d) of water; (ii) a 32.5 kilometres (km) raw water main to a new 27,000 m3/d water treatment plant (WTP) at Palai; (iii) high lift pumps and 44 km treated water main; (iv) 17 new overhead water tanks and 11 refurbished existing ones; and (v) a 520 km piped distribution network. The sanitation system will serve the highly populated Jaffna Municipal Council and University areas and will involve (i) house connections and 187 km of sewer pipes and pumping mains; (ii) pumping stations; (iii) a sewage treatment plant (STP) at Kallundai treating a total equivalent population of 91,000; and (iv) a sea outfall. 4. The natural environment in this part of Sri Lanka has been degraded by human use over the centuries (mainly farming and urbanization) and is therefore not especially sensitive, except for certain features like coastal areas which are of economic and ecological value as grounds where young fish and shellfish grow through early life stages. Social and economic factors are of greater importance, given the heavily populated nature of the Jaffna urban area, the hardship and neglect suffered by people, infrastructure and services during the conflict period, and the increasing number of displaced persons currently returning to reclaim and rebuild their lives, assets and livelihoods. 5. Both subprojects require action in the pre-construction stage to resolve issues that would otherwise constrain the proposals. Abstracting an additional 50,000 m3/d from Iranamadu Tank requires farmers using irrigation water from the tank to cultivate only other field crops (OFC) in the dry season instead of the present mixture of rice and OFC. This was agreed in a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between NWSDB and the Provincial Irrigation Department (PID) in 2006, but discussions in 2010 indicated that a change in agricultural practice was no longer acceptable. The project, therefore, proposes to abstract 27,000 m3/d in ii Stage 1 (which will not affect farming) and to increase to 50,000 m3/d only if the improved bund and head-works perform satisfactorily and if the changes in cultivation are successfully introduced. NWSDB will meet PID and farmers’ representatives to negotiate the revised agreements and prepare a new MOU. The IEE requires NWSDB to also provide farmers with training and financial support to ensure they maintain and if possible improve their livelihoods as a result of these changes. 6. The proposed STP site is in a remote area with no inhabitants where, due to land constraints, a mechanical treatment system is preferred over waste stabilization ponds. There is a Hindu cremation site 200 meters (m) away, which would be affected by site views and potential odor. NWSDB should meet community leaders and custodians of the cremation site to determine whether the facility may be relocated and, if so, should acquire an agreed alternative plot and provide practical and financial support for the relocation as set out in the resettlement plan.