The views expressed in this book are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Asian Development Bank or its Board of Governors or the governments they represent. The Asian Development Bank does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this publication and accepts no responsibility for any consequence of their use. Use of the term “country” does not imply any judgment by the authors or the Asian Development Bank as to the legal or other status of any territorial entity. i ACKNOWLEDGEMENT The work on THE REGIONAL MASTER PLAN FOR THE PREVENTION AND CONTROL OF DUST AND SANDSTORMS IN NORTH EAST ASIA has been financed by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), on a grant basis with US$500,000 from the Japan Special Fund funded by the Government of Japan and co-financed by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) on grant basis with US$500,000. The project was jointly initiated and conducted by the ADB, The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification Secretariat (UNCCD), the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and Pacific (UNESCAP), and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). The four governments involved (i.e., the People’s Republic of China, Japan, the Republic of Korea, and Mongolia) have made in- kind contributions in the form of counterpart staff, professional services, national experts, or office facilities to support the implementation of this project. The regional master plan report is composed of three volumes, namely: Volume 1: A Master Plan for Regional Cooperation for the Prevention and Control of Dust and Sandstorms; Volume 2: Establishment of a Regional Monitoring and Early Warning Network for Dust and Sandstorms in Northeast Asia; and Volume 3: An Investment Strategy for Dust and Sandstorms Prevention and Control through Demonstration Projects. This report has been prepared by a team of consultants engaged by ADB in cooperation with the national experts from Japan and the Republic of Korea under the guidance and supervision of technical committees formed for the two components of the regional master plan. The first component, on a phased program to establish a regional monitoring and early warning network for DSS, was conducted under the guidance of a technical committee chaired by the UNEP. The second component, on an investment strategy to strengthen mitigation measures to address root causes of DSS in source areas, was undertaken under a technical committee chaired by the UNESCAP. Finally, this report was reviewed and cleared by members of the Steering Committee. Appendix 1 presents the terms of reference for this regional technical assistance project (RETA 6068) while Appendix 2 lists the participating parties, consultants, and national experts. ii ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS ADB Asian Development Bank aimag Province (Mongolia) AWS Automatic Weather Station DSS dust and sandstorms GEF Global Environment Facility ha hectares LIDAR Light Detection & Ranging (a scientific device) MNE Ministry of Nature and Environment of Mongolia NAP National Action Programs PM10 Particulate Matter of < 10µ PRC People’s Republic of China RETA Regional Technical Assistance RMB/CNY Chinese currency; yuan soum County (Mongolia) TA Technical Assistance TSP Total Suspended Particles UNCCD United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification UNEP United Nations Environment Programme UNESCAP United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and Pacific US$ U.S. Dollar WMO World Meteorological Organization iii TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE Acknowledgement i Abbreviations and Acronyms ii 1 Background 1.1 Objective of the Project .................................................................................1-1 1.2 Scope of the Project.......................................................................................1-2 1.3 The Dust and Sandstorm (DSS) Phenomena in Northeast Asia....................1-3 2 Formulation of the Master Plan 2.1 General Approach for Master Plan Formulation.............................................2-1 2.2 Methodology and Approach for DSS Regional Network Development..........2-1 2.3 Methodology and Approach for the Investment Strategy ..............................2-2 3 Establishment of the Regional Network for DSS Monitoring and Early Warning 3.1 Overview ........................................................................................3-1 3.2 Selection of Monitoring Indicators.................................................................3-2 3.3 Common Monitoring Indicators .....................................................................3-3 3.4 Regional Network of DSS Monitoring Stations...............................................3-4 3.5 Proposed Phases of Development ................................................................3-5 3.6 Organizational Set Up....................................................................................3-7 3.7 Implementation Plan ......................................................................................3-7 3.8 Estimated Cost ........................................................................................3-9 3.9 Cooperation with Other Regional and International Organization................3-10 4 Demonstration Projects for the Prevention and Control of DSS 4.1 Rationale........................................................................................................4-1 4.2 Lessons Learned ...........................................................................................4-1 4.3 Investment Strategy for the Demonstration Projects......................................4-2 4.3.1 Selection of Demonstration Sites .......................................................4-2 4.3.2 Proposed Focus Areas for Demonstration Projects in the PRC.........4-4 4.3.3 Proposed Focus Areas for Demonstration Projects in Mongolia........4-4 4.3.4 Proposed Cross-border Demonstration Focus Area ..........................4-7 4.4 Proposed Activities and Investment Requirements........................................4-7 4.4.1 Proposed Activities in Focus Areas of the PRC..................................4-6 4.4.2 Proposed Activities in Focus Areas in Mongolia ................................4-9 4.4.3 Proposed Activities in Cross-border Focus Area..............................4-10 4.5 Financing Plan.............................................................................................4-11 5 Way Forward APPENDICES 1 RETA 6068 Terms of Reference 2 Participating Parties and the Study Team CHAPTER 1: BACKGROUND 1-1 1. BACKGROUND 1.1 Objective of the Project Dust and sandstorm (DSS) is the generic term for a serious environmental phenomenon in Northeast Asia. It causes considerable hardship and loss of income, disrupts communications, affects peoples’ health, and, in extreme cases, leads to death of people and destruction of livestock and crops over large areas in the affected countries. At the request of the governments of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and Mongolia, the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification Secretariat (UNCCD), the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and Pacific (UNESCAP), and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), initiated their own projects for the prevention and control of DSS in Northeast Asia. The ADB prepared the project concept for a regional technical assistance (RETA or TA) in early May 2002 and the three agencies of the United Nations made a project proposal to seek support from the Global Environment Facility (GEF) to address the same environmental problem in the region. During a meeting among the environment ministries of the PRC, Japan, the Republic of Korea, and Mongolia in June 2002, it was proposed by the governments of the four countries that the ADB, the UNCCD, the UNESCAP, and the UNEP jointly develop an expanded TA to integrate the support from the international community, maximize the effects of the undertaking, and promote regional cooperation on DSS to be co-financed by the ADB and the GEF. A joint fact-finding and consultation mission comprising representatives from the four international organizations led by the ADB visited the PRC and Mongolia from 26 August to 2 September 2002. The mission reached an understanding with the governments of the PRC and Mongolia on all aspects of the Terms of Reference for the TA. The joint project on “Prevention and Control of Dust and Sandstorms in Northeast Asia (RETA 6068)” was then approved by the ADB and the GEF in December 2002 and its implementation commenced in March 2003. Appendix 1 presents the Terms of Reference of RETA 6068 Project while Appendix 2 lists the participating parties involved in undertaking the project. The TA project was implemented together by the ADB, the UNESCAP, the UNCCD, and the UNEP in collaboration with the governments of the PRC, Japan, the Republic of Korea, and Mongolia. A Steering Committee and three Technical Committees were organized for the implementation of the project with the ADB as the executing agency responsible for the overall management and administration of the TA. The main objective of this collaborative project is to promote the establishment of a regional cooperation mechanism for the prevention and control of DSS in Northeast Asia. In this connection, the specific output of the study is a master plan to guide regional collaborative activities to alleviate DSS in Northeast Asia. The components of the regional master plan are: (a) a phased program to establish