1.1
In April 2008, the Government
of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) requested
1.2
Upon the opening of the West
Kowloon Terminus (WKT) of the Express Rail Link and the development of the West
Kowloon Cultural District (WKCD), additional road traffic capacity and network
restructuring will be required through and within the West Kowloon Reclamation
Area (WKRA). Roads D1A, D1,
1.3 In accordance with the provisions of the Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance (hereinafter referred to as the EIAO), the Project is a Designated Project (DP) under Items A.1 and A.9 of Part I, Schedule 2 of the EIAO: “A.1 - A road which is an expressway, trunk road, primary distributor road or district distributor road including new roads, and major extensions or improvements to existing roads” and “A.9 - A road fully enclosed by decking above and by structure on the sides for more than 100m”.
1.4
An application for an EIA Study
Brief was made to the Environmental Protection Department (
1.5 AECOM Asia Co. Ltd. (Integrating the operation of ENSR Asia (HK) Limited) has been commissioned by the MTRC to undertake the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Study of the Project.
1.6 To ease the current congested traffic condition and fulfil future demand, construction of new roads and upgrading of the existing roads are proposed in the WKRA (See Figure No. NOL/ERL/300/C/WKT/ENS/M62/001). The proposed roads include:
§
Road D1A: Dual carriageway extending from
Hoi Wang Road to Jordan Road and Wui Cheung Road, running parallel to Lin Cheung
Road and Man Cheong Street.
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Road D1: Dual carriageway extending from
Road D1A, connecting Wui Cheung Road and Austin Road West, running parallel to
Lin Cheung Road and Canton Road.
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Lin Cheung Road – Austin Road West Underpass:
Dual two-lane underpass running from north of Jordan Road, along and below Lin
Cheung Road and Austin Road West with a depressed junction, to the west of
Canton Road.
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Upgrading of
1.7 The construction of the Project is tentatively scheduled to commence in 2011 and complete by 2014.
1.8 The purpose of this Environmental Monitoring and Audit (EM&A) Manual is to guide the set up of an EM&A programme to check on compliance with the EIA study recommendations, to assess the effectiveness of the recommended mitigation measures and to identify any further need for additional mitigation measures or remedial actions. This Manual outlines the monitoring and audit programme for the construction and operational phases of the Project. It aims to provide systematic procedures for monitoring, auditing and minimising environmental impacts associated with construction works and operational activities.
1.9
1.10 This Manual contains the following information:
§
Responsibilities of the Contractor, the Engineer
or Engineer’s Representative (ER), the Environmental Team (ET)
and the Independent Environmental Checker (IEC) with respect to the
environmental monitoring and audit requirements during the course of the
Project;
§
Project organization;
§
The basis for, and description of the broad
approach underlying the EM&A programme;
§
Requirement with respect to the construction
programme schedule and the necessary environmental monitoring and audit
programme to track the varying environmental impact;
§
Details of the methodologies to be adopted,
and details on quality assurance and quality control programme;
§
The rationale on which the environmental
monitoring data will be evaluated and interpreted;
§
Definition of Action and Limit levels;
§
Establishment of Event and Action plans;
§
Requirements for reviewing pollution sources
and working procedures required in the event of non-compliance with the
environmental criteria and complaints;
§
Requirements for presentation of environmental
monitoring and audit data and appropriate reporting procedures; and
§
Requirements for reviewing of EIA
predictions and the effectiveness of the mitigation measures / environmental
management systems and the EM&A programme
1.11 For the purpose of this Manual, the ET leader, who will be responsible for and in charge of the ET, refers to the person to whom the role of executing the EM&A requirements is assigned.
1.12 The roles and responsibilities of the various parties involved in the EM&A process and the organizational structure of the organizations responsible for implementing the EM&A programme are outlined below. The proposed Project organization and lines of communication with respect to environmental protection works are shown in Figure No. NOL/ERL/300/C/WKT/ENS/M62/002.
Engineer or Engineer’s
Representative (ER)
1.13 The Engineer is responsible for overseeing the construction works and for ensuring that the works are undertaken by the Contractor in accordance with the specification and contractual requirements. The duties and responsibilities of the Engineer with respect to EM&A may include:
§
Supervise the Contractor’s activities and
ensure that the requirements in the EM&A Manual are fully complied with;
§
Inform the Contractor when action is
required to reduce impacts in accordance with the Event and Action Plans;
§
Participate in site inspections undertaken
by the ET; and
§
Adhere to the procedures for carrying out complaint
investigations.
The Contractor
1.14 The Contractor should report to the Engineer. The duties and responsibilities of the Contractor are:
§
Implement the EIA recommendation;
§
Provide assistance to ET in carrying out
monitoring;
§
Submit proposals on mitigation measures in
case of exceedances of Action and Limit levels, in accordance with the Event
and Action Plans;
§
Implement measures to reduce impact where
Action and Limit levels are exceeded; and
§
Adhere to the procedures for carrying out
complaint investigation as required in the EM&A Manual.
Environmental Team (ET)
(MTRC)
1.15 The ET should conduct the EM&A programme and ensure the Contractor’s compliance with the project’s environmental performance requirements during construction. The ET should be an independent party from the Contractor.
1.16 The ET should be led and managed by the ET leader. The ET leader should possess at least 7 years of experience in EM&A. The ET team should monitor the mitigation measures implemented by the Contractor on a regular basis to ensure compliance with the intended aims of the measures. The duties and responsibilities of the ET are:
§
Monitor the various environmental parameters
as required in the EM&A Manual;
§
Carry out site inspection to investigate and
audit the Contractor’s site practice, equipment and work methodologies with
respect to pollution control and environmental mitigation, and anticipate
environmental issues for proactive action before problems arise;
§
Analyse the EM&A data, review the
success of EM&A programme to confirm the adequacy of mitigation measures
implemented and the validity of the EIA predictions, and to identify any
adverse environmental impacts arising and report EM&A results to the IEC,
contractor, and ER;
§
Prepare reports on the environmental
monitoring data and the site environmental conditions; and
§
Review mitigation measure proposals from the
Contractor in the case of exceedance of Action and Limit levels, in accordance
with the Event and Action Plans.
Independent Environmental
Checker (IEC)
1.17 The IEC should advise the ER on environmental issues related to the project. The IEC should possess at least 7 years of experience in EM&A. The duties and responsibilities of the IEC are:
§
Review and audit in an independent,
objective and professional manner in all aspects of the EM&A programme;
§
Validate and confirm the accuracy of
monitoring results, monitoring equipment, monitoring locations, monitoring
procedures and locations of sensitive receivers;
§
Carry out random sample check and audit on
monitoring data and sampling procedures, etc;
§
Conduct site inspections;
§
Audit the EIA recommendation and requirement
against the status of implementation of environmental protection measures on
site;
§
Review the effectiveness of environmental
mitigation measures and project environmental performance;
§
On a need basis, verify and certify the
environmental acceptability of the permit holder’s construction methodology
(both temporary and permanent works), relevant design plans and submissions
under the environmental permit;
§
Verify the investigation results of
complaint cases and the effectiveness of corrective measures;
§
Verify EM&A report that has been
certified by the ET leader; and
§
Feedback audit results to ET/permit holder
according to Event/Action Plan in the EM&A manual.
1.18 Sufficient and suitably qualified professional and technical staff should be employed by the respective parties to ensure full compliance with their duties and responsibilities, as required under the EM&A programme for the duration of the Project.