ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT ORDINANCE
(CHAPTER 499)
Section 10

環 境 影 響 評 估 條 例
(第 499章 )
第 10條

ENVIRONMENTAL PERMIT TO DECOMMISSION A DESIGNATED PROJECT
解 除 運 作 指 定 工 程 項 目 的 環 境 許 可 證

PART A (MAIN PERMIT)
A部 (許 可 證 主 要 部 分 )

Pursuant to Section 10 of the Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance (the EIAO), the Director of Environmental Protection (the Director) grants this environmental permit to the Civil Engineering Department (hereinafter referred to as the "Permit Holder") to decommission the designated project described in Part B subject to the conditions specified in Part C. The issue of this environmental permit is based on the documents, approvals or permissions described below:

根 據 環 境 影 響 評 估 條 例 (環 評 條 例 )第 10條 的 規 定 ， 環 境 保 護 署 署 長 (署 長 )將 本 環 境 許 可 證 批 予 土 木 工 程 署 (下 稱 "許 可 證 持 有 人 ")以 解 除 運 作 B部 所 說 明 的 指 定 工 程 項 目 ， 但 須 遵 守 C部 所 列 明 的 條 件 。 本 環 境 許 可 證 的 發 出 ， 乃 以 下 表 所 列 的 文 件 、 批 准 或 許 可 作 為 根 據 ﹕ -

PART B (DESCRIPTIONS OF DESIGNATED PROJECT)
B部 (指 定 工 程 項 目 的 說 明 )

Hereunder is the description of the designated project mentioned in Part A of this environmental permit (hereinafter referred to as the "Permit"):
下 列 為 本 環 境 許 可 證 (下 稱 "許 可 證 ")A部 所 提 述 的 指 定 工 程 項 目 的 說 明 :

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 may constitute a contravention of the Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance (Cap.499) and may become the subject of appropriate action to be taken under the Ordinance.

1.2 The Permit Holder shall ensure full compliance with all legislation from time to time in force including without limitation the Noise Control Ordinance (Cap.400), Air Pollution Control Ordinance (Cap.311), Water Pollution Control Ordinance (Cap.358), Waste Disposal Ordinance (Cap.354), Occupational Safety and Health Ordinance (Cap. 509), and Factories and Industrial Undertakings Ordinance (Cap.59). This Permit does not of itself constitute any ground of defense against any proceedings instituted under any legislation.

1.3 The Permit Holder shall make copies of this Permit together with all documents referred to in this Permit or the documents referred to in Part A of the Permit readily available at all times for inspection by the Director or his authorized officers at all sites/offices covered by this Permit. Any reference to the Permit shall include all documents referred to in the Permit and also the relevant documents in the Register.

1.4 The Permit Holder shall give a copy of this Permit to the person(s) in charge of the site and ensure that such person(s) fully understands all conditions and all requirements incorporated by the Permit. The site refers to the site of decommission of the Project and should mean the same hereinafter.

1.5 The Permit Holder shall display conspicuously a copy of this Permit at the decommissioning site at all vehicular site entrances/exits or at a convenient location for public information at all times. The Permit Holder shall ensure that the most updated information about the Permit, including any amended permit, 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 at the same locations as the original Permit. The suspended, varied or cancelled Permit shall be removed from display at the decommissioning site.

1.6 The Permit Holder shall decommission the Project in accordance with the project descriptions in Part B of this Permit.

1.7 The Permit Holder shall ensure that the Project is designed and decommissioned in accordance with the information and recommendations described in the EIA Report (Register No. AEIAR-049/2002); or mitigation measures described in this Permit, or mitigation measures to be recommended in submissions that shall be deposited with or approved by the Director as a result of permit conditions contained in this Permit, or mitigation measures to be recommended under on-going surveillance and monitoring activities during all stages of the Project. Where recommendations referred to in the documents of the Register are not expressly referred to in this Permit, such recommendations are nevertheless to be implemented unless expressly excluded or impliedly amended in this Permit.

1.8 All submissions, as required under this Permit, shall be rectified and resubmitted in accordance with the comments, if any, made by the Director, within one month of the receipt of the Director's comments or otherwise as specified by the Director.

1.9 All submissions approved by the Director, all submissions deposited without comments by the Director, or all submissions rectified in accordance with comments by the Director under this Permit shall be construed as part of the permit conditions described in Part C of this Permit. Any variation of the submissions shall be approved by the Director in writing or as prescribed in the relevant permit conditions. Any non-compliance with the submissions may constitute a contravention of the Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance. All submissions or any variation of the submissions shall be verified and certified by the Independent Environmental Checker (IEC) referred to in Condition 2.2 below, before submitting to the Director under this Permit.

1.10 The Permit Holder shall release all finalized submissions, as required under this Permit, to the public by depositing copies in the Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance Register Office, or in any other places, or any internet websites as specified by the Director, or by any other means as specified by the Director for public inspection. For this purpose, the Permit Holder shall provide sufficient copies of the submissions.

1.11 The Permit Holder shall notify the Director in writing the commencement date of decommissioning of the Project at least one month before the commencement of decommissioning of the Project. The Permit Holder shall notify the Director in writing immediately if there is any change of the commencement date of the decommissioning.

1.12 All submissions to the Director required under this Permit shall be delivered either in person or by registered mail to the Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance Register Office (currently at 27/F, Southorn Centre, 130 Hennessy Road, Wanchai, Hong Kong). Electronic copies of all finalized submissions required under this Permit shall be prepared in Hyper Text Markup Language (HTML) (version 4.0 or later) and in Portable Document Format (PDF version 4.0 or later), unless otherwise agreed by the Director and shall be submitted at the same time as the hard copies.

2. Special Conditions

2.1 An Environmental Team (ET) shall be established by the Permit Holder no later than two months before the commencement of decommissioning of the Project. The ET shall be headed by an ET Leader. The ET Leader shall be a person who has at least 7 years' experience in environmental monitoring and auditing (EM&A) or environmental management. The ET team and the ET Leader shall be responsible for the duties defined in the EM&A Manual of the EIA Report. The ET Leader shall be responsible for the implementation of the EM&A programme in accordance with the EM&A requirements as contained in the EM&A Manual. The ET Leader shall keep a contemporaneous log-book of each and every instance or circumstance or change of circumstances which may affect the environmental impact assessment and each and every non-compliance with the recommendations of the EIA Report or this Permit. This log-book shall be kept readily available for inspection by all persons assisting in supervision of the implementation of the EIA Report recommendations and this Permit or by the Director or his authorized officers. Failure to maintain records in the log-book, failure to discharge the duties of the ET Leader as defined in the EM&A Manual or failure to comply with this Condition would entitle the Director to require the Permit Holder by notice in writing to replace the ET Leader. Failure by the Permit Holder to make replacement, or further failure to keep contemporaneous records in the log-book despite the employment of a new ET Leader may render the Permit liable to suspension, cancellation or variation. The ET shall not be in any way an associated body of the Contractor or the IEC for the Project.

2.2 An Independent Environmental Checker (IEC) shall be employed by the Permit Holder no later than two months before the commencement of decommissioning of the Project. The IEC shall be a person who has at least 7 years' experience in environmental monitoring and audit (EM&A) or environmental management. The IEC shall be responsible for the duties defined in the EM&A Manual of the EIA Report, and shall audit the overall EM&A programme described in the EIA Report, including the implementation of all environmental mitigation measures, submissions required in the EM&A Manual, and any other submissions required under this Permit. In addition, the IEC shall be responsible for verifying the environmental acceptability of permanent and temporary works, relevant design plans and submissions under this Permit. The IEC shall verify the log-book(s) mentioned in Condition 2.1 of this Permit. The IEC shall notify the Director by fax, within 24 hours of each and every occurrence, change of circumstances or non-compliance with the EIA Report or this Permit, which might affect the monitoring or control of adverse environmental impact. Where the IEC fails to so notify the Director of the same, fails to discharge the duties of the IEC as defined in the EM&A Manual or fails to comply with this Condition, the Director may require the Permit Holder by notice in writing to replace the IEC. Failure to replace the IEC as directed or further failure to so notify the Director despite employment of a new IEC may render the Permit liable to suspension, cancellation or variation. Notification by the Permit Holder is the same as notification by the IEC for the purpose of this Condition. The IEC shall not be in any way an associated body of the Contractor or the Environmental Team for the Project.

2.3 All submissions for approval and deposition under Sections 2.10, 2.17 and 3 of this Permit shall be verified and certified by the IEC as conforming to the information and recommendations contained in the EIA Report before submission to the Director.

2.4 The Permit Holder shall, within 4 weeks after the commencement of decommissioning of the Project, inform the Director in writing of the management organization of the main decommissioning companies and/or any form of joint ventures associated with the decommissioning of the Project. The submitted information shall include at least an organization chart, names of responsible persons and their contact details.

Method of Demolition

2.5 The Permit Holder shall use non-blasting methods for the demolition of all of the structures including main plant building, chimney and administrative/storage buildings.

2.6 The Permit Holder shall demolish all structures and building in accordance with the recommendations and findings of the EIA Report, including but not limited to the following requirements:

(a) all structures and buildings shall be demolished and removed prior to demolition of chimneys; and

(b) all Asbestos Containing Materials (ACM) shall be removed prior to commencement of demolition works unless the ACM could only be removed when access is gained to particular areas as the demolition progresses.

Measures to Mitigate Landfill Gas Hazard

2.7 The Permit Holder shall implement the recommended precautionary measures in Section 5.9 and Appendix D of the EIA Report to mitigate landfill gas hazard throughout the site investigation, demolition and remediation phases. These measures shall include, but are not limited to the following requirements:

(a) training to workers and site personnel on the recommended measures to prevent landfill gases hazard;

(b) smoking not allowed on site;

(c) using spark free mechanical ventilation and spark arrestors for electrical equipment for underground works;

(d) provision of breathing apparatus; and

(e) monitoring of methane, carbon dioxide and oxygen below ground level and implementing the actions in accordance with Table 5.3 and Section 5.9.12 of the EIA Report. In particular, the Permit Holder shall immediately stop all the works below ground level when the concentration of:

(i) Oxygen is less than 18 % by volume;

(ii) Methane is greater than 20 % Lower Explosive Limit (see notes); and

(iii) Carbon Dioxide is greater than 1.5 by volume.

Measures to Mitigate Waste Impacts

2.8 The Permit Holder shall submit 6 sets of Waste Management Plan (WMP) 8 weeks before the commencement of the decommissioning of the Project to the Director for approval. The WMP shall take account of the findings and recommendations of the waste management section of the EIA, including but not limited to the following:

(a) location of the disposal site(s);

(b) transportation routing(s) of the removal of excavated and/or demolished materials from the project site to the disposal site(s);

(c) details on the types, quantities, level of contaminants, treatment and disposal methods;

(d) timings for disposal of wastes;

(e) responsibilities for implementation;

(f) possible recycling and reuse of materials; and

(g) trip-ticket system for waste transfer/disposal operations.

2.9 The Permit Holder shall fully implement all the measures recommended in the approved WMP in accordance with the requirements and time schedule(s) set out in the WMP.

Remediation of Contaminated Soil

2.10 The Permit Holder shall conduct reassurance and confirmatory testings to verify the actual extent of contaminated soil before the remediation is carried out and to determine any additional areas for remedial action after initial remediation.

2.11 The Permit Holder shall carry out remediation for contaminated soil in accordance with Section 4.7 of the EIA Report, including but not limited to the following:

(a) conduct pilot mixing and Toxicity Characteristic Leachate Procedures (TCLP) tests for the contaminated soils to verify the effectiveness of the mix to establish the necessary cement to soil ratio;

(b) soils contaminated with heavy metal shall be treated by mixing with cement and reusing on site after passing the TCLP test in accordance with the recommendations of in Appendix E of the EIA Report; and

(c) soils contaminated with petroleum hydrocarbons and/or polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons shall be disposed of to a Government landfill agreed by the Director after passing the TCLP tests and/or shall be pretreated in accordance with the Appendix E of the EIA Report.

Disposal of Ash contaminated by Dioxins and/or Furans

2.12 The Permit Holder shall conduct reassurance and confirmatory testing to verify the actual extent of Dioxins and Furans contaminated ash deposits before remediation is carried out and to determine any additional areas for remedial action after initial remediation.

2.13 The Permit Holder shall treat ash contaminated with Dioxins and/or Furans with cement in accordance with Section 4.7 of the EIA Report including but not limited to the following:

(a) conduct pilot tests including TCLP tests to determine the appropriate cement to ash ratio for the purpose of compliance with the 1 part per billion toxicity equivalent (1 ppb TEQ) criteria;

(b) submit the test results to the Director for confirmation of the disposal site;

(c) if the pilot test criteria in condition 2.13 (a) are met, seal the treated ash into steel drums lined with plastic sheeting; and

(d) dispose of the drummed material in condition 2.13 (c) above to a Government landfill agreed by the Director.

2.14 Disposal at the Chemical Waste Treatment Centre, Tsing Yi, should be considered as a fall back option if the pilot test criteria cannot be met.

Mitigation Measures to prevent Decommissioning Nuisances

2.15 The Permit Holder shall implement mitigation measures to prevent decommissioning related nuisances throughout the site investigation, demolition and remediation phases, in accordance with the EIA Report, including but not limited to the following:

(a) water haul roads at least 4 times per day by a water bowser or otherwise;

(b) provide wheel washing facilities at all exits and divert all wash water to sediment pit(s) or equivalent;

(c) cover all access roads with gravel;

(d) provide covers for dusty stockpiles;

(e) use sediment traps, temporary channels, temporary diversion and oil interception facilities to mitigate site run-off impacts;

(f) divert all clean surface water around the site; and

(g) provide bunded areas for the treatment operations on contaminated soil and ash, for generators, and for storage of fuel, oil and chemical wastes.

2.16 The IEC shall verify and certify the compliance of the requirements under conditions 2.5, 2.6, 2.7, 2.8, 2.9, 2.10, 2.11, 2.12, 2.13, 2.14 and 2.15.

3. Environmental Monitoring and Audit (EM&A) during the Decommissioning Period

3.1 The EM&A programme shall be implemented as set out in the EM&A Manual of the EIA Report. Any change to the changes to the programme shall be justified by the IEC as conforming to the requirements set out in the EM&A Manual and shall be approved by the Director.

3.2 The Permit Holder shall set up a complaint investigation procedure at least 2 weeks before the commencement of decommissioning works. The complaint investigation procedure shall follow the requirements set out in the EM&A programme.

3.3 All environmental monitoring and audit data submitted under this Permit shall be true, valid and correct.

3.4 Two hard copies and one electronic copy of the Baseline Monitoring Report shall be submitted to the Director at least 2 weeks before the commencement of any decommissioning works. Additional copies of the submission shall be provided to the Director upon request from the Director

3.5 Two hard copies and one electronic copy of monthly EM&A Report shall be submitted to the Director within 2 weeks after the end of the reporting month. Additional copies of the submission shall be provided to the Director upon request from the Director.

3.6 The actions described in the Event/Action Plans of the EM&A Manual shall be fully and properly carried out, in accordance with the time frame(s) set out in the Event/Action Plan, or as agreed by the Director.

4. Electronic Reporting of EM&A Information

4.1 To facilitate public inspection of the Baseline Monitoring Report and monthly EM&A Reports via the EIAO Internet Website and at the EIAO Register Office, electronic copies of these Reports shall be prepared in Hyper Text Markup Language (HTML) (version 4.0 or later) and in Portable Document Format (PDF version 4.0 or later), unless otherwise agreed by the Director and shall be submitted at the same time as the hard copies as described in Conditions 3.5 and 3.6 of this Permit. For the HTML version, a content page capable of providing hyperlinks to each section and sub-section of these Reports shall be included at the beginning of the document. Hyperlinks to all figures, drawings and tables in these Reports shall be provided in the main text where the respective references are made. All graphics in these Reports shall be in interlaced GIF format unless otherwise agreed by the Director. The content of the electronic copies of these Reports shall be the same as the hard copies.

4.2 All environmental monitoring data described in Condition 4.1 above shall be made available to the public via internet access in the shortest possible time and in no event later than 2 weeks after the relevant environmental monitoring data are collected or become available, unless otherwise agreed with the Director. The Permit Holder shall notify the Director in writing, within 6 weeks after the commencement of decommissioning, the internet address where the environmental monitoring data are to be placed. The internet address and the relevant environmental monitoring data shall be made available to the public via the EIAO Internet Website and the EIAO Register Office.

4.3 The internet website as described in Condition 4.2 above shall enable user-friendly public access to the monitoring data with features capable of:

(a) providing access to all environmental monitoring data collected since the commencement of decommissioning;

(b) searching by date;

(c) searching by types of monitoring data (air quality and construction waste); and

(d) hyperlinking to relevant monitoring data after searching;

or otherwise as agreed by the Director.

Notes :

1. This Permit consists of three parts, namely, PART A (Main Permit), PART B (Description of Designated Project) and PART C (Permit Conditions). Any person relying on this permit should obtain independent legal advice on the legal implications under the Ordinance, and the following notes are for general information only.

2. The Permit Holder may apply under Section 13 of the Ordinance to the Director for a variation of the conditions of this Permit. The Permit Holder shall replace the original permit displayed on the decommissioning site by the amended permit.

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 may with the consent of the Secretary for the Environment and Food, suspend, vary or cancel this Permit. The suspended, varied or cancelled Permit shall be removed from display at the decommissioning site.

5. If this Permit is cancelled or surrendered during decommissioning of the Project, another environmental permit must be obtained under the Ordinance before the Project could be continued. It is an offence under Section 26(1) of the Ordinance to construct or operate a designated project listed in Part I of Schedule 2 of the Ordinance without a valid environmental permit.

6. Any person who constructs or operates the Project contrary to the conditions in the Permit, and is convicted of an offence under the Ordinance, is liable: -

(i) on a first conviction on indictment to a fine of $ 2 million and to imprisonment for 6 months;

(ii) on a second or subsequent conviction on indictment to a fine of $ 5 million and to imprisonment for 2 years;

(iii) on a first summary conviction to a fine at level 6 and to imprisonment for 6 months;

(iv) on a second or subsequent summary conviction to a fine of $1 million and to imprisonment for 1 year; and

(v) in any case where the offence is of a continuing nature, the court or magistrate may impose a fine of $ 10,000 for each day on which he is satisfied the offence continued.

7. The Permit Holder may appeal against any condition of this Permit under Section 17 of the Ordinance within 30 days of receipt of this Permit.

8. The Notes are for general reference only and that the Permit Holder should refer to the EIA Ordinance for details and seek independent legal advice.

9. Occupational safety and health issues are governed by the Occupational Safety and Health Ordinance (Cap. 509), and Factories and Industrial Undertakings Ordinance (Cap.59). The Permit Holder is advised to contact the Labour Department for requirements relating to occupational safety and health issues.

10. Methane will burn when mixed with air between approximately 5 % by volume and 15 % by volume, that is, the Lower Explosive Limit and Upper Explosive Limit respectively.

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