Estate Service Asset - PDO
Estate Service Asset - PDO
Estate Service Asset - PDO
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Petroleum Development Oman<br />
<strong>Estate</strong> <strong>Service</strong>s <strong>Asset</strong><br />
Environmental Assessment<br />
2002 Review and Update<br />
5 ENVIRONMENTAL SETTING<br />
5.1 Introduction<br />
The estate services asset is one of the eight technical service providers in <strong>PDO</strong>.<br />
Unlike all the other service assets, the estate services asset operates only on the coast<br />
(in MAF and RAH areas) and does not operate in any of the interior areas.<br />
In this chapter, a description of the environment in the areas serviced by estate<br />
services asset and the surrounding areas is presented. The data presented in this<br />
section is extracted from several earlier EIA studies carried out for the MAF area. The<br />
recent studies include the November 2000 study for estate services (Reference 5) and<br />
the February 2002 study for Al Khoud – MAF water pipeline replacement (Reference<br />
6).<br />
5.2 Topography<br />
MAF is situated on the shore of the Gulf of Oman approximately 8km west of Muscat<br />
and 4 km north of Ruwi, the main commercial centres of the region. The MAF<br />
complex is situated within a natural bowl, which is formed by the surrounding hills.<br />
The steep, uninhabited Jabal Laqab formation distinguishes the eastern boundary of<br />
MAF, rising 214m above sea level. East of Jabal Laqab is the small fishing village of<br />
Darsait.<br />
There are a number of wadis that traverse the MAF area. However within the<br />
industrial area, all the natural drainage channels has been converted to concrete<br />
channels to divert any surface water flow into the sea. The natural drainage direction<br />
is towards the sea. There is no permanent surface water flow in the area and any<br />
surface water movements are generated from rainfall events.<br />
The western fringe of MAF is characterised by a narrow, uninhabited land area, which<br />
rises steeply to a height of 113m above sea level. Beyond this, at 40-60 m elevation<br />
are the areas of RAH and Al Qurum with significant residential and commercial<br />
development.<br />
5.3 Geology and Soil<br />
The MAF area is situated in the southern part of the Batinah coastal plain, a narrow<br />
alluvial plain approximately 200 km long that rises gently from the sea to an altitude<br />
of around 150 m inland. Several wadis traverse the plain from the Al Hajar<br />
©HMR Environmental Engineering Consultants C5 - 1<br />
Oman’s Environmental Consultancy<br />
HMR\1501\<strong>Estate</strong> <strong>Service</strong>s
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