1 / 8

Initial Assessment of Don Sahong Hydropower Project

Initial Assessment of Don Sahong Hydropower Project. Social Issues. Basin Development Plan Programme Mekong River Commission Secretariat. Technical Consultation for Don Sahong Hydropower Project 7 March 2014, Vientiane, Lao PDR. Reviewed project preparation documents.

royce
Download Presentation

Initial Assessment of Don Sahong Hydropower Project

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Initial Assessment ofDon Sahong Hydropower Project Social Issues Basin Development Plan Programme Mekong River Commission Secretariat Technical Consultation for Don Sahong Hydropower Project 7 March 2014, Vientiane, Lao PDR

  2. Reviewed project preparation documents The most relevant documents for this review: Social Impact Assessment (SIA) Cumulative Impact Assessment (CIA) Resettlement Action Plan (RAP) Social Management and Monitoring Plan (SMMP) Review based on desk review by 5 BDP staffs and participation in site visit on 10-12 Nov 2013 Documents are prepared in accordance with Lao regulations and ministerial guidelines, which are based on those of international organizations, such as the World Bank

  3. Assessment and recommendations for improvement of the plans at the project scale(refers to the built up area of the project infrastructure) The RAP states that 11 households (10 households of Hang Sahong and 1 household of Hang Sadam) have to be resettled Compensation, livelihood restoration and development, and budget (>$1 million) are detailed in the RAP Our recommendations for improving the RAP are related to: RAP implementation schedule (e.g. 2 years may be too short) A few inconsistencies related to the resettlement location on different maps Gaps related to alternative irrigation water supply and waste disposal

  4. Assessment and recommendations for improvement of the plans at the local scale(refers to the wider project area affected by the project construction and operation) According to the SIA the main social impact is that most local fishers will lose their traditional livelihood as a result of the proposed measures to lower fishery pressure and improve fisheries management Compensation, and benefits such as construction of infrastructure (eg new roads, three bridges), and livelihood development (eg micro-credit funds) are stated in the SMMP Our recommendations for improving the SIA and the SMMP are related to: A few inconsistencies between the SIA and the SMMP, eg on the duration, nature and funding of the livelihood development activities Gaps, eg on waste disposal and management, and awareness raising and training related to some livelihood restoration and betterment measures

  5. Assessment and recommendations for improvement of the plans at the transboundary scale Potential transboundary social implications are indirectly assessed through assessments of potential impacts of changes in hydrology, sediments, fisheries, environment, etc. The reports argue that the project – with the proposed mitigation measures - will not have significant transboundary impacts (and thus adverse social consequences) However, our assessment is that the main challenge concerns the oversight and compliance assurance of the implementation of the proposed mitigation measures, and with adaptive management based on good monitoring of a range of parameters

  6. Overall assessment of the documents In general, the SIA, CIA, RAP and SMMP are mostly complete, based on adequate assessments (esp. at project and sub-regional scales), and provide the required information The identified inconsistencies and gaps in the reports can be addressed More information about consultations in Cambodia can be provided Some of the proposed mitigating measures need to be further prepared, enhanced and planned together with the affected population, such as the livelihood development measures to maximize employment opportunities

  7. Recommendations for improvement of the plans at the transboundary scale The project preparation reports (also the EIA and the EMMP) would benefit from a more comprehensive discussion of the best ways and means for compliance assurance of the mitigation actions proposed The countries could discuss how a joint Lao-Cambodia technical monitoring programme with MRC support should be established for monitoring fisheries and improve fisheries management in the Khone Fall area To prevent misperception about the impact of the project, monitoring data should be made available to the public

  8. Thank you….

More Related