Environmental Scoping Phase
Pre-Application Consultation
A Pre-Application Consultation Meeting was convened with DEA on 21 January 2013. The purpose of the meeting included the following:
To introduce the project to DEA; To seek clarification regarding certain matters that pertain to the EIA process; To determine DEA’s requirements; and To confirm the process and timeframes.
An Environmental Authorities Meeting was held on 14 February 2013and was attended by representatives from the following authorities:
DEA; KZN Department of Agriculture and Environmental Affairs (DAEA); Department of Mineral Resources (DMR); Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF); AmafaaKwaZulu-Natali; Department of Transport; and Richmond Local Municipality.
Landowner Notification
According to regulation 15(1) of GN No. 543 (2010), if the applicant is not the owner or person in control of the land on which the activity is to be undertaken, written notice of the proposed activity must be given to the owner or person in control of the land on which the activity is to be undertaken, and inform such person that he may participate in the Public Participation process. To satisfy the aforementioned requirement, Nemai Consulting will provide letters to all landowners regarding the project.
Nemai Consulting will make use of existing channels of communication within the District Municipality and the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA) when engaging with the affected tribal authorities.
Application Form
The Application Form will make provision for all the activities associated with the uMWP Phase 1 Raw Water components and at least the following appurtenant works:
All the construction sites (including the construction housing); Storage facilities; Storage of hazardous materials; Plants, e.g. concrete mixing, crushers, etc.; Relocation of infrastructure, e.g. roads (R617), power lines, etc.; Access roads for construction purposes; Quarry and borrow pits; Power supply for construction purposes; and Eskom switch yard.
Nemai Consulting will prepare the Application Form for review and signing by DWA. Thereafter, the completed Application Form will be submitted to DEA. A copy will be provided to KZN DAEA. A reference numberwill be obtained from DEA in order to commence with public participation.
Public Participation – Project Announcement
The project will be announced as follows:
1. A Background Information Document (BID) will be developed for dissemination (via fax, email, registered mail, or hand delivery) to the Interested and Affected Parties (I&APs), including occupiers of land within 100m of the boundary of the project. The BIDs will be translated from English to Zulu. The BIDs will be accompanied by Reply Forms to be completed by I&APs. 2. Onsite notices will be placed at all localized points (e.g. access road, alongside project boundaries) and at strategic locations (e.g. community notice boards). 3. Advertisements will be placed in local and regional newspapers. 4. Where necessary, one-on-one meetings will be held with the landowners. A translator will be used when engaging with the tribal leaders. Minutes will be generated for all meetings.
All comments received from I&APs following the project announcement will be captured in a Comments and Response Report, which will be expanded upon during the Scoping Phase.
All activities undertaken as part of the Public Participation process (including proof of notifications, minutes of meetings, Comments and Response Report) will be included in the Scoping and EIA Reports (where relevant).
Compile Draft Scoping Report
The Scoping Report will conform to the requirements stipulated in regulation 28 of GN No. R 543, and will contain the following (as a minimum):
Description of the proposed development and reasonable alternatives; Description of the property on which the activity is proposed to take place; Description of the environment (at a screening level) that may be affected by the activity and the manner in which the physical, biological, social, economic and cultural aspects of the environment that may be affected by the proposed activity; Identification of all legislation and guidelines that have been considered in the preparation of the Scoping Report; Description of the environmental issues and potential impacts, including cumulative impacts, that have been identified; Indicate the methodology that will be adopted in assessing the potential impacts that have been identified, including any specialist studies or specialised processes that will be undertaken; Detail the stakeholder engagement for the EIA process in terms of the regulation 28(a); A Plan of Study for the EIA which sets out the proposed approach to the EIA, including:
Description of the tasks to be undertaken as part of the EIA process, including specialist report or specialized processes, and a manner in which such tasks will be undertaken; An indication of stages at which the competent authority will be consulted; Description of methods for assessing issues and alternatives, including the no-go alternative; and Particulars of public participation process that will be conducted during the EIA process.
Amongst others, the Scoping Report will qualitatively assess the potential impacts associated with the project in order to identify significant environmental issues that will receive specific attention during the EIA phase.
Public Participation – Draft Scoping Report Review
All I&APs will be notified via fax, email, registered mail or direct communication of the review process and period for the Draft Scoping Report. A public and authorities meeting will be convened once the Draft Scoping Report is placed in the public domain for review.
The Draft Scoping Report will be placed on the dedicated project website (//www6.dwa.gov.za/uMkhomazi/default.aspx) and copies of the report will be lodged at public places to allow for I&APs to review the document over a 40-day period. Hardcopies of the report will also be provided to therelevant authorities and the landowners for review.
Compile Final Scoping Report
Following the review of the draft report, the Final Scoping Report will be prepared. Any comments received from I&APs will be incorporated into the Comments and Response Report and the relevant project team members will be requested to provide responses, where necessary.
The Final Scoping Report will only be lodged for public review if substantive comments are received from I&APs during the review of the draft report. If this is not the case, the Final Scoping Report will be submitted directly to DEA for decision-making and I&APs will be notified that the report can be accessed via the project website and comments should be submitted directly to the DEA case officer.
The Scoping Phase will be completed once DEA has approved the Scoping Report.
Environmental Impact Assessment Phase
Plan of Study for EIA
The EIA process will be undertaken in accordance with the Plan of Study for the EIA. The EIA Report will document the alignment with and deviations from (where relevant) the Plan of Study for the EIA.
Specialist Studies
The nature and extent of the specialist studies to be conducted for the purposes of the EIA will be determined at the Scoping Phase. The following specialist studies are anticipated to be required:
Fauna and Flora Study; Heritage Impact Assessment; Aquatic and Riverine Assessment; Agricultural Impact Assessment; Visual Impact Assessment; Socio-economic Assessment; Wetland Assessment and Delineation Study; and Social Impact Assessment
Additional specialist studies to be undertaken that that are of a technical nature include Geotechnical Investigations, Geo-hydrological Assessment, Traffic Impact Assessment, floodline calculations and Water Quality Assessment.
Compile Draft EIA Report
The EIA Report will satisfy the requirements of regulation 31 of GN No. R 543, and will include the following information (as a minimum):
A detailed description of the proposed development; A detailed description of the proposed development site; A description of the environment that may be affected by the activity and the manner in which physical, biological, social, economic and cultural aspects of the environment may be affected by the proposed development; The methodology of the stakeholder engagement process will be described; The Comments and Response Report and Stakeholder Database will be provided as an appendix to the EIA Report; A description of the need and desirability of the proposed development and the identified potential alternatives to the proposed activity; A summary of the methodology used in determining the significance of potential impacts; A description and comparative assessment of the project alternatives; A summary of the findings of the specialist studies; A detailed assessment of all identified potential impacts; A list of the assumptions, uncertainties and gaps in knowledge; An opinion by the consultant as to whether the development is suitable for approval within the proposed site; An Environmental Management Programme(EMPr) that complies with regulation 33 of GNNo. R543; Copies of all specialist reports appended to the EIA report; and Any further information that will assist in decision making by the authorities
Public Participation – Draft EIA Report Review
All I&APs will be notified via fax, email or registered mail of the review process and period for the Draft EIA Report. A public and authorities meeting will be convened once the Draft EIA Report is placed in the public domain for review.
The Draft EIA Report will be placed on the dedicated project website and copies of the report will be lodged at public places to allow for I&APs to review the document over a 40-day period. Hardcopies of the report will also be provided to the relevant authorities and the landowners for review.
A comprehensive Comments and Response Report will be maintained throughout the EIA process. Any comments received from I&APs will be incorporated into the Comments and Response Report and the relevant project team members will be requested to provide responses, where necessary.
Compile Final EIA Report
Following the review of the draft report, the Final EIA Report will be prepared. The Final EIA Report will only be lodged for public review if substantive comments are received from I&APs during the review of the draft report.
Notification of Decision
All I&APs will be notified of DEA’s decision and the appeal process.
|