AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT BANK GROUP CAMEROON: BAMENDA-KUMBO RING ROAD CONSTRUCTION PROJECT ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT (ESIA) SUMMARY May 2018 P. S. MORE NDONG, Principal Transport Team Leader COCM Engineer J. P. KALALA, Chief Socio-Economist PICU.0 A. KARANGA, Chief Transport Economist RDGC.4 N. M. T. DIALLO, Regional Financial COCM Management Coordinator C. N’KODIA, Principal Country Economist COCM Team Members G. BEZABEH, Road Safety Specialist PICU.1 Project Team C. L. DJEUFO, Procurement Officer COCM A. KAMGA, Disbursement Specialist COCM S. MBA, Consultant Transport Engineer COCM M. BAKIA, Chief Environmentalist RDGC.4 Director-General Ousmane DORE RDGC Sector Director Amadou OUMAROU PICU.0 Country Manager Solomane KONE COCM Sector Division Jean Kizito KABANGUKA PICU.1 Manager 1 1. INTRODUCTION The project objective is to asphalt a section of National Road No. 11 (RN11), namely the Bamenda-Ndop-Kumbo-Nkambe-Misaje-Mungong-Kimbi-Nyos-Weh-Wum-Bamenda“Ring Road” (approximately 357 km long) in Cameroon’s Northwest Region. The project has been assigned Category 1 in view of its potential impacts. Furthermore an Environmental and Social Impact Assessment is required by the Cameroon Government and the African Development Bank. This assessment identifies and measures the potential project impacts on the physical, biological and human environment, presenting for each of the negative impacts identified, measures aimed at its elimination or alleviation. This assessment also entails, where necessary, making an estimate of the compensation to be paid to persons affected by the expropriations and losses occasioned by project works. An Environmental and Social Management Plan (ESMP) and a Resettlement Action Plan (RAP), including all mitigation and compensation measures proposed, have also been prepared as separate reports. 2. PROJECT DESCRIPTION The project aims at asphalting a section of the National Road No. 11, the Bamenda-Ndop- Kumbo-Nkambe-Misaje-Mungong-Kimbi-Nyos-Weh-Wum-Bamenda “Ring Road”, which is approximately 357 km long in the Northwest Region. Part of this road section, including Ndop- Kumbo (60.5 km), is already asphalted. The basic geometric characteristics of the road are, among others: - Life span: 20 years - Survey strip: 100 m - Easement width, including brush cutting: 40 m - Surfacing width = 7.00 m, i.e. a 2x3.5m carriageway with overhangs where necessary - Shoulder = 2 x 1.50 m, to be replaced in residential areas by a sidewalk; appropriate drainage facilities will be provided - Reference speed Rs = 80 km/h. The road sections under study are located in the hilly Northwest Region. This Region has a markedly undulating landscape and some hill ranges with multiple steep slopes such as the Sabga, Wainamah and Nyos escarpments. This hilly relief appears ill suited to the construction of a Category 2 road as recommended by the terms of reference. 2 The key activities involved in implementing the rehabilitation project are grouped according to the various work phases as follows: Preparation phase: ➢ Easement clearance: Currently, the road width varies from 6 to 7 m depending on the section. By law, National Roads require a 40 m easement for the road and its shoulders. Utility relocation (CDE, AEP, AES SONEL, CAMTEL possibly) and safeguarding of fire hydrants are to be expected in the course of easement clearance. Further land acquisitions will depend on needs relating to worksite installations, quarry operations, laterite borrow pits and waste disposal sites. Construction phase: ➢ Worksite installations: This concerns the worksite base camps for equipment such as heavy machinery and vehicles, storage of materials and other such aggregates, fuel tanks, concrete batching plant, crushing plant, mixing plant, etc. In general, such installations are not located in the right-of-way but require appropriate sites in view of their specific sensitivities. Taking into account the scale of works, the worksite will consist of a technical base, an industrial base and a construction camp. ➢ Materials transportation: This involves transporting all the materials needed for the project: backfill, crushed materials, concrete, bitumen gravel, etc. Movements of material, workers and vehicles for moving construction equipment constitute potential sources of major impacts. ➢ Exploitation of borrow pits and quarries: construction materials may be sourced from borrow pits and solid rock quarries for embankments, the road sub- 3 base, base course, or the manufacture of concrete or asphalt. Nine (9) borrow sites have already been identified in the project area. ➢ Operation of concrete mixing plants, crushing plants and asphalt plants: concrete mixing plants, asphalt plants and crushing plants must be set up on the construction site as they form part of the Classified Installations for the Protection of the Environment (ICPE) requiring special attention. ➢ Box-culverts and drainage facility construction works: such work involves, among others: (i) cleaning (clearing) around stream or river banks in areas traversed by the facility; (ii) pile construction in rivers, which may require, depending on the techniques used, watercourse diversion and thus natural water flow changes; (iii) building of bridge decking with risks of materials or pollutants dropping into the water; and (iv) building of storm water drains. ➢ Pavement construction: the road construction will comprise the following stages: (i) easement clearance and cleaning; (ii) demolition of existing structures and expropriated buildings located in the project RoW; (iii) earthworks consisting of excavation/backfilling and compaction of the soil to ensure a smooth and uniform sub-base; and (iv) pavement construction by spreading and compacting materials (laterite gravel, crushed gravel and bitumen concrete). ➢ Signage and safety facilities: road signs will be of the utmost importance in this project. These will comprise vertical and horizontal signage. The safety facilities to put in place will be guardrails and handrails. Operation phase ➢ Road commissioning and maintenance services: operation and use of facilities (pavements, rest areas, parking areas, etc.) and replacement of degraded facilities. 3. POLICY, LEGAL AND INSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK 3.1 Legal Framework The legal instruments relevant to the implementation of this project and in particular the management of predictable impacts are listed below: ➢ Section 19(2) of Law No.96/12 of 5 August 1996 relating to environmental management presents the ESIA content and Sections 21 to 39 specify the environments that must be protected from any form of degradation or contamination. To ensure rational management of the environment and natural resources, this Framework Law provides for a number of principles to be observed (Section 9), namely the precautionary principle, the polluter-payer principle, the accountability principle and the consulting principle. ➢ Law No. 98/015 of 14 July 1998 to regulate establishments classified as dangerous, unhealthy or obnoxious puts a premium on respect for the principles of environmental management and public health protection. Under Section 3 of the Law, establishments classified as dangerous, unhealthy or obnoxious fall into 4 in two (2) categories based on the danger or gravity of the risks inherent in their operation. The installation of asphalt plants in the industrial bases of construction companies is concerned. ➢ Law No. 89/027 of 29 December 1989 on toxic and hazardous wastes. This law prohibits the introduction, production, storage, possession, transport, transit and discharge into the national territory of toxic and/or hazardous waste in all its forms. It also states that materials containing flammable, explosive, radioactive and toxic substances that pose a danger to the life of humans, animals, plants and the environment are considered toxic and/or hazardous waste. During construction, the company is likely to use toxic products and generate toxic waste that could pollute the water and soil. Waste management is the responsibility of the polluter, which must take measures to optimize the management of such waste, whether solid, liquid or gaseous. ➢ Law No. 94/01 of 20 January 1994 laying down forestry, wildlife and fisheries regulations provides the framework for integrated, sustained and sustainable management of forestry, wildlife and fisheries resources. The project will impact plant and wildlife habitats. Factoring in such impact will help to preserve ecological balance. ➢ Law No. 98/005 of 14 April 1998 laying down regulations governing water resources and the general provisions for safeguarding the principles of environmental management and public health protection. It defines the general policy on State management and protection of water as a national heritage feature. The project will traverse numerous watercourses and during the works, project area streams could be polluted by solid, liquid or gaseous wastes. Therefore, mitigation measures will be prescribed according to the work phase. ➢ Law No.001 of 16 April 2001 on the mining code lays down the rules that operators holding mining or quarrying permits must observe for rational exploitation of mineral resources with due regard for environmental protection. It underscores plant and wildlife protection, and exploited site restoration while ensuring soil stability and safety, productivity and landscaping, among others. The implementation of the project also requires compliance with various decrees including those listed below: