Environmental Permit No. : EP-001/1998

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT ORDINANCE
(CHAPTER 499)
Section 10

ENVIRONMENTAL PERMIT TO CONSTRUCT AND OPERATE A DESIGNATED PROJECT

PART A (MAIN PERMIT)

Pursuant to section 10 of the Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance, the Director of Environmental Protection (the 'Director') grants this environmental permit to THE HONG KONG TELECOM INTERNATIONAL LIMITED (the 'Permit Holder') to construct and operate the designated projects described in Part B subject to the conditions described in or attached to Part C. The issue of this Environmental Permit is based on the documents, approvals or permissions described below :-

Application No.

AEP-001/1998

Project Profile

Reg. No. PP-006/1998

Letter of the Director's permission to apply directly for environmental permit

Ref. (23) in EP2/H17/C/04

3rd July 1998

Date: 27/7/98

(Mike J Stokoe)
Acting Director of Environmental Protection


PART B (DESCRIPTION OF DESIGNATED PROJECT)

Hereunder is the description of the designated project mentioned in Part A of this environmental permit :-

Title of Designated Project

Cable Landing Work in Deep Water Bay for SEA-ME-WE 3 Fibre Optic Submarine Cable System

Nature of Designated Project

Dredging operation which is less than 500 metre from the nearest boundary of an existing bathing beach

Location of Designated Project

Deep Water Bay

Scale and Scope of Designated Project

The project is to install two undersea fibre optic cables (hereafter called the Cable) from the existing manholes beside the beach of Deep Water Bay to the deep sea branching units located outside Hong Kong. The full details are contained in the Project Profile.


PART C (PERMIT CONDITIONS)

1. General Conditions

1.1 The Permit Holder shall ensure full compliance with all conditions of this environmental permit. Any non-compliance with this permit may constitute a contravention of the Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance (Cap. 499) and shall be definite ground for enforcement action or permit cancellation where applicable.

1.2 This permit shall not remove the responsibility of the Permit Holder to comply with any legislation currently in force such as Noise Control Ordinance (Cap.400), Air Pollution Control Ordinance (Cap.311), Water Pollution Control Ordinance (Cap.358), Dumping at Sea Ordinance (Cap.466), Waste Disposal Ordinance (Cap.354) and others.

1.3 The Permit Holder shall make copies of this permit available at all times for inspection by the Director at the site.

1.4 The Permit Holder shall give a copy of this permit to the person(s) in charge of the site.

1.5 The Permit Holder shall display a copy of this permit on the construction site at a convenient location for public information at all times. The Permit Holder shall ensure that the most updated information about the environmental permit, including any amended permits, is displayed at such locations. If the Permit Holder surrenders a part or the whole of the permit, the notice he sends to the Director shall also be displayed on the next day thereafter at the same locations as the original permit.

1.6 The Permit Holder shall construct the designated project in accordance with the project descriptions in Part B of this permit.

1.7 The Permit Holder shall carry out all activities for this designated project in accordance with the details contained in the Project Profile.

2. Specific Conditions

2.1 The dredging/excavation/burying operation shall be carried out during non-peak swimming season from 1st October 1998 to 28th February 1999. The Director should be notified of the commencement of work at least 5 calendar days prior to the start of any construction activities.

2.2 The dredging/excavation/burying operation for laying the Cable within 500 metre of the Deep Water Bay, as measured from the boundary of the shark net, shall be scheduled to complete within 5 calendar days and, in any event, not to exceed 7 calendar days in total. The Director's prior agreement must be sought for any time extension thereafter.

2.3 All care shall be taken to ensure that the construction work is carried out as quickly as possible with due regard for the potential environmental nuisance to the users of the Deep Water Bay. In particular, the construction work shall not impair or interfere with the reasonable enjoyment of the swimmers in the Deep Water Bay.

2.4 The Cable shall be laid along the general alignments as delineated in the appended Figure No. 1. The external diameter of the Cable inclusive of the protection pipe shall not exceed 200 millimetre.

2.5 The initial 200 metre of the Cable, as measured from the High Water Mark, shall be laid by divers as proposed in the Project Profile. The divers shall press/bury the Cable by hand into the sandy seabed. The rest of the Cable length within the 500 metre of Deep Water Bay, as measured from the boundary of the shark net, will be pressed/buried into the seabed by cable laying vessel with the assistance of divers.


Notes:

  1. This environmental permit consists of three parts, namely, PART A (Main Permit), PART B (Description of Designated Project) and PART C (Permit Conditions).
  2. The Permit Holder may apply under Section 13 of the Ordinance to the Director for a variation of the conditions of this environmental permit. The Permit Holder shall replace the original permit displayed on the construction site, by the amended.
  3. A person who assumes the responsibility for the whole or a part of the designated project may, before he assumes responsibility of the designated project, apply under Section 12 of the Ordinance to the Director for a further environmental permit.
  4. Under Section 14 of the Ordinance, the Director with the consent of the Secretary for Planning, Environment and Lands, may suspend, vary or cancel this environmental permit. The permit shall be removed from the display on the construction site.
  5. If this permit is cancelled or surrendered during the construction or operation, an environmental permit must be obtained under the Ordinance before the construction or operation of the project could continue. It is an offence under Section 26(1) of the Ordinance to construct or operate a designated project without an environmental permit.