Job No.: TCS00814/15

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

EP-502/2015/A

Operation of the Existing Tai Lam Explosives Magazine at Tai Shu Ha, Yuen Long for Liantang/Heung Yuen Wai Boundary Control Point Project

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Monthly Environmental Monitoring and Audit (EM&A) Report ¡V May 2019

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Prepared For

 

 

 

 

Dragages Hong Kong Limited

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Date

Reference No.

Prepared By

Certified By

17 June 2019

TCS00814/15/600/R0082v1

Ben Tam

(Environmental Consultant)

Tam Tak Wing

(Environmental Team Leader)

 

Version

Date

Remarks

1

17 June 2019

First Submission

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


 

 

 

 

 

executive summary

ES.01      The existing Tai Lam Explosives Magazine (TLEM) has been licensed and was in used by the MTR Corporation Limited (MTRC) for the construction of the Hong Kong Section of Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link (XRL) until end of February 2016, under Environmental Permit No. EP-349/2009/L, being used by the MTR XRL 824 Contractor.

 

ES.02      The TLEM was handed over to Dragages Hong Kong Limited (hereinafter referred as Dragages or ¡§permit holder¡¨) in early March 2016 and start operating for storage the explosives for tunnel works of CEDD Contract CV/2012/08 - Liantang/Heung Yuen Wai Boundary Control Point and Associated Works Contract 2 (hereinafter referred as ¡§the Project¡¨). Operation of TLEM is a Designated Project to be implemented under Environmental Permit number EP-502/2015/A (hereinafter referred as ¡§the EP-502/2015/A¡¨ or ¡§the EP¡¨).

 

ES.03      Dragages Hong Kong Limited has appointed Action-United Environmental Services and Consulting (AUES) as the independent Environmental Team (ET) to implement the relevant EM&A program.

 

ES.04      There are three phases in this project, operation, decommissioning and completion of project phase. During the operation phase no noise, air quality, water quality and ecological monitoring is required according to the EP requirement.

 

ES.05     Due to the blasting work for Liantang/Heung Yuen Wai Boundary Control Point Project ¡V Contract 2      was completed on 15 August 2017. The Tai Shu Ha Magazine was closed after 17 August 2017. Decommissioning phase was commenced in mid of November 2017. But due to the construction programme arrangement, the decommission works was idled until 21 January 2018 and completed at the end of March 2018.

 

ES.06     After the decommission works of TSH magazine was completed, reinstatement planting works was commenced on 23 April 2018 according to the XRL EIA Vegetation Survey Report for Tai Shu Ha Road West and the Tree Planting and Landscape Plan TLP-10: Works in Yuen Long District (Tai Shu Ha) (Completion of Project Phase).

 

ES.07      This is the 39th Environmental Monitoring and Audit Monthly Report covering the period from 1 to 31 May 2019 (the Reporting Period).

 

Environmental Monitoring and Audit Activities

ES.08      Environmental monitoring activities under the EM&A program in this Reporting Month are summarized in the following table.

 

Issues

Environmental Monitoring Parameters / Inspection

Occasions

Inspection / Audit

ET Monthly Environmental Site Inspection

1

IEC Monthly Environmental Site Audit

1

 

Environmental Complaint

ES.09      No environmental complaint was recorded or received in this Reporting Month.  The statistics of environmental complaint are summarized in the following table.

 

Reporting Period

Environmental Complaint Statistics

Frequency

Cumulative

Complaint Nature

Since the project commencement

0

0

NA

May 2019

0

0

NA

 

Notification of Summons and Successful Prosecutions

ES.10      No environmental summons or successful prosecutions were recorded in this Reporting Month.  The statistics of environmental complaint are summarized in the following tables.

 

Reporting Period

Environmental Summons Statistics

Frequency

Cumulative

Complaint Nature

Since the project commencement

0

0

NA

May 2019

0

0

NA

 

 

 

 

 

 

Reporting Period

Environmental Prosecution Statistics

Frequency

Cumulative

Complaint Nature

Since the project commencement

0

0

NA

May 2019

0

0

NA

 

Reporting Change

ES.11      There are no reporting changes in this Reporting Month.

 

Site Inspection by External Parties

ES.12      No site inspection was undertaken by external parties i.e. EPD or AFCD in this Reporting Month.

 

Future Key Issues

ES.13      Ecological impact is the key environmental issues during the completion of project phase. The permit holder should follow the implementation schedule to provide proper mitigation measures to maintain the good practice of disposal of waste, control of water quality and noise issue. Moreover, mitigation measures to avoid ingress of surface runoff into nearby water bodies and the protection off the existing tree from the site should be properly maintained.

 

 


Table of Contents

1     Introduction   1

1.1            Project Background   1

1.2            Report Structure  1

2     Project Organization and Environmental Submission   2

2.1            Project Organization and Management Structure  2

2.2            Construction Progress  2

2.3            Summary of Environmental Submissions  2

3     Summary of Impact Monitoring Requirement   3

3.1            General  3

3.2            Monitoring Parameters  3

4     Waste Management   4

4.1            General Waste Management  4

4.2            Records of Waste Quantities  4

5     Site Inspection   5

5.1            Requirements  5

5.2            Findings / Deficiencies During the Reporting Month   5

6     Environmental Complaint and Non-Compliance   6

6.1            Environmental Complaint, Summons and Prosecution   6

7     Implementation Status of Mitigation Measures  7

7.1            General Requirements  7

7.2            Tentative Construction Activities in the Coming Month   7

7.3            Key Issues for the Coming Month   7

8     Conclusions and Recommentations  8

8.1            Conclusions  8

8.2            Recommendations  8

 

 


List of TABLES

Table 2-1          Status of Environmental Licenses and Permits

Table 3-1          Summary of EM&A Requirements

Table 4-1          Summary of Quantities of Inert C&D Materials

Table 4-2          Summary of Quantities of C&D Wastes

Table 5-1          Site Observations

Table 6-1          Statistical Summary of Environmental Complaints

Table 6-2          Statistical Summary of Environmental Summons

Table 6-3          Statistical Summary of Environmental Prosecution

Table 7-1          Environmental Mitigation Measures

 

 

List of Appendices

Appendix A      Location and Site Plan of the TLEM

Appendix B      Organization Structure

Appendix C      Environmental Checklist for the reporting Month

Appendix D      Implementation Schedule for Environmental Mitigation Measures (ISEMM)

Appendix E       Letter to Mines Division to Return License and Stock Book

Appendix F      Monthly Summary Waste Flow Table

 

 

 

 


1                             Introduction

1.1              Project Background

1.1.1                 The existing Tai Lam Explosives Magazine (TLEM) has been licensed and was in used by the MTR Corporation Limited (MTRC) for the construction of the Hong Kong Section of Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link (XRL) until end of February 2016, under Environmental Permit No. EP-349/2009/L, being used by the MTR XRL 824 Contractor.

 

1.1.2                 The TLEM was handed over to Dragages Hong Kong Limited (hereinafter referred as Dragages or ¡§permit holder¡¨) in early March 2016 and start operating for storage the explosives for tunnel works of CEDD Contract CV/2012/08 - Liantang/Heung Yuen Wai Boundary Control Point and Associated Works Contract 2 (hereinafter referred as ¡§the Project¡¨). Operation of TLEM is a Designated Project to be implemented under Environmental Permit number EP-502/2015/A issued on 21 September 2016 (hereinafter referred as ¡§the EP-502/2015/A¡¨ or ¡§the EP¡¨).

 

1.1.3                 The Project is located at the existing TLEM in Tai Shu Ha (Land Allocation GLA-TYL 1288), Yuen Long District, New Territories. The location and site plan of the Project are shown in Appendix A. The existing TLEM is composed of the following components:

 

l     Two stores each with a capacity of 400 kg explosives;

l     Secure fence;

l     CCTV system;

l     Guard house; and

l     Street fire hydrant water tank (245 m3) and 2 pumps.

 

1.1.4                 Action-United Environmental Services & Consulting (hereinafter referred as ¡§AUES¡¨) was appointed by Dragages as an Environmental Team (hereinafter referred as ¡§the ET¡¨) to implement the relevant EM&A program in accordance with the EM&A Manual, as well as the associated duties. 

 

1.1.5                 This is the 39th Monthly EM&A Report presenting the monitoring results and inspection findings for the reporting period from 1 to 31 May 2019.

 

1.2              Report Structure

1.2.1                 The Monthly Environmental Monitoring and Audit (EM&A) Report is structured into the following sections:-

Section 1       Introduction

Section 2       Project Organization and Environmental Submission

Section 3       Summary of Monitoring Requirements

Section 4       Waste Management

Section 5       Site Inspections

Section 6       Environmental Complaints and Non-Compliance

Section 7       Implementation Statues of Mitigation Measures

Section 8       Conclusions and Recommendation

 

 

 

 


2                             Project Organization and Environmental Submission

2.1              Project Organization and Management Structure

2.1.1                 Organization structure of relevant parties involved in the EM&A process and the organizational structure of the organizations responsible for implementing the EM&A program are shown in Appendix B.

 

2.2              Construction Progress

2.2.1                 In the Reporting Period, the major construction activity conducted under the Contract is summarized in below.

l  Subcontractor to follow up the remedial works

 

2.3              Summary of Environmental Submissions

2.4.1                 Summary of the relevant permits, licences, and/or notifications on environmental protection     for this Project in this Reporting Month is presented in Table 2-1.

Table 2-1      Status of Environmental Licenses and Permits

Item

Description

License/Permit Status

1

Environmental permit

(EP: EP-502/2015/A)

Application date: 26/08/2016

Date approved: 21/9/2016

2

Air pollution Control (Construction Dust) Regulation

Ref No.: 430503

3

Discharge License

Nil

4

Registered chemical waste producer

Nil

5

Billing Account for Disposal of Construction Waste

Account No. 7019105

 

2.4.2                 In accordance with the EP No. EP-502/2015/A Condition 3.1, Project Environmental Monitoring and Audit (EM&A) Manual has been submitted to EPD before the commencement of using the magazine.

 

 

 


3                             Summary of Impact Monitoring Requirement

3.1              General

3.1.1                 The Environmental Monitoring and Audit requirements are set out in the EM&A manual. Environmental issue such as ecological impact was identified as the key issues and no air or noise monitoring is required during the completion of project phase of the Project.

 

3.2              Monitoring Parameters

3.2.1                 The EM&A programmes of completion of project phase phase shall cover the following environmental issues:

l  Ecological impact

 

3.2.2                 A summary of the EM&A activities is presented in Table 3-1 below

Table 3-1         Summary of EM&A Requirements

Environmental Issue

EM&A Activities

Ecological impact

Ÿ   To restore the habitat back to borrow area reinstatement plantation, as it was prior to the construction of the TLEM for the MTRC¡¦s use.

Ÿ   To ensure the proposed mitigation recommended in the approved XRL EIA for loss of green areas affected by the XRL Project, is implemented.

 


4                             Waste Management

4.1              General Waste Management

4.1.1                 Waste management was carried out by an on-site Environmental Officer or an Environmental Supervisor from time to time. The effective management of waste arising during the decommissioning phase will be monitored through the site audit programme. The aims of the waste audit are:

l  To ensure the waste arising from the works are handled, stored, collected, transferred and disposed of in an environmentally acceptable manner; and

l  To encourage the reuse and recycling of material.

 

4.1.2                 In addition to the site inspections, the ET shall review the documentation procedures prepared by the Waste Coordinator once a month to ensure proper records are being maintained and procedures undertaken in accordance with the Waste Management Plan.

 

4.2              Records of Waste Quantities

4.2.1                 All types of waste arising from the decommission work are classified into the following:

l  Construction & Demolition (C&D) Material;

l  Chemical Waste;

l  General Refuse; and

l  Excavated Soil.

 

4.2.2                 The quantities of wastes generated under the Contract in this Reporting Period are summarized in Tables 4-1 and 4-2 and the Monthly Summary Waste Flow Table is shown in Appendix F.  Whenever possible, materials were reused on-site as far as practicable.

Table 4-1      Summary of Quantities of Inert C&D Materials

Type of Waste

Quantity

Disposal Location

Reused in this Contract (Inert) (`000m3)

0

-

Reused in other Projects (Inert) (`000m3)

0

-

Disposal as Public Fill (Inert) (`000m3)

0

-

                                                                                                   

Table 4-2      Summary of Quantities of C&D Wastes

Type of Waste

Quantity

Disposal Location

Recycled Metal (`000kg)

0

-

Recycled Paper / Cardboard Packaging (`000kg)

0

-

Recycled Plastic (`000kg)

0

-

General Refuses (`000m3)

0

-

 

 

 

 


5                             Site Inspection

5.1              Requirements

5.1.1                 According to the EM&A Manual, the environmental site inspection shall be formulation by ET Leader.  Monthly environmental site inspections during operation and completion of project phase; weekly environmental site inspections during decommissioning phase should carry out to confirm the environmental performance.

 

5.2              Findings / Deficiencies During the Reporting Month

5.2.1                 In the Reporting Period, joint site inspection to evaluate site environmental performance was carried out by the ER, ET, IEC and the Contractor on 31 May 2019.  No non-compliance and observation was recorded during site inspection.  The checklist of the monthly inspection is shown in Appendix C.

 

5.2.2                 Observations for the site inspections and weekly audit within this Reporting Month are summarized in Table 5-1.

Table 5-1      Site Observations

Date

Findings / Deficiencies

Follow-Up Status

31 May 2019

Ÿ   No environmental issue was observed during the site inspection.

Ÿ   Nil

 

5.2.3                 The Tai Shu Ha Magazine was closed after 17 August 2017 due to the blasting work for Liantang/Heung Yuen Wai Boundary Control Point Project ¡V Contract 2 was completed on 15 August 2017. The decommissioning phase for Tai Shu Ha Magazine was scheduled in Mid of November 2017. However, due to the contractor arrangement, decommission of the magazine was idled until 21 January 2018. The actual decommission works of TSH magazine was commenced on 22 January 2018 and completed on 28 March 2018. The letter to Mines Division to return the license and stock book is shown in Appendix E.

 

5.2.4                 Furthermore, reinstatement planting works was commenced on 23 April 2018 according to the XRL EIA Vegetation Survey Report for Tai Shu Ha Road West and the Tree Planting and Landscape Plan TLP-10: Works in Yuen Long District (Tai Shu Ha) after the decommission works was completed (Completion of Project Phase) and the site inspection frequency was resumed to once per month during the reinstatement planting period.


6                             Environmental Complaint and Non-Compliance

6.1              Environmental Complaint, Summons and Prosecution

6.1.1                 No environmental complaint, summons and prosecution was received in this reporting period. The statistical summary table of environmental complaint, environmental summons and prosecution are presented in Tables 6-1, 6-2 and 6-3 respectively.

 

Table 6-1      Statistical Summary of Environmental Complaints

Reporting Period

Environmental Complaint Statistics

Frequency

Cumulative

Complaint Nature

Since the project commencement

0

0

NA

May 2019

0

0

NA

 

Table 6-2      Statistical Summary of Environmental Summons

Reporting Period

Environmental Summons Statistics

Frequency

Cumulative

Complaint Nature

Since the project commencement

0

0

NA

May 2019

0

0

NA

 

Table 6-3      Statistical Summary of Environmental Prosecution

Reporting Period

Environmental Prosecution Statistics

Frequency

Cumulative

Complaint Nature

Since the project commencement

0

0

NA

May 2019

0

0

NA

 


7                             Implementation Status of Mitigation Measures

7.1              General Requirements

7.1.1                 The environmental mitigation measures that recommended in the Implementation Schedule for Environmental Mitigation Measures (ISEMM) in the EM&A Manual covered the issues of ecological, noise, water, hazard to life and waste and they are summarized presented in Appendix D.

 

7.1.2                 The Permit Holder under the Project shall be implementing the required environmental mitigation measures according to the EM&A Manual as subject to the site condition.  Environmental mitigation measures generally implemented by the Permit Holder in this Reporting Period are summarized in Table 7-1.

Table 7-1      Environmental Mitigation Measures

Issues

Environmental Mitigation Measures

Ecological

¡P       Protect the existing tree near the magazine site

¡P       To restore the habitat back to borrow area reinstatement plantation, as it was prior to the construction of the TLEM for the MTRC¡¦s use.

¡P       To ensure the proposed mitigation recommended in the approved XRL EIA for loss of green areas affected by the XRL Project, is implemented.

Noise Impact

¡P       To ensure good site practices are adopted

¡P       Noise generation minimized during decommissioning

Waste Management

¡P       Avoid adverse environmental impacts related to handling and disposal of waste

Water quality

¡P       Minimize construction site runoff during decommissioning

General

¡P       The site was generally kept tidy and clean.

 

7.1.3                 Based on site inspection, it is considered that the environmental mitigation measures implemented by the Permit Holder in this Reporting Period are effective.

 

7.2              Tentative Construction Activities in the Coming Month

7.2.1                 Construction activities as undertaken in the coming month for the Contract lists below:

Ÿ    Subcontractor to follow up the remedial works

 

7.3              Key Issues for the Coming Month

7.3.1                 Key issues to be considered in the coming month for the Permit Holder include:

Ÿ    Avoid adverse environmental impacts related to handling and disposal of waste;

Ÿ    Noise generation minimized during reinstatement planting;

Ÿ    Protect the existing tree near the magazine site;

Ÿ    Housekeeping of the magazine site.

Ÿ    Fulfill all EP¡¦s requirement during reinstatement planting

 


8                             Conclusions and Recommentations

8.1              Conclusions

8.1.1                 This is the 39th monthly EM&A report, covering the construction period from 1 to 31 May 2019 (the Reporting Month).

 

8.1.2                 No documented complaint, notification of summons or successful prosecution was received.

 

8.1.3                 The Tai Shu Ha Magazine was closed after 17 August 2017. Due to the blasting work for Liantang/Heung Yuen Wai Boundary Control Point Project ¡V Contract 2 was completed on 15 August 2017. The decommissioning phase for Tai Shu Ha Magazine was scheduled in Mid of November 2017. However, due to the contractor arrangement, decommission of the magazine was idled until 21 January 2018. The actual decommission works of TSH magazine was commenced on 22 January 2018 and completed on 28 March 2018.

 

8.1.4                 In the Reporting Period, joint site inspection to evaluate site environmental performance was carried out by the ER, ET, IEC and the Contractor on 31 May 2019.  No non-compliance and observation was recorded during site inspection. In general, the explosives magazine site is clean and tidy.  The environmental performance of the Project was therefore considered satisfactory.

 

8.1.5                 No site inspection was undertaken by any external party in this Reporting Month.

 

8.1.6                 After the decommission works of TSH magazine was completed, reinstatement planting works was commenced on 23 April 2018 according to the XRL EIA Vegetation Survey Report for Tai Shu Ha Road West and the Tree Planting and Landscape Plan TLP-10: Works in Yuen Long District (Tai Shu Ha) (Completion of Project Phase).

 

8.2              Recommendations

8.2.1                 Ecological impact is the key environmental issues during the completion of project phase. The permit holder should follow the implementation schedule to provide proper mitigation measures to maintain the good practice of those environmental issues.

 

8.2.2                 Moreover, mitigation measures of the protection of the existing tree from the site should be properly maintained.

 

8.2.3                 To control the site performance on environmental issue, Dragages is reminded to implement the recommended environmental mitigation measures according to the Environmental Monitoring and Audit Manual.