Kali Gandaki 'A' Hydroelectric Project in Environmental ... - AECEN

Kali Gandaki ‘A’ Hydroelectric Project in Environmental PerspectivesRajendra P. ThanjuHydropower is one of the cleanest,renewable and environmentally benignsources of energy. Nepal is blessed with immensesource of water resources and huge hydropowerpotential. Kali Gandaki ‘A’ Hydroelectric Projectis the largest hydropower project implementedso far in Nepal. The project is located in theWestern Development Region of Nepal. Themain component of the project is located atSyangja District in Gandaki Zone, and othercomponents partially encompass other districtssuch as Gulmi, Palpa, Parbat, Kaski andRupandehi.The feasibility study of the project wascarried out in 1979 with the financial assistancefrom United Nations Development Program(UNDP) which was updated in 1991. The detailedengineering design and preparation of tenderdocuments commenced in 1993 with thefinancial assistance of Asian Development Bank(ADB), United Nation Development Program (UNDP)and Finnish International Development Agency(FINNIDA) jointly. The preparatory works like accessroad construction was started in 1993 with internalresources from Government of Nepal and NepalElectricity Authority (NEA).The construction works were divided into sevenlots. Impregilo SpA (IgL), Italy, was the civilcontractor (for lot C1, C2 and C3); Noell Stahl-undMaschinenbau, Germany, for Hydraulic Steel works(Lot 4); France/Japan JV of Mitsui/Toshiba/Alstom(Former CEGELEC), for Electrical Works (Lot 5); Japanjoint venture of Mitsui/Toshiba for Mechanical works(Lot 6); and TATA International /Marubeni, Japan,were the contractors for transmission line andsubstation works (lot–7), respectively. The project isowned and operated by the Nepal ElectricityAuthority (NEA). The project engineers wereMorrison Knudsen International Inc., USA, inassociation with Norconsult International, Norway,and IVO International, Finland.Construction of the hydropower component wasstarted in 1997 under the loan assistance of AsianDevelopment Bank (ADB) and Overseas EconomicCorporation Fund (OECF, now known as Japan Bankfor International Cooperation, or JBIC). The projectconstruction work was completed in 2002. TheFigure 1. View of Kali Gandaki Damgeneration unit was tested in May 2002 andcommercial production began from August 2002.Project featuresThe major project components include hydropowerdam and powerhouse, project access road,transmission line and substations, as described below.HydropowerKali Gandaki ‘A’ Hydroelectric Project is a dailypondage type scheme located on the Kali GandakiRiver with an installed capacity of 144 MW. Theproject generates about 842 GWh of electric energyannually by utilizing a net head of 115m. The mainstructures of the project are concrete gravitydiversion dam about 100m long and 43m high, opensurface desander, headrace tunnel of about 6 km inlength and 7.4m diameter, and a surface powerhouse.The rated discharge of 141 m 3 /s feeds three Francistype turbines in the powerhouse. The surface area ofthe reservoir is 65 ha, followed by a 5.3 km long backwater level. Permanent camps are located at Beltariand Mirmi in the Shree Krishna Gandaki VillageDevelopment Committee (VDC) of Syangja District.

Access roadThe access road of the project crosses steep andhilly terrain. Total length of the access roads is about28.5 km. The access road starts from Batuwa, 82 kmfrom Pokhara on Siddhartha highway (3.5 south ofGalyang Bazaar) and ends at the left bank of the dam,which is about 20 km away from the highway. Theaccess road for the powerhouse branch out fromJaipate is about 8 km long.Transmission linesThe power generated from the project by 3 unitsof turbines of 48 MW each capacity is evacuated tothe central grid via a 132 kV single circuit, a 66 kmlong transmission line to Pokhara and a 44 km doublecircuit transmission line to Butwal. A sub-station isconstructed at Lekhnath Municipality of KaskiDistrict, whereas the pre-existing Jogikuti substationof Butwal has been upgraded.Environmental studiesFrom the initial stage of project, environmentalconcerns were the integral part of design optimization.The environmental studies/activities of the projectduring pre-project, construction stage and operationphase are briefly described below.Pre-project phaseThe Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)study was conducted in 1996 according to NationalEIA Guidelines of 1993 and Asian Development BankGuidelines of 1990. The report was duly approved bythe Asian Development Bank (ADB).The interaction and consultation programs duringthe project preparation stage reflected views ofdifferent stakeholders, which were considered in thedetailed design phase of the project, and possibleFigure 2. Boat transportation in project reservoiradverse environmental impacts were avoided to theextent possible.Environmental documentsFrom the beginning, environmental considerationwas given priority in the project. Variousenvironmental documents were prepared duringengineering design and tender documentspreparation. The primary documents that guidedenvironmental activities of the project are givenbelow. These documents were used in cross-referencewith each other:• Environmental Impact Assessment(EIA), Vol. 1-2, 1996.• Mitigation Management and MonitoringPlan (MMMP), 1996.• Acquisition, Compensation and RehabilitationPlan (ACRP), 1996.• Tender documents with conditions ofparticular applications, including socialand environmental clauses.• ADB: Summary Environment ImpactAssessment (SEIA), 1996• ADB: Report and Recommendation ofPresident to Board of Directors, 1996RRP-NEP 26362)• Loan Agreement with ADBThe EIA explained the impacts and proposedmitigation measures as identified during the detailstudy of the project and provides justification for themitigation. The MMMP described how the mitigationspelled out in the EIA, ACRP and in Tender Clauseswill be carried out. The MMMP provided a guide tomitigation management and environmentalmonitoring. The main objective of ACRPwas to insure that people affected byproject-related property and landacquisitions would be as well off after theproject as they were before. The TenderDocuments specified what actionconstruction contractors were required totake to protect the environment.In addition, the contractors wererequired to develop an EnvironmentalProtection Plan, a Health and Safety Planand a Waste Management Plan, andcontractors disturbing vegetation wererequired to submit a Revegetation Plan.These Plans augmented the MMMP andspecified how the contractors met andimplemented the environmentalmitigation requirements specified in the

EIA, ACRP and the Tender Documents.The loan document between ADB and NEA definedthe role, responsibility and mandate of Kali GandakiEnvironmental Management Unit (KGEMU). The loandocument included basic provisions in environmentalaspects, which were to be carefully addressed tocomply with ADB’s policies and procedures. Includedin this document are: institutional requirement formonitoring; establishment of the KGEMU; provisionfor a construction stage International Panel of Experts(POE) 1 on environmental and social aspects;implementation of MMMP; contractors’ compliancewith tender clauses; compensatory flow of 4 m 3 /s;operation and management of a fish hatcheryprogram; and clauses regarding minimization ofresettlement, enabling communities to benefit fromthe project, preferential hiring, and the need for publicconsultation.Social mitigation policyThe Resettlement Policy defined in projectdocuments provides that the Government of Nepaland the NEA shall take or cause to be taken allnecessary measures to ensure that all the populationadversely affected by carrying out the project shallgenerally:• improve or at least regain their prior standardof living;• be relocated, if necessary, in accordance withtheir preferences and be fully integrated intothe community in which they move; and• be provided with appropriate, agreed uponcompensation and required physicalrehabilitation of infrastructures, communityfacilities, including rehabilitation grants, skilltraining and employment opportunities. Allsuch measures should at least satisfy therequirement of the ACRP.Environmental impactsMajor impacts occurred due to the implementationof the project on physical, biological andsocioeconomic and cultural environment aresummarized below:Physical environment• Submergence of forest land and other landuses due to creation of 5.3 km long (65 ha)reservoir.• Hydrological changes in the 13 km stretchdownstream between the dam and theconfluence with the major tributary, Badi Gad.• Impacts on hydrology downstream of thepower plant are restricted to the dry seasonwhen the facility is used for peaking. Thechanges in flow and stage pose hazards towater users immediately below the powerplant site.• Generation of 6.2 million tons of muck/spoil.Biological environment• Removal of 6,093 trees of various species(khayar, bakaino, ipil-ipil, simal, sissoo andsal) due to implementation of the project.• Soil erosion and land slides due to projectconstruction works.• Loss of wildlife habitat around dam,powerhouse sites and nearby areas.• Impact on migration of long range migratoryfishes due to damming of river.Social/cultural environment• Loss of approximately 208.68 ha of land dueto placement of project structures andfacilities, including access road.• Altogether 1,468 families lost their land (orpart of it), their houses, or both, out of which263 families were defined as SPAF 2 and 1,205families as PAF 3 .• Impacts to indigenous Bote (fisherman)community. About 21 houses, 5 cowshed andapproximately 13 ropani of land from theBote families were acquired.• Impact on Setibeni Sheela, a religious site.• Reduction of white water rafting in KaliGandaki River from 5 days to 3 days.Environmental monitoring and mitigationmanagementThe Nepal Electricity Authority, project engineersand contractors were responsible for the monitoringand implementation and management of mitigationmeasures. KGEMU was the key unit established underthe consultant umbrella to monitor environmentalmitigation measures carried out by contractors, tocarry out environmental mitigation programs andconduct environmental monitoring during theconstruction phase, as spelled out in EIA, MMMP andTender Documents.The environmental monitoring and mitigationmanagement activities carried out during the projectconstruction stage are briefly described below.Kali Gandaki Environmental Management Unit(KGEMU)The KGEMU was formed in January 1997 with thecommencement of project construction. It was thefirst organization of its kind in hydropower projects

in Nepal to monitor and mitigate the adverseenvironmental impacts due to the projectconstruction and was established as per the provisionin the loan agreement between NEA and ADB.Considering multidimensional activities and mandate,KGEMU was staffed with a diverse group ofenvironmental professionals. The environmentaladvisor and trainer, an expatriate position, wasresponsible for reviewing the performance andmanage KGEMU for the first year. Moreover, anexpatriate manager and an International Panel ofExperts (environmental and social) were also engagedto guide and review the environmental and socialworks of the project throughout the projectconstruction stage.Monitoring activities were considered animportant aspect. KGEMU staff conductedcompliance monitoring of the internationalcontractors regarding environmental obligations asmentioned in the contract documents. About 108environmental and social clauses were incorporatedin tender documents of the civil contractor (IgL).Significant shortcomings on the part ofcontractors were documented and informed to therelevant contractors for necessary improvements.Several engineer’s instructions were issued to thecontractors to make them comply with theircontractual obligations. However, the contractors’environmental compliance status was satisfactory,but needs greater enforcement mechanism to achievebetter performance in future projects.Social research and impacts studiesThe professional staff of the KGEMU conductedseveral impacts monitoring studies among the affectedpopulace of the project areas during the period of theproject construction. This research effort paid offhandsomely, resulting in about 18-20 studies onvarious types of social impacts, a research recordrarely achieved in other hydropower projects (POE2002). The findings of these researches on impactsand issues were conveyed to the project director andthe ADB, through POE reports and ADB SupervisionMission reports.Mitigation implementation/adaptive managementThe project mostly followed the mitigationapproaches proposed by the project environmentaldocuments. Nevertheless, the project also espouseto adaptive management approach in order tominimize and/or mitigate the unforeseen adverseimpacts arises during the course of projectimplementation. Resettlement and Rehabilitationprogram for affected Bote (Fishermen) families andimplementation of Community Support Program weregood examples of adaptive management of theproject. Some of the major mitigation measuresimplemented and/or constructed during constructionstage of the project were as follows;Physical Environment• Installation of siren warning system in powerhouseand dam site.• Protection measures for water qu-ality atproject areas.• Restoration of the disturbed site using bioengineeringmeasures at head work site, powerhousesite, access road and transmission linetower locations.• Management and control of 6.2 million tonsexcavated materials were carried out as perthe approved plan submitted by the contractor.Biological environment• Establishment of project centralnursery with production capacity of 60,000seedlings/year and grass slip production(150,000-200,000/year) for bioengineeringand slope stabilization purposes inproject site.• Establishment of satellite nurseries toprovide seedlings to local communities.• Plantation of 319,694 seedlings of differentspecies at different project components andcommunity land.• Restriction on hunting and poaching duringconstruction period of the project.• Construction of fish hatchery.• Implementation of fish trapping and haulingprogram.• Construction of trash rack, fish bypasssystem and collector channel at headworksite.Social/cultural environment• Cash compensation for the loss of land, houseand other assets. The formal tenants of guthi(communal) land were paid an additional 42%compensation, totaling 75% vis-à-vis legalprovision of only 33% compensation.Compensation also provided for standingcrops and grass damaged during the projectconstruction.• Provided additional rehabilitat-ion grants(house rent) to the affected families at the rateof NRs 1,000 per month for 4 months.

• Grant to pay the government la-nd registrationfee provided as an incentive to those affectedfamilies who purchased replacement land.• House loss compensated at repl-acement cost.Affected households were also provided theconstruction materials from their old housefor reuse.• Priority of hiring affected family members includinglocal people. Provided employmentto 2,568 people during construction. Morethan three-fourths of the SPAFs/PAFs wereemployed and the local-outsider employmentratio in the project was 50-50% duringconstruction. Both the families’ standard ofliving and the local economy soon exhibitedthe positive impact of these regular cashinflows during the project constructionperiod.• Implementation of micro-credit revolving fundprogram with an earmarked budget of NRs2,900,000.• Protection of Setibeni Sheela, a holy stone religioussite, by constructing a gabion wall withheight ranging from 2 to 8 m, a walking pathwith railing around the sacred stone tofacilitate devotees to worship and encircle thestone.• Construction of cremation sheds and renovationof temples.• Implementation of skill developmenttraining program.• Resettlement and rehabilitation of Bote(fisherman) families.• Implementation of community support program,which includes conservation of localreligious and cultural sites, literacy programto local women, support to local schools,renovation and construction of drinkingwater, etc.• Establishment of a primary sch- ool at AndhimuhanBote village, as an important gestureof project mitigation attempts for the Botecommunity.• The study shows that the empl-oyed SPAF/PAFs have secured NRs 128,000 averageannual cash income compared to the 22,000rupees that families earned annually beforethe project started. This indicates that thecash income of the SPAF/PAFs was nearly sixtimes greater than the previous cash income.• Regular celebration of World EnvironmentDay to enhance environmental awarenessamong local public.Environmental aspects during operation phaseThe Kali Gandaki ‘A’ Hydroelectric Plant has beenunder commercial operation since August 2002. TheEnvironmental and Social Studies Department (ESSD)of the NEA carried out the post-constructionEnvironmental Impact Study of the project. ESSD staffhas recently completed operation phaseenvironmental and social monitoring activities of theproject for two year (2005-2006) and prepared anEnvironmental and Social Operation Manual for theproject. These activities have been carried out as perADB requirement, with reports submitted regularlyto ADB.FindingsMajor findings of environmental and socialmonitoring/studies during operation phase of theproject include;1. Release of 4 m 3 /s minimum of water duringdry season and 6 m 3 /s on religious days hasbeen observed.2. A siren warning system is in operation at thepowerhouse and dam site.3. Reduction in bed load below the dam afterconstruction has occurred. However, totalsediment loads downstream has not changedfrom the pre-existing conditions.4. The KGA project has had a positive effect onforests, with regards to energy consumption,as the use of alternative sources of energy hasincreased,5. The post-construction Environmental ImpactAudit study indicates that constructiondisturbances have settled down.6. The Reservoir Sedimentation Study is beingcarried out annually by the KGA department.A bathymetric survey of project reservoir byecho sounding technology has beenimplemented.7. The fish bypass system is under operation.8. Fish hatchery operations and management arebeing carried out smoothly by the NepalAgricultural Research Council (NARC).9. Release of different species of fingerling inProject reservoir has been implemented.10. Three has been a decrease in average landholding size of the affected families incomparison to pre-project levels.11. The quality of reconstructed houses appearsbetter than old houses. Some of the newhouses are roofed with iron-sheeting and are

cemented, replacing homes that werepreviously thatched.12. All the newly built houses have been handedover to the affected Bote (fishermen) families.13. The Kali Gandaki Primary School for Botechildren is operating smoothly with classesup to class 3.14. The agricultural occupation of affectedfamilies has declined by about 5% whereasservice category has increased from 6.90%to 9.58%. Similarly the occupation levels oflabor and wages during pre-project period of0.54% have also slightly increased to 0.64%in post-project period.15. The intermixing of local and outside laborerscreated both positive and negative effects.The positive effects reported are the exchangeof skills, ideas etc., between groups, while thenegative effects reported are someunacceptable socio-cultural behaviors suchas theft and disruption in law and order duringthe project construction period.16. The local economy is now more integratedwith the national economy because of theproject access road and the boattransportation on the project reservoir.17. Implementation of the project has establishedand enhanced the local infrastructures in theproject area, specifically at the dam andpowerhouse sites.18. 225 people were employed during theoperation phase. Local employment in theoperation phase is about 69%.19. Due to the fluctuation and peaking effects ofthe project to the downstream of dam andbelow the powerhouse site, the sankhar(traditional fishing gear) used by the Botefisherman to harvest fish has been affected,causing adverse impact on their income andlivelihood.20. There seems to be an improvement in thehealth status of families, since more housesnow have toilets and separate cowsheds.Previously, people and livestock sharedcommon space.Projects benefitsThe implementation of Kali Gandaki ‘A’ HydroelectricProject in the region, once considered as remote area,has resulted in multiple beneficial impacts to the localcommunity. The improvement of publicinfrastructure such as access roads, ruralelectrification, telecommunications and healthservices, enhanced educational facilities andemployment of local population, including projectaffectedfamilies during the project construction stageand operation phase, have benefited localcommunities by enhancing their quality of life.About 4,256 rural households have benefitedfrom rural electrification in the project areas andadditional new households are being electrified.The project has also implemented CommunitySupport Programs (CSPs) to address the local needsand to build good rapport with local communities,which was not foreseen during project planning.However, the project had also faced difficulties infulfilling the never-ending demands of thecommunities, mainly due to the unavailability of fundsfrom alternative sources.The operation of the project has contributedsignificantly to Nepal’s power system, reducing theneed for load shedding, catering to the need of energyfor future electrification and boosting economicdevelopment of the country. The benefits togovernment and the local populations includeimproved infrastructures and employmentopportunities. The project has contributed inproducing trained and experienced manpower invarious skilled job, including environmentalmonitoring and management of large hydropowerprojects.ConclusionsMost of the proposed requirements set forth in thevarious project’s documents for mitigating adverseenvironmental impacts due to project constructionhave been implemented. The impacts of the projectdue to the access road, rural electrification andemployment have created a local transformation. Thebeneficial impacts of the project have significantlyaffected at the local, regional and national levels inpositive ways.A considerable amount of cash flow to the localcommunity during project construction ensures atleast the previous living standard of PAFs and SPAFs.Most of the PAF and SPAFs have managed to achievea better standard of living and some have investedmoney in modernizing houses and purchasing land.Local people, including the affected families, are nowmore amenable to more commercial activities forincome generation.The project can be considered as a pioneer in thefield of environmental monitoring and managementof large hydropower project in Nepal.Rajendra P. Thanju is Deputy Director (Economist) ofthe Environmental and Social Studies Department, NepalElectricity Authority. He previously served as socio-

economist in the Environmental Management Unit of theKali Gandaki ‘A’ Hydroelectric Project.Corresponding address: rpthanju@gmail.comEnd notes1 Professor Michael M Cernea and Dr. Donald Graybillwere members of international POE for social andenvironmental aspects of the KGA Project,respectively.2 SPAF: Seriously Project Affected Family denotesthe affected families who lost their house or morethan 50% of their income or land.3 PAF: Project Affected Families denotes the affectedfamilies who lost their assets to the project.MKI (Morrison Knudsen International), 1996,Environmental Impact Assessment, Final Report,Kathmandu: Kali Gandaki ‘A’ Associates–MorrisonKnudsen Corporation (USA), NorconsultInternational (Norway) and IVO International, Ltd.(Finland).__, 1996, Mitigation Management and MonitoringPlan, Kathmandu: MKI (Kali Gandaki ‘A’Hydroelectric Project) and Nepal ElectricityAuthority.ReferencesADB (Asian Development Bank), 2004, Completion Reporton the Kali Gandaki ‘A’ Hydroelectric Project (Loan1452-Nep[Sf]) in Nepal, Manila: Asian DevelopmentBank.ESSD (Environmental and Social Studies Department),2003, Post Construction Environmental Impact AuditStudy of Kali Gandaki ‘A’ Hydroelectric Project,Kathmandu: ESSD, Nepal Electricity Authority.___, 2005/2006, Environment and Social MonitoringReport of Kali Gandaki ‘A’ Hydroelectric Project,Kathmandu: ESSD, Nepal Electricity Authority.KGEMU (Kali Gandaki Environmental ManagementUnit), 2002, Impoverishment Risks Monitoring andManagement in Kali Gandaki ‘A’ Hydroelectric Project:A Social Synthesis Report, Beltari, Syangja District,Nepal: KGEMU (Kali Gandaki ‘A’ HydroelectricProject) and Morrison Knudsen International.__, 2002, Environmental Management and Monitoringin Kali Gandaki ‘A’ Hydroelectric Project: EnvironmentalSynthesis Report, Beltari, Syangja District, Nepal:KGEMU (Kali Gandaki ‘A’ Hydroelectric Project) andMorrison Knudsen International.