1 Introduction

1.2 Designated Projects

1.2.1 The Project comprises the following which are classified as a Designated Project (DP) under Part I, Schedule 2 of the EIAO.

· Item A.8 - A road or railway bridge more than 100 m in length between abutments; and

· Item C.3(a) - Reclamation works resulting in 5% decrease in cross sectional area calculated on the basis of 0.0 mPD in a sea channel.

1.3 Objectives of the EIA Study

1.3.1 The purpose of the EIA study is to provide information on the nature and extent of environmental impacts arising from the construction and operation of the Project and the associated works that take place concurrently. This information will contribute to decisions on:

· the overall acceptability of any adverse environmental consequences that are likely to arise as a result of the Project;

· the conditions and requirements for the detailed design, construction and operation of the Project to mitigate against adverse environmental consequences wherever practicable; and

· the acceptability of residual impacts after the proposed mitigation measures are implemented.

1.3.2 The objectives of the EIA study are as follows:

i) to describe the Project and associated works together with the requirements and environmental benefits for carrying out the Project;

ii) to identify and describe the elements of the community and environment likely to be affected by the Project and/or likely to cause adverse impacts to the Project, including both the natural and man-made environment and the associated environmental constraints;

iii) to provide information on the consideration of alternative design options of the Project including scale, extent, layout, configuration, design and construction methods with a view to avoiding or minimising potential environmental impacts to environmentally sensitive areas and uses; to compare environmental benefits and dis-benefits of different options; to provide reasons for selecting the preferred option(s) and to describe the part environmental factors considered in the selection of preferred option(s);

iv) to identify and assess emission sources (including air quality, noise, water and waste, etc. as appropriate) and determine the significance of impacts on sensitive receivers and potential affected uses;

v) to identify and quantify any potential losses or damage to flora, fauna, natural habitats and to propose measures to mitigate these impacts;

vi) to identify any potential landscape and visual impacts and to propose measure to mitigate these impacts;

vii) to propose the provision of infrastructure or mitigation measures so as to minimise pollution, environmental disturbance and nuisance during construction and operation of the Project;

viii) to investigate the feasibility, effectiveness and implications of the proposed mitigation measures;

ix) to identify, predict and evaluate the residual (i.e. after practicable mitigation) environmental impacts and the cumulative effects expected to arise during the construction and operation phases of the Project in relation to the sensitive receivers and potential affected uses;

x) to identify, assess and specify methods, measures and standards, to be included in the detailed design, construction and operation of the Project which are necessary to mitigate these residual environmental impacts and cumulative effects and reduce them to acceptable levels;

xi) to investigate the extent of the secondary environmental impacts that may arise from the proposed mitigation measures and to identify constraints associated with the mitigation measures recommended in the EIA study, as well as provision of any necessary modification; and

xii) to design and specify the environmental monitoring and audit requirements to ensure the effective implementation of the recommended environmental protection and pollution control measures.

i) potential air quality impact on the sensitive receivers due to the construction and operation of the Project and the associated works, in particular those arising from the emissions of the vehicles;

ii) potential noise impact on the sensitive receivers due to the construction of the Project and associated works, including impact from construction equipment during construction of the Project;

iii) potential water quality impacts caused by the Project and associated works arising from the construction and operation of the Project;

iv) potential waste management issues and impacts arising from the construction and operation of the Project;

v) potential marine ecological impacts during construction and operation of the Project;

vi) potential landscape and visual impacts on sensitive receivers during the construction and operation of the Project;

vii) potential impacts on sites of cultural heritage including marine archaeological deposit in the seabed of the Project area likely to be affected during construction of the Project; and

viii) potential cumulative environmental impacts of the Project, through interaction or in combination with other existing, committed and planned projects in the vicinity of the Project, and that those impacts may have a bearing on the environmental acceptability of the Project.

1.5 Structure of the EIA Report

1.5.1 The background of the Project, objectives and scope of the EIA study are introduced in this section. A description of the Project and details of considerations of alternative options are provided in Section 2. Sections 3 to 9 detail the results of the environmental impact assessment of each key subject area, covering relevant legislation, environmental conditions, assessment criteria, methodology, and assessment findings.

1.5.2 Section 3 to 9 includes:

· Section 3: Air Quality Impact

· Section 4: Noise Impact

· Section 5: Water Quality Impact

· Section 6: Wastes Management Implications

· Section 7: Marine Ecological Impact

· Section 8: Landscape and Visual Impact

· Section 9: Impact of Cultural Heritage

1.5.3 An outline of the requirements for the Environmental Monitoring and Audit (EM&A) is presented in Section 10. The EM&A programme is presented in details in a separate EM&A Manual. A detailed implementation schedule of the recommended mitigation measures is provided in Section 11. A summary of environmental outcome and conclusion of the whole assessment is given in Section 12.