1 INTRODUCTION

3 ENVIRONMENTAL LEGISLATION, STANDARDS AND GUIDELINES

3.1 Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance

3.1.1 The Technical Memorandum issued under Section 16 of the Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance (EIAO) sets out the principles, procedures, guidelines, requirements and criteria for the technical content of environmental impact assessments and for deciding whether a designated project is environmentally acceptable. Definitions of what constitute sensitive receivers for different environmental parameters are also provided. The criteria for evaluating environmental impacts has been followed for this EIA.

3.1.2 The Joint Technical Circular PELB/TC 10/98 and WBTC 18/98 Procedures for EIA for Development Project and Proposals which sets out the procedures for dealing with the assessment of environmental impacts of Government development Projects or proposals controlled by the EIAO is also relevant to this project.

3.2 Air Quality

3.2.1 Air Quality Objectives

3.2.1.1 Air quality is regulated through Annex 4 of the Technical Memorandum on EIA Process (TMEIA) which specifies compliance with the Air Quality Objectives (AQO) and other standards established under the Air Pollution Control Ordinance (APCO). The APCO and all regulations specified by this Ordinance, for example the Air Pollution Control (Construction Dust) Regulation, should be complied with. The associated Air Quality Objectives are provided in Table 3.1.

Table 3.1: Hong Kong Air Quality Objectives

Pollutant	Concentration(i) Fg/m³ Averaging Time
Pollutant	1 Hour (ii)	8 Hours (iii)	24 Hours (iii)	3 Months (iv)	1 Year (iv)
Sulphur Dioxide	800		350		80
Total Suspended Particulates			260		80
Respirable Suspended Particulates (v)			180		55
Nitrogen Dioxide	300		150		80
Carbon Monoxide	30,000	10,000
Photochemical Oxidants (as ozone (vi))	240

Lead				1.5
(i) Measured at 298^oK (25^oC) and 101.325 KPa (one atmosphere). (ii) Not to be exceeded more than three times per year. (iii) Not to be exceeded more than once per year. (iv) Arithmetic means. (v) Respirable Suspended Particulates means suspended particulates in air with a nominal aerodynamic diameter of 10 micrometers and smaller. (vi) Photochemical oxidants are determined by measurements of ozone only.

3.2.1.2 In addition to the Air Quality Objectives, the TMEIA stipulates a criteria to meet the hourly Total Suspended Particulates (TSP) concentration of 500 Fg/m³ measured at 298^oK (25^oC) and 101.325 kPa (1 atmosphere) for construction dust impact assessment.

3.3 Noise

3.3.1 Construction Noise Criteria During Non-restricted Hours

3.3.1.1 Non restricted hours include the daytime hours on working days which are not a Sunday or a public holiday between 07:00-19:00. The noise generated by the construction of the Project during the non-restricted daytime hours will be assessed with reference to Table 1B of Annex 5 of the TMEIA, as shown in Table 3.2. While the assessment of noise in Section 5 of this EIA has been based upon non-restricted periods, this does not preclude the Contractor from working in restricted periods should this be required. However, any work in restricted periods will be subject to the Contractor obtaining a Construction Noise Permit under the Noise Control Ordinance as detailed in Section 3.3.2 below.

Table 3.2: Recommended Construction Noise Levels (Non-restricted Hours)

Noise Sensitive Receiver

Noise Level L_eq(30 min) dB(A)

Dwelling

School

70 (Normal school hours)

65 (During examination)

3.3.2 Construction Noise Criteria During Restricted Hours

3.3.2.1 If construction works during restricted hours are specified in the construction programme or percussive piling is to be undertaken, a Construction Noise Permit (CNP) will be required for the works and the noise impacts will be assessed to ensure compliance with the relevant Noise Control Ordinance (NCO) noise limits as specified in Annex 5 of the TMEIA. Once applied for, the CNP will be assessed by the Noise Control Authority based upon the contemporary situation at the time of the application.

3.3.2.2 An application for a CNP for percussive piling is assessed in accordance with the Technical Memorandum on Noise from Percussive Piling under the NCO. The NCO limits for percussive piling are shown in Table 3.3 below.

Table 3.3: Acceptable Noise Levels for Percussive Piling

Time Period	Acceptable Noise Level (dB(A))
NSR (or part of NSR) with no windows or other openings	100
NSR with central air conditioning system	90
NSR with windows or other openings but without central air conditioning system	85

3.3.2.3 The CNP may contain permitted hours of operation as a condition with reference to the predicted noise levels at noise sensitive receivers. However, it is not anticipated that percussive piling works will be required during the construction of this project.

3.3.2.4 The NCO construction noise limits during restricted hours are determined with reference to the type of area within which a Noise Sensitive Receiver (NSR) is located. For village and low-density residential areas not affected by noise, an Area Sensitivity Rating (ASR) of ‘A’ is applied, while a low-density residential areas in which traffic noise is noticeable but not dominant, an ASR of ‘B’ is employed. For a similar area in which noise from a major road is readily noticeable and dominates the noise environment, an ASR of ‘C’ is applied. The definition of a major road is provided in the Technical Memorandum on noise from Construction Work Other than Percussive Piling.

3.3.2.5 The NCO limits for noise levels during restricted evening and night-time hours (19:00 to 07:00) and Sundays and general holidays for each sensitivity rating are given in Table 3.4.

Table 3.4: Acceptable Noise Level during the Construction Phase (Restricted Periods)

Time Period

Acceptable Noise Level

Leq(5 min dB(A))

for Area Sensitivity Rating (ASR)

ASR = A

ASR = B

ASR = C

Restricted Period 1

All days during the evening (19.00-23.00) and general holidays (including Sundays) during the daytime and evening (07.00-23.00)

Restricted Period 2

All days during the night-time (23.00-07.00)

3.3.2.6 The construction noise criteria for each NSR are applied to the noise arising from operation of construction equipment. Nonetheless, it should be noted that depending upon the exact locations and orientations of the receiver points/noise sources and the shielding effect of other structures or topographical features, the effect of influencing factors on the receivers and hence the ASRs/ANLs may vary.

3.3.2.7 Despite any description or assessment made in this EIA Report on construction noise aspects, there is no guarantee that a Construction Noise Permit (CNP) will be issued for the project construction. The Noise Control Authority will consider a well justified CNP application, once filed, for construction works within restricted hours as guided by the relevant Technical Memoranda issued under the Noise Control Ordinance. The Noise Control Authority will take into account contemporary conditions/situation of adjoining land uses and nay previous complaints against construction activities at the site before making his decision in granting a CNP. Nothing in the EIA Report shall bind the Noise Control Authority in making his decision. If a CNP is to be issued, the Noise Control Authority shall include in it any condition he thinks fit. Failure to comply with any such conditions will lead to cancellation of the CNP and prosecution action under the NCO.

3.3.3 Road Traffic Noise

3.3.3.1 The impact of operational noise has been assessed with reference to Table 1A of Annex 5 of the TMEIA, which stipulates a maximum L₁₀ (1 hour) road traffic noise levels at sensitive facades of various NSRs shown in Table 3.5.

Table 3.5: Acceptable Road Traffic Noise Levels

Noise Sensitive Receivers	Road Traffic Noise L₁₀(1 hour) dB(A)
Domestic Premises, Hotels and Hostels	70
Places of Public Worship, Educational Institutions	65
Hospitals, Clinics, Homes for the Aged	55

3.3.3.2 Mitigation measures, in the form of direct technical remedies and indirect technical remedies, would be considered for NSRs where there are exceedances above the noise standards.

3.4 Water Quality

3.4.1 Water Quality Objectives

3.4.1.1 The construction and operation of the Project will be required to comply with the environmental standards and guidelines for surface and marine waters as specified in Annex 6 of the TMEIA which states that the Water Quality Objectives defined under the Water Pollution Control Ordinance must be complied with. The regulations defined in the Water Pollution Control Ordinance are implemented through the process of assignment of Beneficial Uses (BU) to Water Control Zones (WCZ) and the Water Quality Objectives (WQO) associated with each BU. The WQO are controlled use related water quality parameters to which are assigned statistical values or permissible deviations from ambient background. The project is located within the North Western WCZ, Southern WCZ and the Southern Supplementary WCZ.

3.4.2 Inland Waters - Surface Waters

3.4.2.1 Beneficial Uses for surface fresh waters have been assigned into four main groups.

(i) Group A abstraction for potable water supply; these include all waters within water gathering grounds and within the boundaries of the country parks.

(ii) Group B irrigation; these are mainly in the agricultural areas of the New Territories.

(iii) Group C pond fish culture; these are waters passing through areas where there are large numbers of fish ponds.

(iv) Group D general amenity and secondary contact recreation; these are waters generally large enough to allow secondary contact recreation, those draining urban and semi urban areas and those draining to the sea at gazetted bathing beaches.

3.4.2.2 In addition to these uses there are the more general uses of preservation of aquatic life and use for storm water channels. Their quality requirements would equate to Groups B, C and D respectively.

3.4.2.3 The southern portion of the Study Area falls within the Southern WCZ whereas the northern portion falls within the North Western WCZ. The WQOs for ‘other inland’ waters in the Southern WCZ and North Western WCZ are set in terms of:

¨ pH - range of 6-9 units

¨ Suspended Solids - # 25mg/L

¨ Dissolved Oxygen - $ 4mg/L

¨ Chemical Oxygen Demand - # 30mg/L

¨ Biochemical Oxygen Demand (5 day)- # 5mg/L

¨ Unionised Ammonia - 0.021 mg/L for SWCZ

¨ E.coli - 1,000 cfu/100 mL for SWCZ

3.4.2.4 The Southern Supplementary WCZ and the Water Gathering Ground Subzone of the North Western WCZ have the following WQOs:

¨ pH - range of 6.5-8.5 units

¨ Suspended Solids - # 20mg/L

¨ Biochemical Oxygen Demand - # 3mg/L

¨ Chemical Oxygen Demand - # 15mg/L

¨ E.coli - # 1cfu/100mL

3.4.2.5 The maintenance of the surface water quality in order to satisfy the WQO and meet the requirements of the BU is controlled by the “Technical Memorandum on Standards for Effluents Discharged into Drainage and Sewerage Systems, Inland and Coastal Waters” which prescribes effluent discharge standards for the four water Classes. The effluent standards are related to the volume of effluent being discharged.

3.4.3 Inland Waters - Ground Water

3.4.3.1 Hong Kong is underlain by granite and as such there is little useable ground water. Where ground water is abstracted it could be used for any of the four Groups of usage defined above and hence would need to meet the WQO for that particular Group.

3.4.4 Marine Waters

3.4.4.1 Eight BUs have been identified for the North Western and Southern Waters WCZ in which the project is located. A description of each of the BUs is given in Table 3.6. The WQO values are generally defined as annual depth averaged values or percentiles. However, there may be large magnitude variations in the short term which may have an impact on sensitive receivers but have little influence on the annual values.

Table 3.6: Beneficial Uses Applicable to Southern and North Western WCZs

BU	Beneficial Use
BU1	A source of food for human consumption
BU2	A resource for commercial fisheries and shell fisheries
BU3	A habitat for marine life and a resource for human exploitation
BU4	For bathing
BU5	For secondary contact recreation such as diving, sailboard and dinghy sailing
BU6	For domestic and industrial purposes
BU7	For navigation and shipping and use of officially approved and endorsed sheltered harbours and typhoon shelters as temporary havens
BU8	For aesthetic enjoyment

Note: BU1 is maintained by the application of the WQO directly to the food substance and not the water from which the food was taken. Consequently there are no defined parameters in the marine environment which are controlled.

3.4.4.2 WQOs expressed in terms of concentrations for particular quality parameters have been set to ensure that water quality is suitable for the assigned BUs. The water quality parameters which are required to be controlled in order to maintain the prescribed BUs are given in Table 3.7.

Table 3.7: Water Quality Parameters to be Controlled for Specific Marine Related Beneficial Uses

Parameter	BU-1	BU-2	BU-3	BU-4	BU-5	BU-6	BU-7	BU-8
Aesthetic	n/a	+	+	+	+	+	+	+
Bacterial	n/a	-	-	+	+	+	-	-
DO	n/a	+	+	-	-	+	-	-
pH	n/a	+	+	+	+	+	-	-
Ammonia	n/a	+	+	-	-	+	-	-
Temperature	n/a	+	+	-	-	-	-	-
Colour	n/a	+	+	+	+	+	-	-
Suspended Solids	n/a	+	+	-	-	+	-	-
Salinity	n/a	+	+	-	-	-	-	-
Dangerous Substances	n/a	+	+	+	+	+	-	-

Notes: n/a - not applicable, + indicates water quality parameter which is relevant to the beneficial use

3.4.5 Marine Water Quality Objectives

3.4.5.1 The WQO for the Southern and North Western Waters have been gazetted and have clear objectives which are provided in Table 3.8.

Table 3.8: Marine Water Quality Objectives for the Southern and North Western Waters Water Control Zones

Water Quality Parameter	Objective	Part of Zone
E.coli	annual mean not to exceed 610 cfu/100 mL	secondary contact recreation sub-zone
Dissolved Oxygen within 2m of the bottom	not less than 2 mg/L for 90% of samples	marine waters
Dissolved Oxygen depth averaged	not less than 4 mg/L for 90% of samples	marine waters except fish culture sub zone
pH value	values to be 6.5-8.5, change due to waste discharge not to exceed 0.2	marine waters except bathing beach subzones
Salinity	change due to waste discharge less than 10% of natural ambient level	whole zone
Temperature Change	change due to human activity not to exceed 2 Centigrade degrees	whole zone
Suspended Solids	waste discharge not to raise the natural ambient level by 30% nor cause accumulation of suspended solids which may adversely affect aquatic communities	marine waters
Toxic Substances	not to be present at levels producing significant toxic effects	whole zone
Unionised Ammonia	annual mean not to exceed .021mg/L	whole zone
Nutrients	not be present in quantities that cause excessive algal growth annual mean depth average inorganic nitrogen not to exceed 0.5 mg/L for North Western WCZ and 0.1 mg/L for Southern WCZ	marine waters marine waters except Castle Peak subzone

3.5 Waste Management

3.5.1 The Contractor shall comply with all relevant requirements of the Waste Disposal Ordinance. The Waste Disposal Ordinance prohibits the unauthorised disposal of wastes, with waste defined as any substance or article which is abandoned. Construction waste is not directly defined in the Ordinance but is considered to fall within the category of "trade waste". Wastes can only be disposed of at licensed sites under this Ordinance. Compliance with the Public Health and Municipal Services Ordinances (Cap 132) and the Public Cleansing and Prevention of Nuisances (Regional Council) By-laws will be required to control any nuisance from the collections and disposal of waste.

3.5.2 The Contractor will be required to reuse materials on site as far as practicable and minimise waste arisings. In this regard, reference should be made all relevant technical circulars including the Works Branch Technical Circular (WBTC) No. 5/99 for the Trip-ticket System for Disposal of Construction and Demolition Material and WBTC No. 32/92 on the Use of Tropical Hardwood on Construction Sites.

3.5.3 In addition, construction wastes which are wholly inert may be taken to public dumps. The Land (Miscellaneous Provisions) Ordinance (Cap 28) requires that dumping licences are obtained by individuals or companies who deliver suitable construction wastes to public fills, public filling barging points or public fill stockpiled areas. Under the licence conditions public dumps will accept only inert building debris, soil, rock and broken concrete.

3.5.4 Under the Waste Disposal (Chemical Waste) (General) Regulation under the Waste Disposal Ordinance (Cap 354), ‘chemical waste’ includes any scrap material and unwanted substances specified under Schedule 1 of the Waste Disposal Regulations. These are noted as posing serious environmental, health, and safety hazards if not stored and disposed of appropriately. Chemical wastes are often produced primarily as a result of construction equipment maintenance activities, and include liquids such as waste oils and cleaning solvents. The Contractor must register as a chemical waste generator with the DEP and arrange for a licensed collector to collect and dispose of the waste. Chemical wastes should be handled, stored, transported and disposed with reference to the Code of Practice on the Package, Labelling and Storage of Chemical Wastes and A Guide to the Chemical Waste Control Scheme published by the DEP.

3.5.5 In accordance with the Dumping at Sea Ordinance and as specified in WBTC No. 22/92, a licence is required by the Contractor for undertaking any dumping at sea. The Contractor will be required to apply for a licence from the DEP.

3.6 Ecology

3.6.1 Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance

3.6.1.1 The Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance sets out specific requirements for projects needing ecological assessments and the TMEIA provides criteria for evaluating ecological impact (Annex 8) and guidelines on ecological assessment (Annex 16).

3.6.2 Country Parks Ordinance

3.6.2.1 The Country Parks Ordinance provides for the designation, control and management of areas of countryside as Country Parks and Special Areas. Country Parks are designated for the purpose of nature conservation, countryside recreation and education. Special Areas are areas of Government land with special interest and importance due to their flora, fauna, geological, cultural or archaeological features. The Special Areas within Country Parks receive no additional legal protection but the extra status does serve to highlight areas of particular conservation significance. Consent from the Country and Marine Parks Authority is required before any works are carried out within Country Parks or Special Areas.

3.6.2.2 Some of the proposed study area lies within the Lantau North and South Country Parks and the proposed Lantau North Country Park Extension Area. Section 4 of the Country Parks Ordinance (Cap.208) states that it is the duty of the Country Parks Authority to “protect the vegetation and wildlife....”and “to preserve and maintain buildings and sites of historic or culture significance within country parks”.

3.6.2.3 Section 10 prohibits development within a country park “where a draft map has been prepared” without the prior approval of the Country Parks Authority.

3.6.3 Hong Kong Planning Standards and Guidelines Chapter 10 (Conservation)

3.6.3.1 The Town Planning Ordinance and the guidance set out in the Hong Kong Planning Standards and Guidelines Chapter 10 (Conservation) as it relate to Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs), Countryside Conservation Areas and Green Belts are applicable to this Project.

3.6.4 Forests and Countryside Ordinance

3.6.4.1 The Forest and Countryside Ordinance provides for the general protection of vegetation and gives special protection to certain plants. This Ordinance would apply mainly during the construction period of the proposed works.

3.6.5 Wild Animals Protection Ordinance

3.6.5.1 The Wild Animals Protection Ordinance protects listed species of wild animals. All birds and most mammals including bats are protected under this Ordinance. This Ordinance would apply to the Project mainly during the construction period of the proposed works because of possible disturbance, taking or removal of animals and/or their nests or eggs.

3.7 Landscape and Visual

3.7.1 Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance

3.7.1.1 The preparation of a landscape and visual impact assessment is currently controlled by the Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance which makes specific reference to issues and concerns to be considered during the assessment of visual and landscape impacts. The criteria for evaluating impacts are presented in Annex 10 of the TMEIA, and the guidelines for conducting a landscape and visual impact assessment are set out in Annex 18 of the TMEIA.

3.7.2 Other Landscape Documents

3.7.2.1 Landscape and visual issues pertinent to this study are also addressed by the following documents:

(i) The Advisory Committee on the Appearance of Bridges and Associates Structures (ACABAS) review the aesthetics of highway related structures with the aim of minimising visual intrusion and impact, comments provide by ACABAS are of particular relevance to this Study;

(ii) The 1990 Government White Paper on “Pollution in Hong Kong - A Time to Act” offers general policy objectives on avoiding environmental problems by considering all environmental impacts at the early stages of development process;

(iii) HyD TC 10/2001 on the visibility of directional signs;

(iv) WBTC 18/94 controls the management and maintenance of both natural vegetation and landscape works;

(v) WBTC 24/94 PELB 3/94 controls tree preservations and minimising tree felling throughout the Territory with General Regulation 740 outlining the process of Government tree felling application approval to provide permission to fell or cut trees; and

(vi) WBTC 25/93 aims to control the visual impacts of engineered slopes and is specifically directed at public works projects and states the need to minimise adverse visual impacts.

(vii) WBTC No. 17/200, Improvement to the Appearance of Slopes;

(viii) GEO Publication No. 1/2000 , Technical Guidelines on Landscape Treatment and Bio-Engineering for Man-made Slopes and Retaining Walls;

(ix) Geotechnical Manual for Slopes, 4^th Edition by GEO, CED;

(x) HyD Guidance Notes No. LU/GN/001, Management and Maintenance of Landscape Works along Public Roads; and

(xi) HyD Practice Notes No. LU/PN/001, Landscape Works Associated with Public Roads and Highways Design, Construction and Maintenance.

3.8 Hazard Assessment

3.8.1 Chlorine Hazard and Dangerous Goods Classification

3.8.1.1 Chlorine is toxic and classified as Dangerous Goods (Category 2) under the Dangerous Goods Ordinance (DGO, Cap 295). Exposure to high concentrations of chlorine gas in air (its physical state at ambient conditions) is damaging to health and can be fatal. With toxic clouds of chlorine gas fatal effects would arise after an exposure time of a few minutes or more depending on the concentration.

3.8.2 EIAO TM Risk Guidelines

3.8.2.1 The Cheung Sha WTW uses and stores liquefied chlorine in 50kg cylinders for the purpose of sterilisation of drinking water. The quantity of chlorine stored at Cheung Sha WTW does not exceed the criterion of 10 tonnes of chlorine in 50kg cylinders or a single 1 tonne drum, and so the WTW is not classified as a PHI. Therefore no Consultation Zone is defined for Cheung Sha WTW.

3.8.2.2 Also, under the EIAOTM (Section 12), Hazard Assessment may be required when ‘risk to life’ is a key issue with respect to the Hong Kong Risk Guidelines. The risk guidelines (Annex 4) are the relevant assessment criteria. This is the situation of this project.

3.8.3 Hazard Assessment

3.8.3.1 Hazard assessment (HA) calculates and assesses the level of societal and individual risk from the WTW to members of the public against Government Risk Guidelines (RGs) to determine what, if any, actions need to be taken to reduce risks to acceptable levels. The societal risk of concern is based on the population of the proposed road development and is placed in context by comparison with the societal risk based on the total population.

3.8.4 The Hong Kong Risk Guidelines

3.8.4.1 The Government Risk Guidelines (RGs) and EIAOTM (Annex 4) define acceptable risks as follows:

¨ Individual Risk (the risk to a single individual in a specific location): The maximum involuntary individual risk of death associated with accidents should not exceed 1 chance in 100,000 per year (10^-5/yr).

¨ Societal Risk (the risk to the population as a whole, independent of geographical location): The societal risk should comply with the FN diagram shown as Figure 3.1. The figure is a graphical representation of the cumulative frequency, F, of a number, N, or more fatalities resulting from potential accidents plotted against N on a log-log scale. Three areas of risk are shown:

- Acceptable where risks are so low that no action is necessary.

- Unacceptable where risks are so high that they should usually be reduced regardless of the cost or the hazardous activity should not proceed.

- ALARP (As Low As Reasonably Practical) where the risks should be reduced to a level “as low as reasonably practical”, under this principle the priority of measures is established on the basis of practicality and cost to implement versus risk reduction achieved.

3.8.5 Interpretation of the HKRGs

3.8.5.1 For a development such as this lying within the area at risk from of Cheung Sha WTW, EIAOTM (Annex 4) considers the risk acceptable if the FN curve for the population constructing and using the road is within the acceptable region of the HK RGs (individual and societal risk criteria).

3.9 Heritage

3.9.1 Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance

3.9.1.1 Criteria and guidelines for the assessment of cultural heritage are presented in Annexes 10 and 19 of the TMEIA but more specific requirements are set out below.

3.9.2 Hong Kong Planning Standards and Guidelines

3.9.2.1 Chapter 10 of the HKPSG provides guidelines relating to the conservation of historic buildings, archaeological sites and other antiquities. The guidelines detail the methods for the conservation and preservation of protected monuments, the method of identifying and recording antiquities, particularly buildings which should be conserved and the recording and grading of the such buildings and archaeological sites. The process of monuments and development control through the planning process is also highlighted.

3.9.3 Antiquities and Monuments Ordinance

3.9.3.1 Buildings and structures and archaeological sites considered to have historical value may be gazetted and protected under the Antiquities and Monuments Ordinance (Cap 53 ). Under the Ordinance, the Antiquities Authority (the Secretary for Home Affairs) may, after consultation with the Antiquities Advisory Board (AAB) and with Government approval, declare any place, building, site or structure which the Antiquities Authority considers to be of public interest by reason of its historical, archaeological or paleonotolgical significance, to be a monument, historical building, archaeological or paleontological site or structure. Once declared to be a site of public interest, no person may undertake acts which are prohibited under the Ordinance, such as to demolish or carry on building or other works, unless a permit is obtained from the Antiquities Authority.

3.9.3.2 The Antiquities and Monuments Office (AMO) of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department is part of the Government Secretariat and comprises the executive arm of the Antiquities Authority. The Antiquities and Monuments Office services the Antiquities Advisory Board who are responsible for advising the Government on sites which merit protection. The office further has responsibility for the protection of buildings and items of historical interest and areas of archaeological significance.

3.9.4 Cultural Heritage

3.9.4.1 The AMO provides guidelines and criteria for Cultural Heritage Impact Assessment (CCHIA) which stress that preservation in totality must be taken as the first priority. Projects undertaken are not to cause excessive impact on archaeologically and historically important sites unless there are adequate protection or mitigation measures or a satisfactory rescue plan is proposed.

3.9.4.2 The AMO considers all buildings and structures in the following categories to be historical and deserving of consideration for preservation:

¨ all pre-1950 buildings and structures; and

¨ selected post-1950 buildings and structures of high architectural and historical significance and interest.

3.9.4.3 Once identified as having the potential for conservation, buildings are entered into the record. They are then graded by AMO to show their relative value. Evaluation is based on the following criteria:

¨ outstanding architectural merits - especially features emphasising certain period, technological and artistic merits;

¨ special historical interest - accommodating important civic or social function, for example, ancestral halls, religious buildings, post offices, city halls, courts of law, railways station, etc;

¨ associations - with important events or well-known persons; and

¨ group value - especially in historic villages.

3.9.4.4 Archaeological sites are identified and recorded by the AMO as they are revealed through systematic survey, casual finding and/or the EIA process. All such archaeological sites are considered to be of cultural heritage value and their preservation in totality is taken as the primary aim of the EIA process. The CCHIA stipulate that if this is not possible, amelioration must be achieved by reduction of potential impacts and preservation achieved by means of detailed cartographic and photographic survey or preservation of an archaeological site ‘by record’, i.e. through excavation to extract the maximum data as the very last resort. The search for and excavation of all archaeological material requires a license from the Antiquities Authority.

Sulphur Dioxide