Environmental and Social Management Framework for the Costa Rica Telecommunications Sector Modernization Project
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- 4.3.1Technical Risk Assessment
- Figure 4.13 Environmental Constraints
- 4.3.2Environmental Risk Assessment
- 4.3.3Socioeconomic Risk Assessment
- 5.2Potential Environmental Impacts
- 5.2.1Terrestrial Habitat Alteration
- 5.2.3Aquatic Habitat Alteration
- 5.2.5Hazardous and Non-Hazardous Materials and Waste
- Table 5.1 Potential Environmental Impacts
4.3Rapid risk assessment baselineERM conducted a constraints analysis for the project with a Geographic Information Systems (GIS), specifically using ArcMap version 9.2 with the Spatial Analyst extension. This analysis covered the entire country of Costa Rica and used data from multiple sources (details on methodology and data source are included in Annex 15 Data Sources). 4.3.1Technical Risk AssessmentBased on a technical standpoint, the most vulnerable areas for construction of cell towers are those with major risks of natural disasters and erosion, i.e. areas with steep slopes, frequent flooding, risk of volcano activity and areas that are prone to hurricanes and earthquakes. There are occasional earthquakes, mostly on the Pacific Coast; hurricanes along Atlantic Coast; frequent flooding of lowlands at onset of rainy season and landslides; as well as active volcanoes. A map with the following layers would provide a useful overview of such vulnerable locations: slopes >30 º, active volcanoes, and flooding areas. The necessary information to create such a map was not available at the time of this report. Annex 4, Maps 6 and 7, present locations with a slope exceeding 30º and active volcanoes; Figures 4.2 and 4.3 present earthquake and volcano areas risk areas; and Figure 4.13 shows the main environmental constraints that are particular to each area. Figure 4.13 Environmental Constraints
4.3.2Environmental Risk AssessmentWithin the context of this project, the most vulnerable areas from an environmental point of view are areas formed by wetlands, mangroves protected areas, mountain passes and areas within 2 kilometers of the coastline. Annex 4, Map 4 Wetlands, Mangroves and Protected Areas, presents an overview of the areas contained in either of these categories. 4.3.3Socioeconomic Risk AssessmentWithin the context of this project, the most vulnerable areas from a social standpoint are the indigenous communities (See Figure 4.12 above). 5potential l impacts of the project5.1IntroductionThis section describes the potential positive and negative environmental, socio-economic and health and safety related impacts of the project based on:
A photo log supporting the assessment performed during the field visit is presented in Annex 14 Photo Log of the Environmental Assessment during ERM site visit (June 2007), as well as a list of the facilities visited. 5.2Potential Environmental ImpactsThe potential environmental impacts associated with the telecommunications sector can be divided into three broad categories (EBRD, Sub-sectoral Environmental Guidelines for Telecommunications):
The impacts associated with setting up a telecommunications network are generally more significant than those associated with ongoing maintenance. The potential environmental impacts identified for the proposed FONATEL project are based on: IFC’s EHS Guidelines for Telecommunications dated April 30 2007; IFC’s General Environmental, Occupational, Health and Safety Guidelines; and EBRD’s Sub-sectoral Environmental Guidelines for Telecommunications. 5.2.1Terrestrial Habitat AlterationTerrestrial habitats can potentially be altered primarily during the construction phase, depending on the type of infrastructure component and proposed location. The potential impacts to habitats may be more significant during construction and installation of linear infrastructure, such as long distance fixed line cables, as well as access roads to cell towers. The impacts of road construction, in particular, may have greater and irreversible effects on unaltered land (such as forests and mangroves), and in protected areas and biological corridors. The loss of vegetation coverage increases the potential for soil erosion especially in areas subject to heavy rainfall and may also reduce the production capacity of soils. Currently, in Costa Rica, the cellular phone network is very developed in urban areas, in the Central Valley in particular, and under-developed in rural areas. Telecommunication towers have been installed in protected areas, some of them including road building, with issuance of a permit from MINAE. However, no specific control or monitoring measures are applied. To date, there is cellular infrastructure in three National Parks: Braulio Carrillo, Santa Rosa and Irazú. Towers constructed after 2005, as part of the ‘600,000 lines’ projects, have undergone a screening process. The only locations that are considered as “red flags” in ICE’s site selection process (and where infrastructure is not built) are those situated within less than 100 meters from schools, hospitals and other facilities with elderly or young children. ICE’s site selection tool also highlights orange flags, which require modifications to the tower design or mitigation measures (i.e. proximity to a protected area). As of now, most site installations are accessible by road. The presence of a paved road for access to the site is a criteria in the ICEs site selection. Where there is no road in the area of the foreseen project, the ICE has generally undertaken the construction of paved roads to the sites. In some cases in remote areas in which access to sites by road is not possible, sites are accessed by foot or helicopter. 5.2.2Migratory BirdsThe impacts of telecommunications towers on birds is not well known in Costa Rica but is well documented in the United States, where migrating bird mortality under certain conditions can be extreme (e.g., the IFC EHS Guidelines for the sector includes this impact). Given Costa Rica’s pre-eminence as an ecotourism destination and the country’s significant avifauna, both resident and migratory1, possible impacts of telecommunications towers on migratory birds should be taken into consideration. The height and design of some towers can pose a significant fatal risk to birds mainly as a result of collisions. This impact is primarily associated with migratory birds, and is best documented in the United Sates. The likelihood of avian collisions is thought to increase with (i) the height and design of the communications tower (e.g., taller towers, and towers with greater surface area, such as guyed towers, represent a higher potential for collisions); (ii) lighting of towers (e.g., migrating birds tend to fly at night, and certain types of lights tend to attract greater numbers of birds, resulting in greater mortality, especially on misty or foggy nights); and (iii) the tower location with respect to flyways or migration corridors. In Costa Rica, free-standing cell towers usually measure between 30 and 50 meters in height. Towers, in rural areas, do not exceed the height of 50 meters; and masts, usually situated in urban areas, do not exceed the height of 30 meters. Wires are not used for cellular phone towers in Costa Rica. Landline posts are connected by wires. No bird diverter devices are used to minimize possible impact on birds. Free-standing towers are lit by permanent red lights located at 1/3 of the tower height and pulsating white lights located at 2/3 of their height, according to requirements established by the DGAC. Little consideration seems to have been given to the potential impact of tower facilities on migratory birds during site selection. There is limited information in Costa Rica about migratory birds’ corridors, and towers have been constructed regardless of these. 5.2.3Aquatic Habitat AlterationDepending on their location, the installation of fixed line components, including shore approaches for long distance fiber optic cables, and access roads to transmission towers and other fixed infrastructure, may require construction of corridors across aquatic habitats with the potential to impact watercourses, wetlands, coral reefs, and riparian vegetation. The construction of cell towers for mobile telecommunications pose less risk for impacts to aquatic habitats, although surface water contamination may be caused by construction works, road construction and as a result of handling hazardous substances (See below). 5.2.4Visual ImpactsThe visual impacts from tower and antennae equipment is a function of the perception of the local community as well as the aesthetic value assigned to the scenic landscape (e.g., scenic and tourism areas). The visual impact of towers is likely to be greater in protected areas, tourist destinations and rural areas, and lesser in urban and industrial areas. The visual impact is enhanced in Costa Rica due to a requirement established by the General Office for Civil Aviation to paint all towers and masts in red and white. Approximately 16 towers have been painted in green across Costa Rica: two in Protected Areas (Brauillo Carillo and Santa Rosa) and the others in areas of special natural or tourist interest. The construction of masts instead of towers is preferred in urban areas, in order to minimize the visual impact. No special camouflage techniques are used to minimize the impact of the towers or the equipment huts that are very visible. The existing operators in Costa Rica (Alcatel, Ericson and Lucent) co-locate antennae on shared towers, all owned by ICE. However, this practice follows no requirement or existing guideline, but is rather done according to the demand in the area of influence of the radio base. There are very few installations of antennae on existing buildings in Costa Rica. It is a criteria that is not included during the screening process for site selection. The explanations for this, put forward by the personnel of ICE, are two-fold. First, there are very few high buildings in both urban and rural areas where antennae could possibly be installed. Second, for security and responsiveness reasons, if an antenna is to be collocated on a church or another building, the construction and maintenance personnel are dependent on restricted access to the facilities. 5.2.5Hazardous and Non-Hazardous Materials and WasteTelecommunications processes do not normally generate significant amounts of waste nor do they require the use of significant amounts of hazardous materials. The main impacts associated with hazardous materials and wastes are: (i) potential soil contamination from non-hazardous waste generation during construction (e.g., dust, construction materials); (ii) potential soil contamination from hazardous waste generation during maintenance and renovations (e.g., lead acid batteries, backup power batteries, optical fibers, mercury and PCB containing oils); and (iii) potential soil and groundwater contamination from diesel in bulk storage tanks and/or oil from generators and transformers that may produce spillage. An indirect impact is the increased usage of cellular phones associated with the project that may increase the quantity of waste produced by used batteries and cellular phones. Emergency plans for fuel spillage and fuel transportation, including contingency plans in case of fuel spillage are in place for sites in Costa Rica. The visit of the tower situated in the Brauillo Carillo National Park revealed evidence of serious environmental and safety issues:
Also, Costa Rica has no hazardous wastes landfills. Lead-acid batteries are contained, transported and disposed of after use in San Salvador, as hazardous waste, by a sub-contractor of the ICE. ICE also started a program in 2007 to recycle cellular telephones and had 80 collection sites at the date of this report. 5.2.6Emissions to AirAir pollution from telecommunications activities is not significant: they are associated with pollution from vehicle fleets; the use of backup power generators; and the use of cooling and fire suppression systems. In Costa Rica, cellular phone installations are generally run by electric power, with no back up generators. Only in some sites with no access to electricity was the equipment run by back-up generators (generally in rural or Protected Areas), which were fuelled by diesel and generate particle emissions. 5.2.7NoiseThe principal source of noise associated with telecommunications facilities stems from construction activities. The operation of backup power generators may also cause some noise. Noise from the equipment huts are maintained under certain limits according to national legislation. Accordingly, noise levels do not exceed 55 decibels in residential and rural areas from 6am to 4pm and 75 decibels in industrial areas. Monitoring of emission levels is not done on a regular basis. Last monitoring dating April-May 2007 at 40 sites resulted in levels under the maximum limit authorized by national legislation. Table 5.1 outlines the potential environmental impacts and the level of impact associated with the foreseen investments in the project. Table 5.1 Potential Environmental Impacts
Note: * * * Major impact * * Minor impact * Minimal impact √ Positive impact The potential environmental impacts associated with this project are minimal to minor. Notably, impacts are associated with the construction of access roads for installation of cell towers and masts, primarily in rural areas (including protected areas) that requires cutting of vegetation. Other potentially considerable impacts are on migratory birds due to collisions with the infrastructure. Regarding the maintenance and operation of telecommunication infrastructure, spillage of hazardous substances from storage tanks and PCB containing equipment has the potential to contaminate soil and groundwater. Finally, visual impacts are considerable given that the DGAC requires painting them red and white. Directory: curated curated -> Concept stage curated -> Concept stage curated -> Republic of Côte d'Ivoire Urbanization Review curated -> Report No: aus11011 Central America curated -> Report No. 94474-pk fiscal Disaster Risk Assessment Options for Consideration curated -> Environment Impact Assessment For Jiangxi Shangrao Sanqingshan Airport Beijing Guohuantiandi Environmental Technology Development Center. Ltd. Oct. 2012 Content curated -> Growth through Innovation An Industrial Strategy for Shanghai By Shahid Yusuf Kaoru Nabeshima April 22nd, 2009 curated -> Report No: 70178. People's Republic of China curated -> Making Nutrition Policy Central to Development Understanding the Political and Institutional Conditions for Policy Change Case Study of the Political Economy of Nutrition Policies in Ethiopia Prepared By Download 0.6 Mb. Share with your friends:
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