1.0 INTRODUCTION

1.1 Project Background

In 2007, Transport Department (TD) and Highways Department (HyD) proposed to upgrade the remaining sections of Kam Tin Road and Lam Kam Road to 7.3m (“Original Scheme”), which did not cover the upgrading of the road section of Kam Tin Road between Tung Wui Road and Fan Kam Road to 10.3m wide.

An Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) study brief (No. ESB-170/2007) was issued in October 2007 by the Director of Environmental Protection under the Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance.

Assessment on environmental impacts for the “Original Scheme” had been carried out. The EIA Report was approved by Environmental Protection Department (EPD) on 26 June 2009. HyD then applied for Environmental Permit (EP) on 10 April 2012 and the EP (EP No. EP-439/2012) was granted by EPD on 7 May 2012. No upgrading works has been carried out after the issuance of EP in 2012.

According to the traffic survey under the traffic impact assessment (TIA) conducted by Civil Engineering and Development Department (CEDD) in November 2015 under Agreement No. CE 34/2014 (CE) “Site Formation and Infrastructure Works for the Initial Sites at Kam Tin South, Yuen Long – Investigation, Design and Construction”, the volume to capacity (v/c) ratio of the road section of Kam Tin Road between Tung Wui Road and Fan Kam Road has exceeded 1.2. Taking into account the TIA findings by CEDD, TD considers if the “Original Scheme” is to be implemented (i.e. upgrading the concerned road section of Kam Tin Road to a standard 7.3m wide carriageway), the v/c ratio would still be very close to 1.2 having regard to full population intake of the Kam Tin South Development in 2031. Therefore, TD determined that there was a need to upgrade the road section of Kam Tin Road between Tung Wui Road and Fan Kam Road to 10.3m wide (“New Scheme”) to bring down the v/c ratio below 1.0 to cater for the planned development.

The scope of the “New Scheme” which involves the upgrading of the existing road sections and footpaths on both sides of Kam Tin Road and Lam Kam Road are as follows:

(a) upgrading of the remaining unimproved sections of Kam Tin Road (between Fan Kam Road and Lam Kam Road) and Lam Kam Road from a substandard single two-lane carriageway to a standard carriageway of at least 7.3m wide;

(b) upgrading of the road section of Kam Tin Road (between Tung Wui Road and Fan Kam Road) to a 10.3m wide carriageway;

(c) provision of 2m wide footpaths on both sides (if site conditions do not allow, 2m wide footpath on one side will be acceptable) and associated improvement of pedestrian facilities, public transport laybys and right-turning lanes at major junctions at Kam Tin Road & Kam Tai Road and Kam Tin Road & Wang Toi Shan Shan Tsuen Road; and

(d) Associated slope and drainage works, traffic aids and street lighting modification, landscaping works, etc. under the project.

The proposed upgrading works do not include any expressway, trunk road, primary distributor road or district distributor road, road or railway tunnel more than 800m in length between portals, and road or railway bridge more than 100m in length between abutments. As such, the project does not constitute Designated Project (DP) under Schedule 2 Part 1 Categories A1, A7 and A8 of the Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance (EIAO) (Cap. 499). However, the proposed upgrading works encroach upon existing conservation areas. Hence, the upgrading of remaining sections of Kam Tin Road and Lam Kam Road (which is hereafter referred to as the “Project”), is classified as Designated Project under Schedule 2 Part 1 Category Q.1 of the EIAO and it requires an environmental permit before works commencement.

The Project location is shown in Figure 1.1 and Conservation Area near the Project area is shown in Figure 1.2.

The construction works are anticipated to commence in early 2021 with completion of the Project in mid-2025. However, the actual programme is subject to review depending on the progress of the Project.

Project profile of the Project (Register No. PP-571/2018) was submitted on 11 October 2018 for application for an EIA Study Brief. Subsequently, a Study Brief (Register No. ESB-310/2018) was issued by EPD on 22 November 2018.

1.2 Purpose of the EIA Study

The purpose of the EIA Study is to provide information on the nature and extent of environmental impacts arising from the construction and operation phases of the Project and the recommended mitigation, and related activities from the interface projects 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 Objectives of the EIA Study

The EIA Study has been conducted and completed in accordance with the requirements of the EIA Study Brief under the EIAO and the guidelines on assessment methodologies provided in the Technical Memorandum on Environmental Impact Assessment Process (hereinafter referred to as the EIAO-TM). The EIA Report has been prepared:

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

iii. to identify and quantify emission sources and determine the significance of impacts on sensitive receivers and potential affected uses;

iv. to identify and quantify contaminated land within any project area for development works, and to propose measures to avoid disposal in the first instance.

v. to identify and quantify any potential losses or damage to flora, fauna and natural habitats;

vi. to identify and evaluate any potential landscape and visual impacts and to propose measures to mitigate these impacts;

vii. to propose measures/actions to avoid or minimise potential archaeological impact if any archaeological remains are identified during construction phase of the Project;

viii. to propose the provision of infrastructure or mitigation measures so as to minimize pollution, environmental disturbance and nuisance during construction and operation phases of the Project;

ix. to investigate the feasibility, effectiveness and implications of the proposed mitigation measures;

x. to identify, predict and evaluate the residual environmental impacts (i.e. after practicable mitigation) 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;

xi. 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;

xii. to design and specify environmental monitoring and audit (EM&A) requirements; and

xiii. to identify any additional studies necessary to implement the mitigation measures or monitoring and proposals recommended in the EIA report.

1.4 Report Structure

This EIA Report is organised as follows:

Section 1 – Introduction

Section 2 – Project Description

Section 3 – Air Quality Impact

Section 4 – Noise Impact

Section 5 – Water Quality Impact

Section 6 – Waste Management Implication

Section 7 – Ecological Impact

Section 8 – Land Contamination

Section 9 – Landscape and Visual Impact

Section 10 – Environmental Monitoring and Audit (EM&A) Requirements

Section 11 – Summary of Environmental Outcomes

Section 12 – Implementation Schedule of Recommended Mitigation Measures

Section 13 – Conclusions