Environmental and Social Impact Assessment - Gibe III

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Gibe III – Environmental and Social Impact Assessment 300 ENV R CS 002 C - A9003099 Land Cover Table 7.1: Loss of Natural Vegetation Area in Impacted Weredas [ha] Area lost due to the project [ha] Percentage loss to the project [%] Riverine vegetation 176,720 1,839 1.04 Deciduous woodland 341,075 17,158 5.03 Although the vegetation is more of woodland, a conservative estimate of the biomass indicates that 211,043 m 3 is woodland biomass and 194,015 m 3 of forest biomass would be inundated by the water at full supply level. Although this volume seems attractive, there is no wood product, which can be used for commercial purpose. However, denser, taller and relatively straight trees are found around edge of the riverbank and valley bottoms. A terrestrial vegetation survey that was done in the course of the field investigations confirmed that there are no designated or protected areas of terrestrial ecological interest that will be affected by the proposed construction activities. Comparison of the species list of the woodland and the riparian and the surrounding vegetation with the list of endangered and endemic plant species of Ethiopia (Ensermu et al., 1992) does not indicate any endangered species in the area. To mitigate the potential impacts of flooding on the vegetation resources and the associated impacts on reservoir water quality, a combination of the following two measures are recommended: 1. Harvesting by enterprises or individuals: It is recommended to encourage enterprises or individuals living in the surrounding area harvest the biomass through salvage logging and promotion of firewood collection and/or charcoal collection by the people well before the reservoir filling begins. The informal discussion made with the local people suggested that although a considerable amount of the biomass would be submerged; salvaging the biomass for use would be very costly in terms of labour considering the availability of wood in the vicinity for relatively cheaper price. Besides, the wood is not useful other than for fuel since the tree species in the area are not among those preferred for lumbering. The availability of abundant eucalyptus biomass both in Wolayita and Waka area makes the first option (harvesting) non-profitable because of the inaccessibility of most parts of the reservoir area and as the result of the steep slope which would make extraction and transportation of the biomass very difficult. However, if not regulated, harvesting may exert a very salient impact on the surrounding. The community may continue to harvest the vegetation outside the target area and it would be required to adopt protection measures to the surrounding of the future reservoir area from the long term effect of encouraging the people to use the vegetation in their own way. Therefore, it will be important to implement a strict regulation and policing to stop harvesting and protect the rest of the hill slopes ones the vegetation which will be inundated are fully harvested and/or flooded. Therefore, EEPCO/EMU should inform the SNNP Regional State about the project and arrange special policing to protect illegal timber extraction outside the future reservoir area. 2. Flooding: The proposed plan to harvest as much as possible the available vegetation resources will reduce the level of this risk and the conditions will stabilize in due course. However, the remaining vegetation could be left to be submerged and decompose as it stands. This option would have a relatively CESI SpA - Mid-Day International Consulting Engineers Page 203
Gibe III – Environmental and Social Impact Assessment 300 ENV R CS 002 C - A9003099 minor temporary effect on the quality of the water (see section 7.2.6.2) since the decomposition of the biomass will contribute to the organic matter content and therefore will create anoxic conditions in the reservoir. There is also a real possibility of the workforce engaging in illegal timber extraction to the detriment of the environment if adequate controls are not applied. Policing of the forest from a conservation viewpoint is probably ineffective as a result of manpower and other constraints. To minimise the destruction of trees and natural vegetation and replace for the loss due to construction activities out side the future reservoir area, it is recommended to: • adhere to principles of environmental conservation during the construction period in order to avoid excessive destruction of vegetation, • prepare a plan to remove mature trees in the construction area (i.e. access road, construction camp sites, quarry areas, etc.) so as to obtain optimal benefits from harvested timber, • prepare a plan to transplant endemic trees wherever they appear in construction areas, • avoid damping construction spoils in cliffs and dry river beds where rare and endemic plants are available, • compensate in cash for the loss of privately-owned mature trees, • rehabilitate the area to an acceptable condition by planting indigenous trees in the abandoned sites after preparing the sites for establishment of plants. This will involve establishment of nurseries to prepare the necessary amount of seedlings in the area near a water source. This restoration presents an opportunity for environmental enhancement. Restoration and enhancement proposals should be discussed and agreed with the Kebele Council. • make the contractor responsible for any fire accident caused by his activities within construction activities sites, • make the contractor responsible for the conduct of his workforce in relation to environmental protection matters and to specifically prohibit unnecessary felling of trees. 7.3.2 Wildlife and other Terrestrial Fauna Although the presence of wildlife within the project area is reported and confirmed by the local communities, the area harbours only limited number of wildlife which justifies the minimum opportunity cost lose suffered by the dam construction and creation of reservoir. Currently, there are no endangered or rare species in the reservoir area. There are also no species with restrictive habitat preferences. No adverse impacts in respect of sensitive wildlife habitat and wildlife reserves. However, although minor this flooding and construction activities not only shrink the wildlife habitat and feeding area, it will also disturb the wildlife which were using the forest for shelter, breeding and feeding. These and other potential impacts of the Gibe III scheme on wildlife resources and their habitats have been identified and include the following: 1) The reservoir will require the flooding and/or clearance of natural vegetation and although minor this will shrink the wildlife habitat and feeding area. This loss would not bring about marked differences in the available habitat for the limited wildlife. Therefore, there are ample sites on both (up or down CESI SpA - Mid-Day International Consulting Engineers Page 204
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