GOVERNMENT OF THE STATE OF PERNAMBUCO

State Secretariat for Water Resources

Pernambuco Sustainable Water Project

Environmental Assessment

Executive Summary

DRAFT, May 2009

ACRONYMS

ANA / National Water Agency
APP / Environmental Protection Area
COBH-Cabiparibe / CapibaribeBasin Committee
COMPESA / PernambucoState Water and Sanitation Utility
CONAMA / National Commission for the Environment
CPRH / State Environment and Water Resources Agency
EMP / Environmental Management Plan
IBGE / Brazilian Institute for Geography and Statistics
IPA / Pernambuco Company for Agricultural Research
IPHAN / National Institute of Historical and Artistic Heritage
MRR / Metropolitan Region of Recife
NGO / Non-Governamental Organization
PAC / Federal Growth Acceleration Program
PER / Preliminary Environmental Report
PSH-PE / Pernambuco Sustainable Water Project
SRH / State Secretariat for Water Resources
WTP / Water Treatment Plant
WWTP / Wastewater Treatment Plant

PERNAMBUCO SUSTAINABLE WATER PROJECT

FRAMEWORK FOR ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL MANAGEMENT

1. INTRODUCTION

2. GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE CAPIBARIBE BASIN

3. LEGAL AND INSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK AND COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS WITH IRDB SAFEGUARD POLICIES

4. ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL ASSESSMENT OF COUNTERPART WORKS

5. ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL ASSESSMENT OF WORLD BANK-FINANCED INTERVENTIONS

5.1 Environmental Assessment of typologies

5.2 Social Analysis

6. OVERALL PROJECT EVALUATION

7. ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT PLAN

7.1 Environmental Management of the Program

7.2 Criteria and procedures for detailed project design and environmental assessment

7.3 Social Communication and Sanitary and Environmental Education

7.4 Program for adhesion to the wastewater system and elimination of illegal connections

7.5 Compensatory measures program

7.6. Study of the quality of water and alternatives for minimizing the eutrophication of the Jucazinho, Tapacua and Carpina

7.7 Pilot Study on the re-use of effluents

7.8 Strengthening water quality monitoring in the Capibaribe river basin

7.10 WWTP Sludge Management

7.11 Integrated operation of reservoirs and water collection from the MRR and the Capibaribe river basin

7.12 Environmental plan for the river basin

7.13 Toritama Urban Environment Plan

7.14 Resettlement Framework

7.15 Environmental Construction Manual

8. PUBLIC CONSULTATIONS...... 26

1. INTRODUCTION

  1. This Executive Summary of the Environmental Assessment Report on the Pernambuco Sustainable Water Project (PSH-PE) presents the project’s main potential environmental and social impacts and proposed mitigation measuresas succinctly and objectively as possible.
  2. A comprehensive Environmental Assessment (EA) was undertaken during the preparation of the PSH-PE; the EA evaluates existing conditions, identifies potential direct and indirect environmental impacts, and proposes measures to mitigate negative impacts and enhance positive impacts. The Environmental Management Plan (EMP) summarizes these measures along with their associated costs, responsibilities, and schedule, and comprises an Environmental Construction Manual. Public consultations were carried out and documented following the disclosure procedures recommended by the Bank’s environmental policy.
  3. A Social Analysis was undertaken in conjunction with the Environmental Assessment, and a Resettlement Policy Framework has also been prepared. Project documentation is available at the office of the State Secretariat for Water Resources – SRH, Government of Pernambuco, Av. Cruz de Cabugá 111, Recife – PE, Brazil, and safeguard studies were made available at the InfoShop on May 29, 2009. The Environmental and Social Assessments of the PSR-PE were commissioned by the State Secretariat for Water Resources (SRH), and prepared by the consultant Alexandre Fortes.
  4. The proposed Project will be supported by a World Bank specific investment loan (SIL) in the amount of US$190 million. The project development objective is to improve sustainable water supply and sanitation services in the Capibaribe river basin and in the Metropolitan Region of Recife (MRR) – both in appropriate quality and quantity. The PSE-PE will support the Government of Pernambuco’s goal of achieving sustainable economic growth and social development, for which a reliable and efficient management of water resources, as well as adequate irrigation, water supply and sanitation service provision are critical. The project gives priority to investments in the Capibaribe river basin (the main river under State jurisdiction) and in the MRR (42% of the state population and 65% of the State GDP), aiming to provide efficient water supply services and to implement wastewater collection and treatment services, to protect the main water reservoirs targeted for human consumption.
  5. Within the scope of designing the PSH-PE, SRH has requested the World Bank to consider the possibility of recognizing some of the sector interventions currently underway as State counterpart contributions under the future loan contract, particularly the works of the Pirapama water supply conveyance system, estimated to cost US$220 million, and currently under construction with resources from state government and from the Federal Growth Acceleration Program (PAC).
  6. The project’s concept includes strengthening state water resources management, as well as improving water and sanitation management efficiency and infrastructure, with funding from two sources: (i) ongoing State counterpart civil works funded by the PAC; (ii) World Bank-financed civil works to improve the efficiency of existing water supply systems and to install wastewater systems in selected municipalities in the Capibaribe river basin, for which typologies have been defined.
  7. Thus, this report focuses on two distinct sets of documents and works that integrate this project: (i) the social and environmental assessment of works currently under implementation with 100% financing from counterpart funds; and (ii) a framework for environmental and social management of future works to be implemented under the project with financing from the World Bank, including the environmental assessment of subproject typologies and the setting of criteria and procedures for the environmental assessment of subprojects in the project implementation phase. The proposed PSH-PE Project is structured in three components:
  8. Component 1 – Water Sector Management and Institutional Development (US$29 million). This component covers the strengthening of institutions and the development of an efficient water resource management model, and supports: (i) integrated water resource management, (ii) water services and infrastructure; and (iii) project management.
  9. Component 2 – Improving Efficiency in the Provision of Water Supply and Sanitation Services (US$52 million). This component will support: (i) non-revenue water, which will support activities aimed at reducing technical and commercial water losses and improving COMPESA’s services, sales and operational efficiency in the MRR, and (ii) the implementation of a corporate development program with focus on activities that can improve COMPESA’s financial equilibrium, overall customer satisfaction, staff productivity as well as corporate organization and management.
  10. Component 3 – Water Supply and Sanitation Service Expansion (US$320 million). This component is divided into the following sub-components: (a) Pirapama Water Supply System Sub-component, which will support technical assistance and acquisition of goods and works targeted towards increasing water supply availability and reliability in the MRR, and includes the on-going expansion and integration of the Pirapama water supply conveyance system.; and (b) Expansion of services Sub-component, which will finance technical assistance, acquisition of goods and works to expand services and leverage investments in priority areas. This sub-component will support the Government of Pernambuco to protect the main sources of water in the Capibaribe river basin by targeting areas where new sewage collection and treatment services would significantly contribute to the reduction of pollution loads particularly from the municipalities of Vitória de Santo Antão, Salgadinho, Limoeiro, Paudalho and Toritama. This sub-component will also finance technical assistance to support to the Government of Pernambuco in the prioritization of water supply and sewerage investments, as well as in the preparation of regional and municipal water master plans and detailed engineering designs for priority projects.

2. GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE CAPIBARIBEBASIN

  1. The CapibaribeBasin comprises 43 municipalities. According to the Brazilian Institute for Geography and Statistics (IBGE), in the year 2000 this group of municipalities had a population of about 3.5 million inhabitants, which represents about 43% of the population of the State, 87% of which live in urban areas, mostly in the MRR[1]on the Lower Capibaribe.
  2. The main districts of twenty seven municipalities are located within the basin, 19 of which are located upstream of the basin’s main reservoirs. Four of those municipalities are located along the banks of the main river (Santa Cruz do Capibaribe, Toritama, Surubim and Limoeiro) and two along the banks of the Tapacurá river (Vitória de Santo Antão and Pombos).
  3. The main water supply reservoirs in the basin are:

• The Jucazinho Reservoir

The Jucazinho reservoir, inaugurated in 1999, has a maximum capacity of 327.04 million cubic meters, and is used mainly for flood control purposes.Jucazinho currently supplies the cities of Casinhas, Frei Miguelinho, Salgadinho, Santa Maria do Cambuca, Surubim, Cheus, Vertente do Lerio, Vertentes, Caruaru, Cumaru, Passira and Riacho das Almas, serving a population of about 353,000 inhabitants.

• The Carpina Reservoir

The Carpina and the Jucazinho reservoirs, together, constitute the flood control system of the upper-mid and mid-Capibaribe river.

Initially the main purpose of the Carpina dam, inaugurated in 1978, was the control of downstream flooding. In 2003, COMPESA started using the Carpina reservoir for water supply to the municipality of Feira Nova, with a population of about 15,500 inhabitants. A pipeline from this reservoir to the Glória do Goitá and Limoeiro systems is currently under construction.

• The Tapacurá Reservoir

This reservoir was built in 1973 in the municipality of São Lourenço da Mata, with the purpose of supplying water to the municipalities of Camaragibe, Jaboatão dos Guararapes, Recife and São Lourenço da Mata, and enabling flood control on the Lower Capibaribe.

The reservoir supplies water to the population of the following cities: Camaragibe (170,000 inhabitants) and part of the cities of Recife (900,000 inhabitants), Jaboatão (150,000 inhabitants) and São Lourenço (23,195 inhabitants) (Source: Compesa, 2008).

  1. These reservoirs currently are in a stage of hyper-eutrophication due to the flourishing of algae and the presence of cyanobacteria, mostly as the consequence of the current total absence of wastewater treatment in municipalities located upstream in the drainage basin.
  2. Of the 19 municipalities located upstream from the reservoirs, only Vitória do Santo Antão counts with a partial wastewater collection system (without treatment). In all other cities, especially the six that are located along the banks of the Capibaribe and Tapacurá rivers, wastewater drains into the water bodies, without any treatment.

The CapibaribeRiver Basin

3. LEGAL AND INSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK AND COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS WITH IBRD SAFEGUARD POLICIES

  1. The assessment of the PSH-PE components was designed so as to simultaneously consider: (i) compliance with World Bank environmental safeguard policies, as a condition for the signature of the Loan Agreement; and (ii) strict compliance with and attention to federal, state and municipal legal requirements, especially with regard to rules and procedures for the environmental licensing of the actions foreseen under the Project.
  2. During project preparation, infrastructure interventions have been grouped into two sets: (i) state counterpart interventions associated to works being built with financing from the federal Growth Acceleration Program (PAC); and (ii) the World Bank-funded works aimed at improving the efficiency of existing water supply systems and the implementation of wastewater systems in selected municipalities in the Capibaribe river basin.
  3. For the second set of interventions, neither conceptual nor detailed engineering designs are available at this stage. Hence, this report had taken a dual approach to assess the project:

(i)Environmental and social assessment of the counterpart works under execution – the Pirapama water supply system; and

(ii)Design of an Environmental and Social Management Framework, involving the environmental and social assessment of the typologies of wastewater subprojects and the definition of criteria and procedures for the environmental and social assessment of subprojects during the implementation of the PSH-PE.

  1. Within the scope of the World Bank’s safeguard policies, the proposed project is classified as category A. As such, this report evaluates with- and without-project scenarios, identifies potential direct and indirect environmental impacts associated with the project and other alternatives, develops mechanisms and measures to avoid, minimize and/or mitigate negative impacts, and presents an Environmental Management Plan with specific activities, budgets and responsibilities to ensure the implementation of these mitigating measures.
  2. The following safeguard policies are triggered:

(i)OP 4.01 Environmental assessment

(ii)OP 4.04 Natural Habitat

(iii)OP 4.36 Forests

(iv)OP 4.12 Involuntary Resettlement

(v)OP 4.11 Physical and Cultural Resources

(vi)OP 4.37 Safety of Dams (for the counterpart works)

Environmental Licensing for Project Interventions

  1. PSH-PE interventions will be the object of environmental licensing according to the relevant applicable environmental legislation at the federal and the state levels.For example, each intervention for the implementation of basic sanitation systems, as determinedby the environmental legislation, shall fulfill a specific environmental licensing practice, complying with document, process and timeframe requirements associated to the rules and procedures established by the licensing body – the State Agency for Environment and Water Resources (Agência Estadual de Meio Ambiente e Recursos Hídricos – CPRH).
  2. As for the wastewater systems, the CPRH licensing process requires the presentation of a Preliminary Environmental Report (PER).In addition, the terms of CONAMA Resolution 377/06 on the adoption of simplified licensing procedures for the development of medium and small wastewater systems (which covers most PSH-PE interventions) must be taken into account.

Granting of water rights

  1. The granting of water user rights is one of the water resource management instruments foreseen under Federal Law No. 9433 of January 8, 1997, whereas the competence for managing and granting licenses lies with National Water Agency (ANA) in the case of federal rivers, and the Secretariat for Water Resources (SRH) in the case of rivers under state jurisdiction and underground aquifers. The granting of licenses is closely linked to the Water Resource Plans and the classification of water bodies.

4. ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL ASSESSMENT OF WORKS ALREADY UNDER IMPLEMENTATION WITH COUNTERPART FUNDS

  1. The Pirapama water supply system aims to ensure regular public water supply to the MRR, particularly to the southern and central areas, the most populated ones, which represents about 50% of the overall system capacity that currently supply the municipalities of Recife, Jaboatão and Cabo de Santo Agostinho.
  2. The works forthis system started in the late 1980’s and were suspended after a few years mostly due to lack of funds. Works for the Pirapama Dam which has the capacity to provide flows of 5.13 m3/s, were resumed in 2000 and completed in 2001.
  3. This is a gravity-type dam, with capacity for 61 million cubic meters of water, comprising: (i) one water intake provided by an underwater tower; (ii) one bottom discharge through 2-meter diameter steel pipes.
  4. The Pirapama water supply system, using water from the Pirapama Dam, is made up by the following units, which are currently under construction (See outline – Figure 5.1 below):
  5. Intake Pumping Station, located next to the dam, receives water coming out of the intake located downstream from the dam through a 2-meter diameter pipe, with a pumping capacity of 5.13 m3/second up to the Water Treatment Plant – WTP. It has six motor-pump sets with 1600 cv power, one of which acts as a reserve pump.
  6. Bulk Water Main in 1,700 millimeter carbon steel pipes, that are 3,580 meters long.
  7. Water Treatment Plant – a complete conventional WTP initially designed with four 1.28 m3/s modules. The current WTP project will make use of the partially-built facilities, the works of which have been suspended as of 1994.
  8. Potable Water Maindesigned as a 1,700 millimeter pipe, with a length of about 19,500 meters. This pipeline is located mostly within the area of domain of BR-101, a federal highway.
  9. Cabo de Santo Agostinho Sub-main, with 800 millimeter pipe connecting the pipeline to the existing Cabo reservoir, currently being expanded.
  10. Ponte dos Carvalhos Sub-main, with 800 millimeter pipe connecting the pipeline to the existing Ponte dos Carvalhos reservoir, currently being expanded.
  11. Expansion of the Cabo and Ponte dos Carvalhos Service Reservoirs for a capacity of 13,500 m3 and 17,000 m3, respectively.
  12. Construction of the Jordão Service Reservoir, a type supported with capacity for 90,000 m3.
  13. An environmental and social analysis of the existing and under construction works for the Pirapama water supply system was carried out, including on-site inspections, and the main findings are the following:

OP 4.01 – Environmental Assessment

  1. An environmental assessment was undertaken in the first phase of the implementation of Pirapama works, with the preparation of an Environmental Impact Assessment of the Pirapama dam in 1989 by COMPESA and a consulting firm named Aquaplan. In 2001, the Pirapamawater production system was assessed in a preliminary environmental report undertaken by the consortium HagaConsult.
  2. All of the construction works already received the corresponding Installation License (IL) issued by the State Environment and Water Resources Agency (CPRH) and the Water Rights have been granted by SRH.
  3. The environmental license conditionalities to be met regarding mitigation and compensatory measures, have already been included in the PAC financing package and are being executed by COMPESA. Such measures amount to R$4 million, as shown on the table below.

Table 1 – Environmental Compensation Resources

ITEM / COMPENSATION ACTIONS / AMOUNT (R$)
1 / Detailed technical design of compensation measures / 50,000.00
2 / Demarcation with landmarks of the permanent preservation strip (100 m) around the reservoir / 160,000.00
3 / Reforestation of 120 hectares per year around the lake, totaling 360 hectares, in the environmental protection area (APP) / 3,200,000.00
4 / Rehabilitation of areas used for pit disposal of excavated material. / 450,000.00
5 / Compensating vegetation suppressed from raw water systems and treated water main / 50,000.00
6 / Monitoring of water quality / 90,000.00
TOTAL / 4,000,000.00
  1. Items 1 to 4 in Table 1 above refer to the implementation of complementary environmental measures related to the construction of the Pirapama dam and reservoir, concluded in 2001. Main measures include (i) the demarcation of the 100-meter environmental protection area (APP) surrounding the reservoir’s banks, and (ii) reforestation of about 360 hectares in that area, which is already owned by COMPESA.
  2. The current implementation of works counts with an informal environmental management system that includes environmentally sound construction procedures. SRH and COMPESA currently are negotiating with the construction consortium the adoption of the procedures stated in the construction environment manual, especially items regarding:

(i)Formalization of environmental management/oversight actions;