Environmental Monitoring Report Project Number: 40515-013 Annual Report June 2015 2696-BAN(SF): Sustainable Rural Infrastructure Improvement Project Prepared by Local Government Engineering Department (LGED) for the People’s Republic of Bangladesh and the Asian Development Bank. This environmental monitoring 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. In preparing any country program or strategy, financing any project, or by making any designation of or reference to a particular territory or geographic area in this document, the Asian Development Bank does not intend to make any judgments as to the legal or other status of any territory or area. Table of Contents 1. INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................................... 4 2. PROJECT LOCATION AND COMPONENTS ............................................................................................ 4 3. ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITIES AND INSTITUTIONAL SET UP .................................................... 5 4. PROJECT STATUS (CIVIL WORKS AND EMP IMPLEMENTATION) ......................................................... 6 5. COMPLIANCE WITH ENVIRONMENT RELATED PROJECT COVENANTS................................................ 7 6. ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING REQUIREMENTS ............................................................................. 10 7. ENVIRONMENTAL MITIGATION MEASURES IMPLEMENTATION ......................................................... 11 7.1 INVESTIGATION RESULT ON EMP MONITORING BY DIRECT SITE VISITS ..................................... 11 8. KEY ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES AND ACTION PLAN ............................................................................ 11 8.1 KEY ISSUES IDENTIFIED .................................................................................................................. 11 8.2 ACTION PLAN OF ENVIRONMENTAL MITIGATION AND MONITORING IN BETWEEN JUNE 2014 AND AUGUST 2014. ........................................................................................................................................ 11 9. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION............................................................................................. 13 Table 1: Environmental Responsibility Matrix ................................................................................................ 6 Table 2: Compliance with National Laws ...................................................................................................... 8 Table 3: Compliance with Environmental Considerations of Loan Agreement................................................... 9 Table 4: Sampling Program Summary ........................................................................................................ 10 Table 5: Action Plan for Environmental Mitigation and Monitoring ................................................................. 12 Table 6: Recommendations against identified problems ............................................................................... 15 1 Appendix 1: Specific sub-project wise monitoring status or compliance ....................................................... 16 Appendix 2: EMP – Monitoring Compliance Check List and Overall status of the mitigation measures’ implementation against the impacts occurred from sub-project activities; ....................................................... 36 Appendix 3: Environmental Management Plan and Environmental Monitoring Requirements ......................... 41 Appendix 4: Consultant site visit reports ..................................................................................................... 48 2 ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS ADB Asian Development Bank ADF Asian Development Fund BOD Biochemical Oxygen Demand BOQ Bill of Quantities BWQS Bangladesh Water Quality Standard CO Carbon Monoxide COD Chemical Oxygen Demand DO Dissolved Oxygen DOE Department of Environment DPP Development Project Proforma/Proposal EDD Environmental due diligence EMP Environmental Management Plan EMR Environmental Monitoring Report EMWS Environmental Management Implementation Works Schedule FC Faecal Coliform FSE Field Supervision Engineer GCC General Conditions of Contract GOB Government of Bangladesh IA Implementing Agency IEC Impacted Environmental Components NGO/INGO Non‐Governmental Organisation PCC Particular Conditions of Contract PD Project Director RDPP Revised Development Project Proforma/Proposal PM10 Particulate Matter (≤ 10 micrometers or less) PPE Personal Protective Equipments RP Resettlement Plan SIEE Summary Initial Environmental Examination TDS Total Dissolved Solids TP Total Phosphates TSS Total Suspended Solids WHO World Health Organisation 3 1. INTRODUCTION Back Ground/Context of the Monitoring Report: 1. Majority people of Bangladesh live in the Rural area of Bangladesh. Rural area of Bangladesh has a significant contribution to the GDP of Bangladesh. But, rural area of Bangladesh is lacking of sufficient infrastructure. So, the Government of Bangladesh has given high priority for the infrastructure development of the rural areas. The underpinning strategic thrust and target of infrastructure is to improve the socioeconomic status and quality-of-life of the rural people. To achieve the targets, LGED has formulated the Sustainable Rural Infrastructure Improvement Project (SRIIP) aiming at the development of the rural infrastructure, which is also the main objective of the project. This includes the development of all-weather Upazila and Union roads to provide access to Growth Center Markets (GCMs) and Rural Markets (RMs) including providing better access to markets and social services, and the development of the necessary infrastructure in the GCMs/RMs to offer better trading facilities and the environment. 2. The Project aims at reducing poverty in the rural communities in 21 districts in Bangladesh through providing them better access to economic opportunities and social services. In addition, the Project will help improve the communication network to facilitate production and marketing of agricultural produce; The Project has an important objective to improve the existing environment by planting and maintaining trees along the roads and building with more effective drainage infrastructure & proper waste management system. 3. Environmental Monitoring is a mandatory one to check the likely environmental stresses that may happen due to the project interventions and to identify the likely potential environmental impacts of the sub-projects implementation. The environmental monitoring system seeks to oversee the performance obligations of the project authority with a view to ensure that there is no deviation from the contract. This also helps to assess the performance against the set standards. It also describes the compliance status of EMP and provides remedial measures and an action plan for taking corrective measures against defaults, especially when performance standards are not fulfilled. 4. The purpose of this Environmental Monitoring Report is to satisfy the environmental safeguard requirements of the Government of Bangladesh and the development partners (Asian Development Bank and KfW) as well as to fulfill the requirements written in the loan document of the Project. This report has been prepared on the status of compliance of the implemented environmental related works prescribed in the EMP. This report has been conceived based on the observations during the field visits performed by the Environment and Climate Change Specialist, ISMC and a review of the inspection reports of the Field Supervision Engineer. These reports relate to the monitoring carried out by the field office of the environmental safeguards during the different phases of the sub-project works. This monitoring report covers the period July, 2014 to June, 2015. 2. PROJECT LOCATION AND COMPONENTS 5. The project area covers 21 districts of Rangpur, Rajshahi & Khulna Division encompassing 140 Upazilas. All the 8 (Eight) Districts of Rangpur Division are included 4 in the SRIIP area and these are Panchagarh, Thakurgaon, Nilphamari, Dinajpur, Rangpur, Gaibandha, Kurigram and Latmortirhat; 7(Seven) Districts under the Rajshahi Division are included in the project such as Rajshahi, Natore, Joypurhat, Bogra, Naogaon and Chapai Nawabgonj and also 7(Seven) Districts in the Khulna Division have been included in the project areas and these are Kushtia, Chuadanga, Meherpur, Jessore, Jhenidah, Narail and Magura. 6. The components of the project include various physical activities such as the improvement of Upazila (700km) & Union roads (100 km) including pertaining structures like bridge and culvert (3270 m) additions; the improvement of Growth Centers (GC) /Rural Markets (RM) including the piloting of rural water supply and renewable energy (98 No.) and Union Parishad (20), road side tree Plantation (400 km). Besides, there are two consultancy services, one is Institutional Support and Monitoring Consultancy (ISMC) and another is Design and Supervision Consultancy. 3. ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITIES AND INSTITUTIONAL SET UP 7. LGED is the executing agency of the project, headed by a Project Director. LGED is one of the largest Engineering Department in Bangladesh having offices with sufficient skilled and experienced manpower at every Upazilla (subdistrict) and District level. Hifab