EP-190/2004

Environmental Permit No. EP-190/2004

環境許可證編號 EP-190/2004

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 CONSTRUCT AND OPERATE

A DESIGNATED PROJECT

建造及營辦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 Ordinance), the Director of Environmental Protection (the Director) grants this environmental permit to the Highways Department, Hong Kong SAR Government (hereinafter referred as the "Permit Holder") to construct and operate 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(本條例)第10條的規定，環境保護署署長(署長)將本環境許可證批予香港特別行政區政府路政署(許可證持有人)以建造及營辦B部所說明的指定工程項目，但須遵守C部所列明的條件。本環境許可證依據下列文件、批准或許可而簽發﹕

Application No.

申請書編號

AEP-190/2004

Document in the Register:

登記冊上的文件：

1. Improvements to San Tin Interchange– Environmental Impact Assessment, Environmental Monitoring and Audit (EM&A) Manual and EIA Executive Summary

(Register No.: AEIAR-077/2004) [Hereafter referred to as the EIA report]

新田交匯處改善工程　—　環境影響評估報告, 環境監察審核手冊及評估報告摘要(登記冊檔號：AEIAR-077/2004) [下稱“環評報告”]

2. The Director’s letter of approval of the EIA Report dated 3.5.2004 in (9) in Ax(1) to EP2/N6/A/76 Part 2

署長於2004年5月3日發出該環評報告的批准信，檔案編號(9) in Ax(1) to EP2/N6/A/76 Part 2

3. Application for Environmental Permit submitted on 18 May 2004 (Application No. AEP-190/2004)

許可證持有人於2004年5月18日提交的許可証申請文件 (申請書編號: AEP-190/2004)

Date

日期

(Elvis W.K. AU)

Assistant Director of Environmental Protection

(Environmental Assessment and Noise)

for Director of Environmental Protection

環境保護署署長

(助理署長 (環境評估及噪音) 區偉光代行)

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:

下列為本環境許可證A部所提及的指定工程項目的說明:

Title of Designated Project

指定工程項目的名稱

Improvements to San Tin Interchange

[Hereafter referred to as the Project]

新田交匯處改善工程

[下稱“工程項目”]

Nature of Designated Project
指定工程項目的性質

The construction and operation of a new interchange and slip roads on the San Tin Highway including slip road A, slip road B and slip road F between abutments.

建造及營辦新田公路上新的公路交匯處及引路，包括橋台間

的引路A、引路B及引路F。

Location of Designated Project

指定工程項目的地點

San Tin Interchange, San Tin Highway. The location of the project is shown in Figure 1 of this environmental permit.

新田公路新田交匯處。工程項目的地點載於本環境許可證的圖1。

Scale and Scope of Designated Project(s)

指定工程項目的規模和範圍

A new interchange, slip roads and associated works on the San Tin Highway.

新田公路交匯處、引路及相關工程

PART C (PERMIT CONDITIONS)

1. General Conditions

1.1 The Permit Holder and any person working on the Project shall comply with all conditions set out in this Permit. Any non-compliance by any person may constitute a contravention of the Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance (Cap. 499) and may become the subject of appropriate action being 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 to, the Noise Control Ordinance (Cap. 400), Air Pollution Control Ordinance (Cap. 311), Water Pollution Control Ordinance (Cap. 358), Dumping at Sea Ordinance (Cap. 466) and Waste Disposal Ordinance (Cap. 354). This Permit does not of itself constitute any ground of defence against any proceedings instituted under any legislation or imply any approval 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 authorised 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(s) and ensure that such person(s) fully understands all conditions and all requirements incorporated by the Permit. The site(s) refers to site(s) of construction of the Project and shall mean the same hereafter.

1.5 The Permit Holder shall display conspicuously a copy of this Permit on the construction site(s) at a convenient location for public’s 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 location. 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 location as the original Permit. The suspended, varied or cancelled Permit shall be removed from display at the construction site(s).

1.6 The Permit Holder shall construct 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, constructed and operated in accordance with the information and all recommendations described in the Improvements to San Tin Interchange EIA Report (Register No. AEIAR-077/2004) and the Director’s Permission of the EIA Report in the EIA Ordinance Register Office; the information or mitigation measures described in this Permit, mitigation measures to be recommended in submissions that shall be deposited as a result of permit conditions contained in this Permit, and mitigation measures to be recommended under ongoing 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 deposited submissions, as required under this Permit, shall be rectified in accordance with the comments, if any made by the Director within one month of the receipt of the Director’s comments or otherwise 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 variations 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 EIA Ordinance (Cap. 499). All submissions or any variation of the submissions shall be certified by the Environmental Team (ET) Leader and verified by the Independent Environmental Checker (IEC) referred to in Conditions 2.1 and 2.2 below, before submitting to the Director under the Permit.

1.10 The Permit Holder shall release all finalized submissions, as required under this Permit, to the public by depositing copies in the EIA 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 111public inspection. For this purpose, the Permit Holder shall provide sufficient copies of the submissions.

1.11 All submissions to the Director required under this Permit shall be delivered either in person or by registered mail to the EIA 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

1.12 The Permit Holder shall notify the Director in writing the commencement date of construction of the Project at least 2 weeks prior to the commencement of construction of the Project. The Permit Holder shall notify the Director in writing immediately if there is any change of the commencement date of the construction.

1.13 For the purpose of this Permit, “commencement of construction” does not include works related to site clearance and preparation, or other works as agreed by the Director.

2. Measures to Ensure the Environmental Performance of the Project

2.1 An Environmental Team (ET) shall be established by the Permit Holder no later than one month before the commencement of construction of the Project. The ET shall not be in any way an associated body of the Contractor or the Independent Environmental Checker (IEC) for the Project. The ET shall be headed by an ET Leader. The ET leader shall be a person who has at least 7 years of experience in environmental monitoring and auditing (EM&A) or environmental management. The ET and 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 of the Project. The ET Leader shall keep a contemporaneous log-book of each and every instance or circumstance or change of circumstances, which may affect the compliance with the recommendations of the Improvements to San Tin Interchange EIA Report (Register No. AEIAR-077/2004) and this Permit. The ET Leader shall notify the IEC within one working day of the occurrence of any such instance or circumstance or change of circumstances. The ET Leader’s log-book shall be kept readily available for inspection by all persons assisting in supervision of the implementation of the recommendations of the Improvements to San Tin Interchange EIA Report(Register No. AEIAR-077/2004) 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.

2.2 An IEC shall be employed by the Permit Holder no later than one month before commencement of construction of the Project. The IEC shall not be in any way an associated body of the Contractor or the ET for the Project. The IEC shall be a person who has at least 7 years of experience in EM&A or environmental management. The IEC shall be responsible for duties defined in the EM&A Manual and shall audit the overall EM&A performance, 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 one working day of receipt of notification from the ET Leader of each and every occurrence, change of circumstances or non-compliance with the Improvements to San Tin Interchange EIA Report(Register No. AEIAR-077/2004) and this Permit, which might affect the monitoring or control of adverse environmental impacts from the Project. In the case 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.

2.3 To avoid the adverse water quality impacts during the construction and operation phase of the Improvements to San Tin Interchange works, the supports of the bridge and slip roads structures should not be located within the San Tin River or the Eastern Main Drainage Channel (see typical section shown in Figure 2).

2.4 During the construction of the road bridge between abutments, movable noise barrier(s) of 3 to 5 m high shall be deployed at location shown in Figure 3 to block the line of sight to the noise sensitive receivers. The length of the barrier(s) shall be at least five times greater than its height and the barrier(s) shall be located within 10 m of the stationary or mobile plants.

2.5 The Permit Holder shall implement all the proposed landscape and visual mitigation measures detailed in the Landscape Master Plan and the Implementation Schedule of the Improvements to San Tin Interchange EIA Report(Register No.AEIAR-077/2004) during the construction and operation of the project. The Landscape Master Plan of the EIA Report is attached as Figure 4 of this Permit.

2.6 Excavated materials or materials alike arising from the Project shall be reused in the Project site. No such surplus excavation material and construction waste shall be disposed of anywhere except the WENT, NENT and SENT Landfill or other location(s) as agreed with the Director.

3. Environmental Monitoring and Audit (EM&A) Requirements during Construction Period

3.1 All measures recommended in the Improvements to San Tin Interchange EIA Reportand the EM&A Manual shall be fully and properly implemented in accordance with the requirements and time schedule(s) set out in the EM&A Manual.

3.2 Any changes to the monitoring and audit requirements shall be justified by the ET leader and verified by the IEC as conforming to the requirements set out in the EM&A Manual, and shall be submitted to the Director for approval.

3.3 Samples, measurements and necessary remedial actions shall be taken in accordance with the requirements of the EM&A Manual by:

(a) conducting baseline environmental monitorings;

(b) conducting impact monitoring;

(c) carrying out remedial actions described in the Event/Action Plans of the E M&A Manual in accordance with the time frame set out in the Event/Action Plans, or as agreed by the Director, in case where specified criteria in the EM&A Manual are exceeded;

(d) logging and keeping records of the details of (a) to (c) above for all parameters within 3 working days of the collection of data or completion of remedial action(s), for the purpose of preparing and submitting the monthly EM&A Reports and to make available the information for inspection on site.

3.4 All EM&A data submitted under this Permit shall be true, valid and correct.

3.5 Three 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 construction of the Project. The submission shall be certified by the ET Leader and verified by the IEC. Additional copies of the submission shall be made available to the Director upon his request.

3.6 Three 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. The EM&A Reports shall include a summary of all non-compliance (exceedances) of the environmental quality performance limits (Action and Limit Levels). The submissions shall be certified by the ET Leader and verified by the IEC. Additional copies of the submission shall be provided to the Director upon request 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 above of this Permit. For the HTML version, a content page capable of providing hyperlink to each section and sub-section of these Reports shall be included in the beginning of the document. Hyperlinks to all figures, drawings and tables in these Reports shall be provided in the main text from 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 must be the same as the hard copies.

4.2 The Permit Holder shall, within six weeks after the commencement of construction of the Project, set up a dedicated Internet web site and notify the Director in writing the Internet address where the environmental monitoring data and project information is to be placed. All environmental monitoring data described in Condition 4.1 above shall be made available to the public via the abovementioned dedicated Internet web site in the shortest possible time and in any event no later than 2 weeks after the relevant environmental monitoring data are collected or become available, unless otherwise agreed with the Director.

4.3 The Internet web site as described in Condition 4.2 above shall enable user-friendly public access to the environmental monitoring data and project information including theProject Profile (EIAO Register Ref. PP188/2003) and this Environmental Permit. The Internet web site shall have features capable of:

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

(b) providing access to all finalized submissions as required under this Permit;

(d) searching by types of monitoring data (water quality, ecology, noise and air quality); and

(e) hyperlinking to relevant monitoring data after searching;

or otherwise as agreed by the Director.

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 Environmental Impact Assessment 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 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 with the consent of the Secretary for Environment, Transport and Works, may suspend, vary or cancel this environmental permit. The cancelled permit shall be removed from the display on the operation site.

5. If this permit is cancelled or surrendered during the operation, an environmental permit must be obtained under the Ordinance before the operation of the project could be continued. It is an offence under section 26(1) of the Ordinance to construct or operate a designated project without an environmental permit.

6. All submissions as required under this permit shall be deposited in the Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance Register Office on the 27/F of Southorn Centre, 130 Hennessy Road, Wanchai, Hong Kong.

7. Any person who operates the designated project contrary to the conditions in this 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.

8. Under section 17 of the EIA Ordinance, the applicant may appeal to the Appeal Board against the Director’s decision within 30 days of receipt of this environmental permit.