concept EIA-rapport - Staatsolie

SRK Consulting: Project No: 439414 Staatsolie Pipeline EIA – Draft EIA Report Page 62
• Emissions of exhaust fumes from construction equipment will be concentrated at the drill pads,
which are located in industrial areas near the river, where fumes will be relatively quickly
dispersed and impact few people;
• Impacts from the construction phase will be very short-term.
During operation, any potential impacts of the project on air quality are considered insignificant, as:
• The pipeline will mostly lie underground and not release emissions to the air;
• Earthworks will not be required for maintenance of the pipeline or corridor; and
• The emissions associated with the operation of pumps to move the product in the pipelines are
expected to be minimal compared to the other industrial emissions in the area.
It must be noted that the above assessment is based on the assumption that the following measures
are implemented in the project design, construction and operation phases:
• Maintain all generators, vehicles, vessels and other equipment in good working order to
minimise exhaust fumes; and
• Cover stockpiles of dry, loose material with netting or similar to avoid dust, especially during
windy and dry conditions.
6.2.4 Noise and vibration impacts
Detailed noise measurements are not available for the study area 30 , but are likely to vary depending
on the land use in specific locations. Land use varies from vacant and vegetated plots (where noise
will be dominated by more natural sounds of birds and frogs) to residential areas (characterised by
traffic, dogs barking, household noise etc) and industrial activities (where noise levels might be
comparable to those measured at the Staatsolie refinery). 2009 measurements in the vicinity of the
Staatsolie refinery indicated that current ambient noise levels in residential, commercial and
industrial areas lie below guideline levels stipulated by the IFC.
During construction, potential sources of noise and vibration impacts include drilling activities at the
pipeline entry / exit points, activities at the pipeline assembly area, construction activities along the
trenching and pipe rack sections and construction vehicles and vessels. The magnitude of potential
noise and vibration impacts from the above sources is considered insignificant, as:
• Most activities will take place at a few discrete points over the 6 km long pipeline corridor, within
areas already used for industrial purposes and at considerable distance from residential areas 31 ;
• There are only five drill locations, spread over an approximately 6 km long corridor;
• The use of a 250 tonne drill (such as the one proposed for this project) in close proximity of
residences for other HDD operations did not cause any vibration-related complaints (Southern
Water, not dated);
• Vibrations caused by heavy trucks at nearby structures may create annoyance but are unlikely to
cause damage; such vibrations would not be unusual in the area as heavy trucks already use
roads in the area;
30 As noise impacts from the pipeline project are considered to be insignificant, baseline noise measurements were not
undertaken for this EIA.
31 The nearest residence to any drill pad is located approximately 200 m from the pad near Suritex. At all other drill pads,
residences are located at least 500 m from the site. In general, only people living within 100 m of the site boundary are likely
to be seriously impacted by construction noise.
REUT/DALC 439414_StaatsoliePipelineEIA_Draft EIA Report_Final June 2012