IEE: PRC: Jiangxi Sustainable Forest
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ADB Environmental Assessment Report Initial Environmental Examination Document Stage: Final Project Number: 42022 June 2010 People's Republic of China: Jiangxi Sustainable Forest Ecosystem Development Project Prepared by the Jiangxi Provincial Government for the Asian Development Bank (ADB) This initial environmental examination report 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. Asian Development Bank Final Report Asian Development Bank Jiangxi Sustainable Forest Ecosystem Development Project INITIAL ENVIRONMENTAL EXAMINATION Prepared by: Jiangxi Provincial Government Supported by: AFC Consultants International GmbH (TA 7179-PRC) J u,ne 2010 u ADB TA 7179-PRC: Preparing the Jiangxi Sustainable Forest Ecosystem Development Project Contents ABBREVIATIONS IV 1. INTRODUCTION 2 1.1. General 2 1.2. Legal and Administrative Framework 2 2. DESCRIPTION OF THE PROJECT 3 2.1. Project Scope 3 2.2. Analysis of Alternatives 4 3. DESCRIPTION OF THE ENVIRONMENT 5 3.1 Physical and Ecological Resources 5 3.1.1 Location and Geography 5 3.1.2 River System and Hydrology 6 3.1.3 Ecological Environment 6 3.2 Human, Social and Economic Conditions 8 4. POTENTIAL IMPACTS AND MITIGATION MEASURES 9 4.1 Environmental Benefits and Positive Impacts 9 4.2 Potential Adverse Environmental Impacts and Mitigation Measures 10 4.2.1 Conservation of Natural Resources and Biodiversity 10 4.2.2 Sustainable Natural Resource Management 11 4.2.3 Pollution prevention 12 4.2.4 Infrastructure Construction 13 4.2.5 Health and Safety 14 4.2.6 Physical Cultural Resources 14 4.3 Due Diligence of State Forest Farms, Enterprises and Large Households 14 4.4 Environmental Management Plan 16 5. INSTITUTIONAL REQUIREMENT AND ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING PLAN17 5.1 Institutional Arrangements 17 5.2 Environmental Monitoring 17 5.3 Training for Environmental Monitoring 17 6. PUBLIC CONSULTATION AND DISCLOSURE 19 6.1 Public Consultation 19 6.2 Information Disclosure 20 7. FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 21 8. CONCLUSIONS 22 ANNEXES 23 Annex 1: References 24 Annex 2: Environmental Management Plan 26 III Jiangxi Sustainable Forest Ecosystem Development Project MEASUREMENT UNITS g = gram ha = hectare kg = kilogram m = meter m3 = cubic meter mu = Chinese area unit, 1 mu = 1/15 ha t = ton kg/ha = kilogram per hectare m3/a = cubic meters per annum mg/1= milligram per liter mg/m3 = milligram per cubic meter ppm = part per million t/a = tons per annum CURRENCY EQUIVALENTS (As of 1 August 2009) Currency Unit -- Yuan (CNY) CNY 1.00 = $0.1464 $1.00 = CNY 6.840 ABBREVIATIONS ADB Asian Development Bank CEPB County Environmental Protection Bureau DDR Due Diligence Report EA Executing agency EIA Environmental impact assessment EMP Environmental management plan EMA Environmental Monitoring Arrangement EMU Environmental Monitoring Unit EPB Environmental protection bureau FYP Five-Year Plan GRM Grievance Redress Mechanism IA Implementing agency IEE Initial environmental examination IPM Integrated pest management IV Jiangxi Sustainable Forest Ecosystem Development Project PIO Project Implementation Office county level PLG Provincial Leading Group PMO Provincial Project Management Office PPTA Project preparatory technical assistance PRC People's Republic of China SEIA Summary environmental impact assessment SEPM State Environmental Protection Ministry SFA State Forestry Administration TA Technical assistance TIO Technical Assistance Implementation Office TMO Technical Assistance Management Office TSP Total Suspended Particulates WHO World Health Organization Note In the report, "$" refers to US dollars, and CNY refers to Chinese Yuan V Jiangxi Sustainable Forest Ecosystem Development Project Location Map of project counties (Jiangxi Province) 1 Jiangxi Sustainable Forest Ecosystem Development Project 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1. General 1. The Jiangxi Sustainable Forest Ecosystem Development Project (the Project) will develop new forest resources and contribute to the rehabilitation of forest resources damaged from the snowstorms in early 2008 through adoption of innovative and environmentally sound practices to meet requirements of social and economic development as well as sustainable forest development. These practices will emphasize economic viability, environmental friendliness. 2. Jiangxi Province Government (JPG) is requesting the assistance of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to realize its forest development objectives in the "11 th Five-Year Plan" (FYP) and "Medium- and Long-term Development Plan" (MLTDP) and to rehabilitate forests damaged in the snowstorms of early 2008. The project will serve as a pilot or demonstration for further forestry production activities in Jiangxi and other similar provinces in the southern People's Republic of China (PRC), and at the same time this is consistent with the "All China Ecological Environment Development Plan" (EEDP) issued by the State Council in January of 1999. 1.2. Legal and Administrative Framework 3. In accordance with the PRC Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Regulations, an EIA report was drafted out for the proposed Project by the Jiangxi Academy of Agriculture Science (JAAS) accredited with Class II EIA certification and sponsored by the Utilizing Foreign Funds Office of Jiangxi Forestry Department (FD). A first draft of the EIA report was completed in August 2009, revised based on comments from PPTA and then submitted to the Jiangxi Environment Protection Department (JEPD) for appraisal. JEPD approved the EIA report in January 2010. 4. The ADB classified the Project as Category B. This Initial Environmental Examination (IEE) was prepared in accordance with Environmental Policy (2002) and the Safeguard Policy Statement (2009) of the ADB. The title of the project "Jiangxi Sustainable Forest Ecosystem Development Project" speaks for itself. It indicates the turn from the traditional "afforestation" or "tree planting" to forest ecosystems development. It is based on a multifunctional forest management approach and emphasizes the links between sustainable forest development and management practices and the conservation and improvement natural ecosystem functions. The provisions to avoid negative environmental impacts are not seen as additional measures but integrated part of the project design. The IEE emphasize the difference to the so far prevailing procedures and give indications for the efficient monitoring of the mitigation activities. 5. The IEE is based on the EIA report for the Jiangxi Project combined with field visits and interviewing different stakeholders and includes an environmental management plan (EMP) and environmental monitoring arrangement (EMA). The EMP outlines the mitigation measures and institutional responsibilities; the EMA stipulates monitoring baselines, monitoring content, methods, frequency and duration. 2 Jiangxi Sustainable Forest Ecosystem Development Project 2. DESCRIPTION OF THE PROJECT 2.1. Project Scope 6. The proposed project will contribute to an increase in forest coverage, improve quality and function of existing forest stands and promote sustainable development of the forest ecosystem and biodiversity conservation in the project areas. The project include four components (i) sustainable forest plantation and rehabilitation in a total of about 50,000 hectare (ha) of forestland, (ii) forest insurance against natural risks, (iii) capacity development for sustainable forest management, and (iv) project management support. 7. Component 1 will develop about 35,700 ha of timber plantation in degraded forest- land to meet local demand for fibre, pulp, plywood, and construction materials. Major timber species include Chinese fir and slash pine. Broadleaf trees will be planted in fire protection belts to improve the ecological diversity and multiple function of the timber plantation. Planta- tion sites will be selected based on vegetation cover being lower than 40%, canopy closure being less than 0.3. Component I will also rehabilitate 11,200 ha of low-yield and snow storm damaged bamboo forests, with financing support to forest farmers in removing dead culms and ploughing soil. The project will encourage farmers to plant broadleaf species in mix with bamboo groves to protect them from climate disasters, and against pest and dis- ease. The component will also support farmers in establishing about 4,000 ha of economic tree crops, including orange, oil tea trees, and tea trees to improve productivity of the project land and rural households' income. 8. Component 2 will insure 35,700 ha of timber plantation to improve the risk resilience of forest farmers and forest enterprises, and to support the government's initiative in estab- lishing a safeguard system in the forestry sector. The component will also organize aware- ness-raising training workshops on the impacts of natural risks on forest development and their mitigation measures. A local private insurance company will support the workshops by providing resource persons to the awareness-raising training. 9. Component 3 will introduce an ecosystem management approach to the develop- ment and management of forest resources that requires changes in farmers' behavior, and adaptation of new plantation skills and techniques. Component 3 will implement a training and extension program to disseminate sustainable forest management concepts and corre- sponding technical silvicultural guidelines to project staff at the provincial, county, and town-