Environmental Permit No. EP-298/2007
環境許可證編號EP-298/2007
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT ORDINANCE
(CHAPTER 499)
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
A部 (許可證主要部分)
Pursuant
to Section 10 of the Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance (EIAO), the
Director of Environmental Protection (the Director) grants this environmental
permit to the REACH NETWORKS HONG KONG LTD. (hereinafter referred to 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》(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REACH NETWORKS HONG KONG LTD. (下稱”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。本環境許可證是依據下列文件、批准或許可而簽發：
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Application No. 申請書編號 |
AEP-298/2007 |
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Document in the Register : 登記冊上的文件: |
1.
Project Profile –
“Asia-America Gateway (AAG) Cable Network, (Register
No.: PP-331/2007) 工程項目簡介 - “南大嶼山亞美海底光纜系統” (登記冊編號 : PP-331/2007) 2.
The Director’s letter
of permission to apply directly for environmental permit dated 14 November 2007 (Ref.: EP2/N9/C/124) 署長於2007年11月14日 發出批准直接申請環境許可證的信件 (檔案編號 : EP2/N9/C/124) |
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Document in the Register : 登記冊上的文件: |
3.
Application for
Environmental Permit submitted by the Permit Holder on 3 December 2007 (Application
No.: AEP-298/2007) 許可證持有人於2007年
12 月 3 日提交的環境許可證申請文件（申請書編號：AEP-298/2007） |
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20 December 2007 |
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Date 日期 |
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(Terence
S W TSANG) Atg.
Principal Environmental Protection Officer (Regional Assessment) for
Director of Environmental Protection 環境保護署署長 (署理首席環境保護主任(區域評估) 曾世榮代行) |
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PART
B (DESCRIPTION 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:
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Title of Designated Project 指定工程項目的名稱
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Asia-America Gateway
(AAG) Cable Network, (This designated
project is hereafter referred to as “the Project”) 南大嶼山亞美海底光纜系統 (本指定工程項目下稱“工程項目”)。 |
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Nature of Designated Project 指定工程項目的性質 |
A dredging operation
which is less than 500 meters from the nearest boundary of the Tong Fuk
bathing beach and a coastal protection area. 距離塘福泳灘和海岸保護區的最近界線少於500米的挖泥作業。 |
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Location of Designated Project 指定工程項目的地點
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Tong
Fuk, 南大嶼塘福及其離岸海域。 The locations of the
Project, including the alignments of the cable routes and the locations of
cable landing points, are shown in Figure
1 and Figure 2 of this Permit. 工程項目的地點，包括光纜路線及登岸地點，展示於本許可證圖1及圖2內。 |
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Scale and
Scope of Designated Project |
The Project is to construct and operate an optical
fibre telecommunication cable network which mainly comprises laying of two
submarine cables, each with about 10km in length, by the injection jetting
technique. 工程項目為建造及營辦光纜通訊系統，其主要工程包括以注射噴流技術敷設兩條各長約10公里的海底光纜。 |
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), Waste
Disposal Ordinance (Cap. 354) and Dumping at Sea Ordinance (Cap. 466). This
Permit does not of itself constitute any ground of defense 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 and 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(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 and operation of the
Project and shall mean the same hereafter.
1.5
The Permit Holder shall display
conspicuously a copy of this Permit on the Project site(s) at all site
entrances/exits or 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 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 Project site(s).
1.6
The Permit Holder shall construct
and operate the Project in accordance with the project description 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 recommendations described in the Project Profile (Register No. PP-331/2007)
and other relevant documents in the Register, the
information and mitigation measures described in this Permit, and 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 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 (Cap.499).
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
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.
1.12
The Permit Holder shall notify the
Director in writing the commencement date of construction of the Project no
later than one week 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. Specific
Conditions
2.1 The Project shall only be
constructed and operated at the locations as indicated in Figure 1 and Figure 2 of this Permit.
2.2 No works within 500m from the nearest boundary of the
2.3 Only
injection jetting technique as described in the Project Profile (Register No.:
PP-331/2007) shall be used for the laying of the submarine cables. Laying of
submarine cables within 400m from the shore shall be carried out by divers
using jet probes. For laying of cables beyond 400m from the shore, the
traveling speed of the jetting machine shall not be faster than 300m per hour.
2.4 Near-shore
baseline coral surveys by divers shall be carried out along the first 500m of
the cable alignment of the Route S1 as indicated in Figure
1 of this Permit prior to the
near-shore cable installation. Marine ecologists shall be engaged in the coral
surveys to make recommendations, including cable re-alignment to avoid
encroachment and direct impacts on coral colonies and if necessary, mitigation
measures to avoid or minimize any adverse impacts identified.
2.5 The Permit Holder shall, no
later than four weeks before the commencement of construction, deposit with the
Director four hard copies and one electronic copy of an EM&A Manual for the
construction of the Project. The EM&A Manual shall include the following
EM&A programme :
(i)
water quality monitoring
with details on methodology, locations, frequency and duration for baseline,
impact and post-construction monitoring, and water quality performance limits
(Action and Limit Levels);
(ii)
marine ecological
monitoring with details on dive surveys on corals and visual inspections of
marine mammal species of Chinese White Dolphin and Finless
Porpoise, and recommendations to protect the corals and marine mammals;
(iii)
Event and Action Plans;
(iv)
compliance audit
procedures of mitigation measures as recommended in the Project Profile No.
PP-331/2007; and
(v) procedures and flow charts for handling complaints or
enquires on environmental nuisances or pollution caused by the Project.
2.6 The EM&A programme shall
be implemented in accordance with the procedures and requirements set out in
the EM&A Manual deposited under Condition 2.7 of
this Permit and shall include :
(i)
baseline
water quality monitoring and coral surveys;
(ii)
water
quality impact monitoring and visual inspections of marine mammals; and
(iii)
post-construction
water quality monitoring and if necessary post-construction coral surveys.
2.7 All environmental monitoring
and audit results and reports and all submissions required by this Permit shall
be made available to the public through a dedicated web site to be set up by
the Permit Holder in the shortest practicable time and in no event later than
one week after the relevant environmental monitoring data are collected or
become available, unless otherwise agreed with the Director. The Permit Holder
shall set up the dedicated web site and notify the Director in writing the
internet address where the environmental monitoring and project data is to be
placed within two weeks after the commencement of construction of the Project.
The Permit Holder shall maintain the dedicated website throughout the entire
construction stage and during the first three operating months of the Project
to facilitate public access to environmental monitoring data.
2.8 All cables shall be buried
underground or below seabed. No covering materials of the submarine cables
shall protrude above seabed level. The Permit Holder shall, no later than four
weeks after completion of construction of the Project, deposit with the
Director three hard copies and one electronic copy of as-built drawing(s) in
the scale of 1:50,000 or other appropriate scale showing the construction details,
the locations of the cable landing points and the alignments of the submarine
cables with coordinates.
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. If there is a breach of any conditions of this Permit, the
Director or his authorized officer may, with the consent of the Secretary for
the Environment, order the cessation of associated work until the remedial
action is taken in respect of the resultant environmental damage, and in that
case the Permit Holder shall not carry out any associated works without the
permission of the Director or his authorized officer.
3. The Permit Holder may apply under Section 13 of the Environmental
Impact Assessment Ordinance (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 Project site by the amended permit.
4. A
person who assumes the responsibility for the whole or a part of the Project
may, before he assumes responsibility of the Project, apply under Section 12 of
the Ordinance to the Director for a further environmental permit.
5. Under Section 14 of the Ordinance, the Director may with the
consent of the Secretary for the Environment, suspend, vary or cancel this
Permit. The suspended, varied or cancelled Permit shall be removed from display
at the Project site.
6. If
this Permit is cancelled or surrendered during construction or operation 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 Schedule 2
of the Ordinance without a valid environmental permit.
7. 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.
8.
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.
9.
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.
Environmental Permit No. EP-298/2007
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