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SRK Consulting Staatsolie Refinery Draft EIA Report: Non-technical Summary Page vi The two regionally important roads in the area, Martin Luther King Road and Sir Winston Churchill Road, are surfaced. Martin Luther King Road is in bad condition in the Houttuin area. Traffic levels on both roads are slowly increasing and are high during morning and evening rush hour. The important ressort-level roads running in a south-west/north-east direction are also surfaced, but most of the smaller roads in the area are not. Flooding is a problem on these roads in the rainy season. The Suriname River is used by all major cargo vessels travelling to the Port of Paramaribo and further upstream. There are many small quays and jetties, which are used by industries located on the riverbank (mostly on the western bank), as well as passenger and fishing boats. There is an increasing need for housing in Ressort Houttuin and several housing projects are planned or currently underway. As a result, Houttuin is slowly losing its farming character and is becoming more urban. Most new and planned housing and industrial developments in Ressort Houttuin are to the south of the Staatsolie refinery, along Sir Winston Churchill Road and Martin Luther King Road. 6 IMPACT ASSESSMENT AND OVERVIEW OF MANAGEMENT PLANS A summary of the potential impacts and their significance and the key findings of the impact assessment are discussed below and summarised in Table 2. 6.1 Biophysical Impact Assessment Key observations with regard to the potential biophysical impacts of the planned project activities are: • Potential contamination of soil resources, changes to the landscape and limitations imposed on land uses around the refinery site during the construction and operation phases are all assessed to be insignificant or of very low to low significance. A large, accidental release of pollutants (e.g. an oil spill) could result in soil contamination of medium significance, but would be of very low significance if mitigation measures are implemented. • The noise impact on surrounding communities during the construction phase (mainly because of construction vehicles and piling) is assessed be of very low significance. The refinery expansion project (and SPCS power plant) will result in a reduction in noise levels in the residential areas to the west of the refinery site, due to the fact that new refinery units will be placed on the southern side of the existing refinery (i.e. futher away from the residential area) and some existing refinery units will be moth-balled. Noise levels in the undeveloped and industrial areas to the south of the refinery site will increase slightly. However, the noise level changes will not be noticeable to the average person and the resultant noise levels will be below the international standards adopted for the project. The impact of noise on surrounding communities during the operation phase is therefore assessed to be insignificant. • Air pollutants emitted from the refinery (and SPCS power plant) include sulphur dioxide [SO2], carbon monoxide [CO], nitrogen oxides [NOX], particulates, carcinogenic compounds (i.e. benzene), volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and hydrogen sulphide (H2S). The emissions of most of these pollutants will increase with the refinery expansion project, but no exceedances of the adopted air concentration standards are predicted with the exception of H2S. H2S emissions (i.e. odours) will reduce, but they will still slightly exceed the odour threshold standard. The potential impact of a reduction in air quality and impaired human health is assessed to be of low significance, while the reduced odour emissions are considered to be a positive impact of low significance. Air quality in the vicinity of the refinery is not expected to adversely affect vegetation and crops and the impact is assessed to be of very low significance. • Impacts on surface water resources such as increased sedimentation and turbidity in the Suriname River (from construction activities) and contamination of the Suriname River by stormwater runoff (due to leaks and spills of contaminants on the refinery site) would be insignificant or of very low to low significance with mitigation. The impact of the discharge of treated wastewater from the expanded refinery to the Suriname River would have a low positive significance, due to FOUD/dalc 398251_Staatsolie_Draft EIR_Non-technical Summary FINAL.doc November 2009
SRK Consulting Staatsolie Refinery Draft EIA Report: Non-technical Summary Page vii improved wastewater treatment and strict effluent quality standards that Staatsolie will implement. • Only the shallow, localised groundwater on the refinery site may be affected by the proposed activities; the deeper, underlying aquifer from which water is abstracted will not be affected. The potential contamination of groundwater resources during the construction and operation phases is assessed to be insignificant with mitigation. • Very little natural vegetation/habitat or noteworthy terrestrial fauna occurs in the area. The potential impact on vegetation, terrestrial habitat and terrestrial fauna is assessed to be of very low significance with mitigation. • The potential impact on aquatic ecology in the Suriname River, through exposure to increased turbidity/sedimentation and pollutants, is assessed to be of very low significance with mitigation. 6.2 Socio-economic and Transportation Impact Assessment • Positive socio-economic impacts of the proposed refinery expansion project include the generation of (limited) employment opportunities (especially during construction), which is assessed to be of low positive significance. The project’s contribution to the economy of Suriname (through investment as well as reducing the country’s dependence on imported fuels) is assessed to be of very high positive significance. Other potential socio-economic effects include impacts on the livelihoods, quality of life and social fabric of surrounding communities (through effects on agricultural activities and nuisance impacts and an influx of construction workers from outside the area). These impacts are assessed to be of very low significance with mitigation. • Transportation impacts of the expansion project include additional traffic on the local road network during construction as well as additional river traffic on the Suriname River during both construction and operations. The impact of this additional traffic on other road and river users is assessed to be of very low and low significance, respectively. 6.3 Cumulative Effects The existing refinery and the SPCS power plant are the main activities that, with the refinery expansion project, will have cumulative effects on the environment. The existing power plant significantly affects air quality and noise levels in the area around the refinery site and the possible future expansion of the power plant may further reduce the quality of the environment. However, concentrations of pollutants emitted by the refinery and the expanded power plant will not exceed the relevant health standards. 6.4 Overview of Management Plans SRK has compiled the following draft management plans for the proposed Refinery Expansion Project: • Environmental Management and Monitoring Plan (EMMP), which sets out the approach that will be followed during the construction and operations phases to manage possible negative impacts and improve possible benefits; and • Conceptual Closure Plan (CCP), which sets out the technical and financial responsibilities that Staatsolie will have when the refinery is closed. In addition, a Quantitative Risk Assessment (QRA) and a Framework Emergency Response Plan (ERP) will be compiled. The QRA looks at the possible risks to the local communities (society) that may exist because of the expanded refinery and evaluates these risks against international standards. 7 CONCLUSIONS The EIA has identified and assessed the potential impacts of the proposed refinery expansion project. During the EIA the design team had the opportunity to incorporate environmental considerations into the design at an early stage, to avoid significant environmental impacts. SRK believes that through effective implementation of the recommended management measures, any remaining negative impacts can be further reduced to acceptable levels. Staatsolie will need to make sure that the expanded refinery is operated to high standards to keep environmental impacts to a minimum. This will require commitment, persistence and ongoing monitoring of performance. FOUD/dalc 398251_Staatsolie_Draft EIR_Non-technical Summary FINAL.doc November 2009
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