At present, concrete is
delivered to the site by marine access. Fresh concrete would be loaded on
concrete mixer trucks, which would be transported to the site by barges.The approved EIA report “Infrastructural Works
for the Proposed Development at Telegraph Bay” (hereinafter called “approved
EIA Report”) has
assumed that ready-mixed concrete in concrete mixer trucks would be delivered by barges to
Telegraph Bay for the construction of Cyberport. In fact, the barge
traffic would create marine traffic and environmental impacts during the peak
period. In case where a large quantity of concrete is required, the progress of
concreting would be limited by the available berthing place. In this
connection, an on-site concrete batching plant is desirable from an operational
point of view.
In order to facilitate the
construction works for the Cyber Port Development, the Project Proponent
intends to erect a concrete batching plant for the day-to-day consumption at
the site. However, the proposed facility
has the potential to cause adverse cumulative impacts on the air quality and to
a lesser extent the noise level, water quality, waste management and visual
quality at the nearby sensitive receivers. As the issue was not addressed in
the approved EIA Report for the proposed development, the establishment of the
proposed facility is considered to constitute a Material Change to the approved
EIA Report. An EIA report has been prepared to address this Material Change in
fulfilment of the requirement of the Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance
(EIAO).
Maunsell Consultant Asia
Limited (MCAL) in association with Maunsell Environmental Management
Consultants Limited (MEMCL) were commissioned by Cyber-Port Limited to assess
the potential environmental impact of constructing and operating the proposed
concrete batching plant on the nearby sensitive receivers. The assessment has
also addressed the cumulative effect due to the concurrent construction
activities on site including advance works and main construction works.
Besides, the proposed concrete
batching plant would reduce significantly the noise and air pollution from
barges for the delivery of materials and concrete mixer trucks to the site. It
would also eliminate marine traffic impact and reduce environmental impacts caused
by one of the concrete batching plant off-site which is currently operated by
Ready Mixed Concrete (H.K.) Limited (RMC).
Table 1 summarizes the potential environmental
benefits for an on site concrete batching plant.
Table 1 Comparison
between on site concrete batching plant and concrete delivery by barges
|
|
Concrete delivery by barges |
Concrete
Batching Plant on Site |
|
Barge Traffic |
4 to5 barges per day for Stage 1 Up to 26 barges per day for
Stage 2 |
2- 3 barges per day for two
days a week |
|
Air Quality impact |
High, due to the exhaust emissions from the barges |
Low, due to the low number of
barges operating and the batching plant is totally enclosed |
|
Noise Impact |
Medium, but high during misty
weather. In case that land
transportation is used, the delivery of concrete will increase the traffic
noise impact on the nearby sensitive receivers. |
Low, due to the low number of
barges operating and the batching plant is totally enclosed. |
|
Water Quality Impact |
High risk of polluting the
harbour due to barges |
Low risk |
|
Marine Traffic Impact |
High |
Low |
|
Visual Impact |
Low, as the earth mound and future
buildings will reduce the visual impact |
|
|
Delivery Timing Control |
Good control on concrete
delivery |
|
|
Potential for Mitigation |
Mitigation measures are difficult
to implement on barges. |
Easy to implement. As the
concrete batching plant is stationary, the mitigation measures (such as
totally enclose the plant) can easily be applied. |