The purpose of
this Environmental Monitoring and Audit (EM&A) Manual is to guide the
set-up of an EM&A programme to ensure compliance with the Environmental
Impact Assessment (EIA) study recommendations, to assess the effectiveness of
the recommended mitigation measures and to identify any further need for
additional mitigation measures or remedial action. This Manual outlines the monitoring and audit programme to be
undertaken for the construction and operation of the Proposed Joint User
Complex and Wholesale fish Market at Area 44, Tuen Mun (hereinafter called “the
Project”). It aims to provide
systematic procedures for monitoring, auditing and minimising of the
environmental impacts associated with the construction and operation
works.
Hong Kong
environmental regulations for air and water quality, noise and waste, and
recommendations in the EIA study final report on the Project have served as
environmental standards and guidelines in the preparation of this Manual.
The Manual contains the following:
(a) Responsibilities of the Contractor, the Engineer or Engineer’s Representative (ER), and the Independent Environmental Consultant (IEC) with respect to the EM&A requirements during the course of the Project,
(b) Information on project organisation and programming of construction activities for the Project,
(c) Requirements with respect to the construction schedule and the necessary EM&A programme to track the varying environmental impact,
(d) Full details of the methodologies to be adopted, including all field, laboratory and analytical procedures, and details on quality assurance and quality control programme,
(e) Definition of Action and Limit levels,
(f) Establishment of Event and Action Plans,
(g) Requirements of reviewing pollution sources and working procedures required in the event of non-compliance of the environmental criteria and complaints,
(h) Requirements of presentation of environmental monitoring and appropriate reporting procedures.
For the purpose of this manual, the “Engineer” shall refer to the Engineer as defined in the Contract and the Engineer’s Representative (ER), in cases where the Engineer’s powers have been delegated to the ER, in accordance with the Contract. The Environmental Team (ET) Leader, who shall be responsible for and in charge of the ET, shall refer to the person delegated the role of executing the environmental monitoring and audit requirements.
A Joint User Complex and Wholesale Fish Market (WFM Complex) at Area
44 in Tuen Mun is proposed to be designed and built by the Architectural
Services Department on behalf of the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation
Department, the Marine Department, the Social Welfare Department and the Food
and Environmental Hygiene Department of the Hong Kong SAR. The WFM Complex is
to provide a permanent site for the relocation of the existing temporary
wholesale fish market at Tuen Mun Area 27 and to accommodate the community
facilities such as a community hall for public use. The proposed development is
a 5-storey complex to accommodate the wholesale fish market on the ground
floor, a community hall on the first floor, other possible community uses on
the second, third and fourth floors and a landscaped deck. However, the proposed facility has the
potential to cause impacts on the air quality, noise, water and waste nuisance
at the nearby sensitive receivers. The EIA
Report recommended a range of mitigation measures to control the Project’s
potential environmental impacts with regard to the above.
The project site is shown in Figure 1.1.
1.3
Environmental Monitoring and Audit Requirements
The EIA study identified the possible environmental impacts during construction and operation phases, including air quality, water quality, noise, and waste management as well as hazard to life. These impacts can be minimised to acceptable levels with the implementation of environmental mitigation measures. In order to ensure the environmental compliance, monitoring works have been recommended and are described in detail in the subsequent sections.
The project
organisation and lines of communication with respect to environmental
protection works is shown in Figure 1.2.
The ET shall not be in any way an associated body of
the Contractor. The ET Leader shall have
relevant professional qualifications, or have sufficient relevant EM&A
experience subject to approval of the ER and the Environmental Protection
Department (EPD).
Sufficient and suitably qualified professional and technical staff shall be employed by the respective parties to ensure full compliance with their duties and responsibilities, as required under the environmental monitoring and auditing work for the project.
The foundation construction period of the project is estimated to be 9
months and the superstructure period is estimated to be 25 months. The ET
Leader shall make reference to the actual works progress and programme during
the construction stage to schedule the EM&A works, and the Contractor shall
provide the respective information to the ET Leader for formulating the
EM&A schedule.