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Table of Contents
2......... project
description
Consideration of
Alternatives Schemes
3......... key
findings of environmental impact assessment
Environmental
Monitoring and Audit
List of Figures
NOL/ERL/300/C/WKT/ENS/M50/100 Proposed Road Works at West Kowloon
1.1
In 2006, Mott MacDonald Hong Kong Limited, the consultant of
Civil Engineering Development Department (CEDD) conducted a traffic study for
the road network of West Kowloon Reclamation Area (WKRA) and revealed that it
will experience very substantial traffic growth following completion of the
future West Kowloon Cultural District (WKCD) and the top side developments of
Kowloon Station (KOW) and Austin Station (AUS). In addition, the north-south
through traffic will also continue to grow and a hierarchical road network is
required to accommodate the strategic, district and local traffic.
1.2
Subsequently, the Hong Kong Section of
Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link (XRL) is programmed for urgent
implementation and opening in 2015, and the West Kowloon Terminus (WKT) will be located within the WKRA between AUS and KOW.
WKT and its associated property developments will further generate substantial
increment in traffic.
1.3
As a result, a separate traffic study was conducted by
1.4
Under Items A.1 and A.9, Part 1, Schedule 2 of the
Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance (EIAO) (Cap. 499), the Project is a
designated project and therefore an Environmental Permit is required under the
EIAO for the construction and operation of the Project.
1.5
AECOM Asia
Co. Ltd. (Integrating the operation of ENSR Asia (HK) Limited) has been
commissioned by the MTRCL to undertake the Environmental Impact Assessment
(EIA) Study of the Project.
2.1
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/M50/100).
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.
·
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.
·
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.
·
Upgrading
of
Consideration of Alternatives Schemes
2.2
Consideration for alternative alignments of the proposed
road networks is severely constrained by the existing roads and the developments
within the area. Nevertheless, two road schemes were identified and
investigated during the preliminary design of WKT.
Base
Scheme – At-
2.3
Lin Cheung Road, Austin Road West, Road D1A and Road D1 will
be constructed mainly at-grade, with only a part of the Austin Road West
depressed to form a pedestrian deck on the south side of WKT. An underpass for
through traffic will be provided from the north of
Improved Scheme – Depressed
2.4
The majority of the
2.5
The two schemes were compared and evaluated with respect to
factors including traffic benefits, environmental benefits and implementation. The
Improved Scheme was selected as the preferred scheme of the Project. During the
stakeholder engagement conducted so far, the preferred road scheme was also
generally in favour by stakeholders including Government departments (e.g. Transport
& Housing Bureau, Railway Development Office, Transport Department,
Planning Department, etc), the District Council and West Kowloon Cultural
District Authority (WKCDA).
2.6
The construction of the Project is tentatively scheduled to
commence in August 2011 and complete by September 2014.
Construction Phase
3.1
Potential construction noise impacts would mainly be due to road
works and construction of noise screening structures and would affect the noise
sensitive receivers (NSRs) in the vicinity of the work areas. Unmitigated
construction noise levels at the representative NSRs would be in the range of 63
to 86 dB(A). With the adoption of quiet powered mechanical equipment, movable
noise barriers, acoustic mats, acoustic sheds and good site practices, the
noise levels at all representative are predicted to comply with the
construction noise standard.
3.2
Taking into account the concurrent construction works of the
XRL project, the cumulative construction noise levels at the representative
NSRs would comply with the EIAO-TM noise standard given MTRCL will properly implement
the construction noise mitigation measures recommended in this EIA as well as
the EIA study of XRL.
Operation Phase
3.3
The potential road traffic noise impacts have been assessed
based on the worst case traffic flows in 2030. The unmitigated noise levels at
the identified NSRs would range from 53 to 84 dB(A). The noise levels at some
NSRs are predicted to exceed the EIAO-TM traffic noise criteria due to the
Project and other existing roads. With the proposed low noise road surfacing
and noise screening structures in place, the predicted overall noise levels at all
representative NSRs would comply with the noise limit, except Lai Chack Middle
School and some existing NSRs at Man Cheong Street, Ferry Street, Canton Road
and the junction of Lin Cheung Road and Jordan Road as well as the planned Hong
Kong Girl Guides Association Headquarters & related hostel use and
residential developments at Yan Cheung Road and Austin Station. Although the
overall noise levels at these NSRs would still exceed the relevant noise
criteria, the road noise contributions from the Project to the overall noise
levels would be less than 1.0 dB(A) and the road noise levels from the Project itself
would all be below the noise limit. Noise exceedances at the representative NSRs,
if any, are due to the existing roads.
Air Quality Impact
Construction Phase
3.4
Potential air quality impacts arising from the construction
of the Project would mainly be related to dust nuisance from excavation,
material handling and wind erosion of the site. Cumulative dust impacts from other
concurrent projects such as Hong Kong Section of the
Operation Phase
3.5
The potential impacts arising from the background pollutant
levels within and adjacent to the Project area, vehicle emissions from open
road networks, portal emissions from the Western Harbour Crossing, the proposed
underpass and landscape decks, emissions from the top openings of proposed
underpasses, emissions from ventilation building of Central Kowloon Route (CKR),
portal emissions from the noise enclosures at the portal of CKR tunnel (west
end) and the reprovisioned Gascoigne Road under the CKR project, and the
implementation of noise screening structures were assessed. No
adverse air quality impacts would be induced from the Project at the air sensitive
receivers in the future. The
predicted air pollutants concentrations inside the proposed underpasses and
under the proposed landscape deck over
Water Quality Impact
3.6
Potential sources of water quality impact associated with
the road works and construction of noise screening structures would be site
runoff, effluent discharges from construction activities and sewage effluent
from the workforce. Water quality
impacts from the land-based construction works can be controlled to comply with
the standards of Water Pollution Control Ordinance by implementing the recommended
mitigation measures. All the
effluents and runoff generated from the works areas will be treated so as to
comply with discharge standards listed in the Technical Memorandum on Standards
for Effluents Discharged into Drainage and Sewerage Systems, Inland and Coastal
Waters and the discharge licence under Water Pollution Control Ordinance. No
unacceptable water quality impacts are expected from the land-based
construction activities. Site
inspections should be undertaken routinely to inspect the works areas in order
to ensure that the recommended mitigation measures are properly implemented.
3.7
During the operation phase, a surface water drainage system
with silt traps would be provided and properly maintained to collect runoff
from the roads during periods of rain and no adverse impact is anticipated.
3.8
Waste types generated by the construction activities of the
road works are likely to include construction and demolition material from
earth works, chemical waste generated from the maintenance of construction
plants and equipments and general refuse from the workforce. Provided that these wastes are handled,
transported and disposed of using approved methods and that the recommended
good site practices are strictly followed, adverse environmental impacts are
not expected during the construction phase.
3.9
The amount of waste that would be generated in the operation
phase of the Project, which may include silt or grit from road gullies and
litter collected from road surface, is predicted to be minimal, and therefore
adverse environmental impacts in the operation phase is expected to be negligible.
3.10
Based on the findings of site appraisal within the Project
boundary, a site which may need further assessment was identified. However, as the
concern of land contamination, if any, at the
site will be
addressed under West Kowloon Terminus Project and no other historical and
present potential contaminated land uses were identified. Adverse land
contamination impact arising from the Project is not anticipated.
Landscape
and Visual Impact
3.11
The proposed
road works in an urban area of
3.12
The proposed
road works located within the existing road corridor network will cause
alteration to the existing road layout horizontally and vertically and minor
alteration of current land use of the area. However, these changes will not create
any insurmountable impact on the existing and proposed landscape
framework. On the contrary, a depressed
road system has been proposed at the
3.13
Approximately
390 existing trees will be affected by the proposed road works, of which
approximately 270 trees will be transplanted and 120 trees will be felled. Many of the affected trees are of
semi-mature to mature size. None of
these are Champion Trees or Registered Old and Valuable Trees on the records of
Leisure and Cultural Services Department. There are no rare species or
endangered species but only common species. Under the proposed scheme for the
Project, compensation
for felled trees in ratio of 1:1 or more will be planted in the amenity area at the
both sides of the proposed roads and above the depressed road at the
3.14
The proposed
road works are located in an area of major ongoing development including the West
Kowloon Terminus Development and the West Kowloon Cultural District. Due to the scale of the Project, there will be moderate
residual impact on LCA2 - Ongoing Development Landscape Character Area (LCA), LCA3
- City Grid Mixed Urban LCA, LCA4 - Urban Residential LCA and LCA5 - Transport
Corridor LCA during construction phase. During the operation stage,
the proposed noise screening structures will become the main source of impact
on LCAs. The residual impact on the Transport
Corridor LCA is still considered as moderate in Year 10. The impacts of noise screening
structures on other LCAs which are in the vicinity of the
source of impact are indirect. The residual impacts are therefore considered as slight.
3.15
During
the construction stage, there will be moderate residual impact on the travelling
visual sensitive receivers (VSRs) using the existing road networks and the adjacent
VSRs in high-rise residential developments, but there would be significant
impacts for pedestrians along the roads at locations of near the landscape deck
and semi-noise enclosure at Lin Cheung Road and the landscape deck at Austin
Road West. During
the operation stage, the proposed noise screening structures will become the
main source of visual impact. To
minimise the visual impact, an integrated urban, landscape and engineering
design approach has been adopted in the design phase of the Project. A depressed road system has been proposed
at the
3.16
There will not be any insurmountable cumulative landscape
and visual impact of the Project and the XRL project with the implementation of
mitigation measures for both projects.
3.17
As a whole, it is considered that the residual landscape and
visual impacts are considered as acceptable with mitigation measures except for
WKCD. During detailed design stage,
there should be a review of the need for the landscape deck at
Environmental Monitoring and Audit
3.18
Environmental monitoring and audit is
recommended for construction dust, construction noise and operational traffic
noise, to check compliance with relevant statutory criteria and to ensure the
effectiveness of the recommended mitigation measures. Site inspection and audit are also
recommended for water quality, waste management and landscape and visual aspects
during construction, and implementation of landscaping measures during operation. Details of the recommended mitigation
measures, monitoring procedures and locations are presented in a stand-alone
Environmental Monitoring and Audit (EM&A) Manual. This will enable the Contractor to obtain
early warning on potential adverse impacts from the works and take necessary
action to reduce impacts in specific areas if the monitoring results are found
to be close to the criteria.
3.19
The EIA has been conducted based on
the latest and best available information.
The findings of this EIA have provided information on the nature and
extent of environmental impacts arising from construction and operation of the Project. The EIA has, where appropriate,
identified mitigation measures to ensure compliance with environmental
legislation and standards.
3.20
In conclusion, the Project would
generally comply with the environmental standards and legislation with the implementation
of the proposed mitigation measures during the construction and operation
phases. This EIA has also
demonstrated the general acceptability of the residual impacts and the
population and environmentally sensitive resources in the vicinity of the site
would be sufficiently protected.
Environmental monitoring and audit mechanisms have been recommended for the
construction and operation of the Project, where necessary, to verify the
effectiveness of the recommended mitigation measures.