Draft IEE: India: Bhagalpur Water Supply Subproject, Bihar Urban Development Investment Program

122 Pages·2012·1.69 MB·English

Draft Initial Environmental Examination

January 2012

IND: Bihar Urban Development Investment
Program—Bhagalpur Water Supply Subproject

Prepared by the Urban Development and Housing Department for the Asian Development
Bank.
CURRENCY EQUIVALENTS
(as of 9 January 2012)
Currency Unit = Indian rupee/s (Re/Rs)
Rs1.00 = $0.01884
$1.00 = Rs53.085

WEIGHTS AND MEASURES

lakh – 100 thousand = 100,000
crore – 100 lakhs = 10,000,000
3
µg/m – micrograms per cubic meter
km – kilometer
lpd – liters per day
m – meter
mg/l – milligrams per liter
mm – millimeter
ppm – parts per million

ABBREVIATIONS
ADB - Asian Development Bank
BSPCB - Bihar State Pollution Control Board,
BUDP - Bihar Urban Development Project
BUIDCo - Bihar Urban Infrastructure Development Corporation
CFE - Consent for Establishment
CFO - Consent for Operation
CGWB - Central Ground Water Board
CITES - Convention on International Trade in Endangered
Species of Wild Fauna and Flora
CMS - Convention on Migratory Species of Wild Animals
DSC - Design and Supervision Consultants
EIA - Environmental Impact Assessment
EMP - Environmental Management Plan
EPA - Environmental Protection Agency
GRC - Grievance Redress Committee
IEE - Initial Environmental Examination
IUCN - International Union for Conservation of Nature and
Natural Resources
JNNURM - Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission
MFF - multitranche financing facility
mld - million liters per day
MOEF - National Ministry of Environment and Forests
NAAQS - National Ambient Air Quality Standards
NGO - nongovernmental organization
O&M - operation and maintenance
OHT - overhead tanks
PHED - Public Health Engineering Department
PIU - project implementation unit
PMU - project management unit
ROW - right of way
SEAC - State Environment Assessment Committee
SEIAA - State Environment Impact Assessment Authority
SPS - Safeguard Policy Statement
STP - Sewage treatment plant
TDS - total dissolved solids
TOR - Terms of reference
UFW - unaccounted for water
ULB - urban local body
WTP - water treatment plant

NOTES
(i) In this report, "$" refers to US dollars.
(ii) ―INR‖ and ―Rs‖ refer to Indian rupees

This initial environmental examination is a document of the borrower. The views expressed
herein do not necessarily represent those of ADB's Board of Directors, Management, or staff,
and may be preliminary in nature.

In preparing any country program or strategy, financing any project, or by making any
designation of or reference to a particular territory or geographic area in this document, the
Asian Development Bank does not intend to make any judgments as to the legal or other status
of any territory or area.
CONTENTS
Page
I. INTRODUCTION 1
A. Purpose of the Report 1
B. Study Objective 1
C. Approach and Methodology for the IEE Study 2
D. Project Location 2
E. Organization of the Report 4
II. POLICY, LEGAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE FRAMEWORK 5
A. Environmental Compliance Requirements 5
B. Environmental Assessment Requirements 7
III. DESCRIPTION OF SUBPROJECT 9
A. Need of the Project 9
B. Description of the Existing Water Supply System 9
C. Description of the Subproject 10
D. Implementation Schedule 12
IV. DESCRIPTION OF THE ENVIRONMENT 12
A. Physical Resources 12
B. Biological Resources 19
C. Economic Development 22
D. Social and Cultural Resources 26
V. ANTICIPATED IMPACTS AND MITIGATION MEASURES 28
A. Pre Construction – Design Phase Impacts 29
B. Construction Phase Impacts 31
C. Operation and Maintenance 38
D. Analysis of Alternatives 42
E. Alternatives- Locations, Technical and Design 42
F. Cumulative Impact Assessment 49
VI. INFORMATION DISLOSURE, CONSULTATION AND PARTICIPATION 51
VII. GRIEVANCE REDRESS MECHANISM 56
VIII. ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT PLAN 60
A. Institutional Arrangements 60
B. Environmental Mitigation Plan 63
C. Environmental Monitoring Program 63
D. Environmental Management and Monitoring Plan (EMMP) Costs 92
E. Environmental Training 92
IX. RECOMMENDATIONS AND CONCLUSION 93

APPENDIXES
1. Central Pollution Control Board Applicable Environmetnal Standards 96
2. Summary of Public Consultations – Environment 101
3. Sample Grievance Registration Form 107
4. Recommended Construction Contractors Contract Clauses 108
5. Biodiversity Monitoring Cost-External Monitoring Expert/Agency 112
6. Environment Monitoring Format 113
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
1. Bihar Urban Development Investment Program (the investment program) will provide the
urban population in Bihar with improved access to water supply and sanitation facilities focusedin four
towns (Bhagalpur, Muzaffarpur, Darbhanga and Gaya) having significant development potential.
The investment program will be implemented over a seven year period beginning in 2011, and
funded by a Multitranche Financing Facility (MFF) from the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
Under the MFF, it is proposed to undertake water supply and sewerage components in the 4
selected towns for implementation in 3 tranches. In the first tranche (Project 1), improvement of
water supply in Bhagalpur town is proposed. The executing agency for the investment program
is the Urban Development and Housing Department (UDHD) of the State Government of Bihar,
while the Implementing Agency is the Bihar Urban Infrastructure Development Corporation
(BUIDCo). ADB requires delivery of environmental safeguards throughout the project cycle and
polcy principles and requirements for environmental assessment are described in ADB‘s
Safeguard Policy Statement, 2009.

2. This Initial Environmental Examination (IEE) has been prepared for Bhagalpur Water
Supply Subproject which covers: (i) rehabilitation of existing intake; (ii) rehabilitation of existing
water treatment plant; (iii) construction of new 47-kilometer (km) clear water mains; (iv)
rehabilitation of clear water sump and pumping station of the existing water supply system; (v)
construction of 18 overhead tanks; (vi) construction of 177-km distribution network; and (vii)
installation of domestic water meters and house connections.

3. An Environmental Management Plan (EMP) has been prepared which includes (i)
mitigation measures for significant environmental impacts during implementation, (ii)
environmental monitoring program, and the responsible entities for mitigation, monitoring, and
reporting; (iii) public consultation and information disclosure; and grievance redress mechanism.

4. The Project is needed because the present water supply system is inadequate for the
needs of the growing population. The supply rate is low at 57 liters per capita per day (lpcd)
which is below the required 135 lpcd to support an effective sewerage system. The
unaccounted for water (UFW) is about 40% against 15% recommended by the Central Public
Health and Environmental Engineering Organization (CPHEEO) of Government of India. The
storage, treatment and distribution network is insufficient to meet even present requirements.
Improvement in the water supply system has been identified as a major priority for Bhagalpur
town.

5. Detailed design will begin by end of 2011 and is expected to be completed in mid 2012.
Implementation will be started from 2012 and will be completed by mid 2015. A total of 36
months construction period is being considered.

6. The project sites are located in the built-up area of Bhagalpur town. The project sites,
being located in the town area, are generally flat. The project sites are not located in areas
prone to water-logging, salinazation, and flash floods. The proposed project area falls under
Zone-IV of the Seismic Zonation Map of India. There is one protected area Vikramshila
Gangetic Dolphin Sanctuary located at river Ganges from where water will be drawn through an
intake structure to be constructed. Other aquatic animal like the otter and different fish are
present at the intake location. Presence of different species of riparian vegetation, phyto- and
zoo- planktons are present in the aquatic environment. There are no wetlands, mangroves, or
estuarines within the project sites. Trees, vegetation (mostly shrubs and grasses), and terrestrial
animals are those commonly found in urban areas. The project sites are not located in
ii
agricultural lands. The project sites are not located in or near any historically-, culturally-,
archaeologically- or architecturally-significant or tourist area.

7. Potential negative impacts were identified in relation to design, construction, and
operation of the improved infrastructure. Mitigation measures have been developed to reduce all
negative impacts to acceptable levels. A number of impacts and their significance have already
been reduced by amending the designs, and through selection of alternative design.

8. Special measures are also developed to protect workers and the public from exposure to
carcinogenic asbestos fibers in the event that asbestos cement pipes used in the existing water
supply system are uncovered accidentally during excavation work. This has been addressed in
the EMP.

9. During the construction phase, impacts mainly arise from the need to dispose of large
quantities of waste soil and import a similar amount of sand to support the pipes in the trenches;
and from the disturbance of residents, businesses, traffic, and important buildings during
construction work. These are common impacts of construction in urban areas, and there are
well developed methods for their mitigation.

10. Further, it is proposed that the project will employ in the workforce people who live in the
vicinity of construction sites to provide them with a short-term economic gain; and ensure that
people employed in the longer term to maintain and operate the new facilities are residents of
nearby communities.

11. Once the system is operating, most facilities (OHTs, WTP, and clear water mains ) will
operate with routine maintenance, which should not affect the environment Leaks in the
distribution network will need to be repaired from time to time, but environmental impacts will be
much less than those of the construction period as the work will be infrequent, and affecting
small areas only. It will also be conducted in areas that have already been excavated, so there
will be no need to protect archaeological material.

12. The main impacts of the improved water supply system will be benefits for citizens of
Bhagalpur. They will be provided with a constant supply of water thus improve the quality of life
of people as well as benefit individual and public health through improvements in hygiene. This
will reduce the incidence of disease associated with poor sanitation. This will also lead to
economic gains as people will be away from work less and indirectly increasing their income.

13. Mitigation of adverse environmental impacts will be assured by a program of
environmental monitoring and management conducted during construction and operation to
ensure that all measures in the EMP are implemented and to determine whether the
environment is protected as intended. The EMP includes biodiversity monitoring. This will
include observations on- and off-site, document checks, and interviews with workers and
beneficiaries, and any requirements for remedial action will be reported to the project
management unit (PMU). There will also be longer-term surveys to monitor the expected
improvements in the quality of domestic water and the health of the population.

14. The stakeholders were involved in developing the IEE through face-to-face discussions
on site and a meeting held in the town, after which views expressed were incorporated into the
IEE and the planning and development of the project. The IEE will be made available at public
locations in the town and will be disclosed to a wider audience via the ADB website. The
consultation process will be continued and expanded during project implementation, when a
iii
nationally-recognised NGO will be appointed to handle this key element to ensure that
stakeholders are fully engaged in the project and have the opportunity to participate in its
development and implementation

Therefore, the Project is unlikely to cause major significant adverse impacts. The potential
adverse impacts that are associated with design, construction, and operation can be mitigated
to standard levels without difficulty through proper engineering design and the incorporation or
application of recommended mitigation measures and procedures.