Chapter 1: introduction

8.2.2 Organization for EMP Implementation

8.2.2.1 Institutional Capacity and Strengthening Needs

The company KEL developing the KAHEP is the subsidiary company of BPC. The BPC has a history of hydropower development in Nepal since 1966. The BPC is well aware and sensitive to environmental and social issues of the HEP projects and also understands the IFC and World Bank requirements related to the environmental and social safeguards. The Jimruk, Adhi Khola, Khimti-1, and Khudi HEP are some of the projects which have been successfully implemented by BPC and its subsidiary company where environmental and social safeguard requirements have also been executed to the satisfaction of the International Funding institutions (IFIs).

At the central level, BPC has a Hydro-Consult Engineering Limited (former Hydro Consult Private Limited), a subsidiary company, to look into the environmental and social matters of the development projects undertaken by BPC and its subsidiary companies. The Hydro-Consult Engineering Limited (HCE) maintains a strong team of environmental and social professionals as a core team. At present in-house core professional team comprises six members in the field of environmental management, fishery, sociology and anthropology. This team of professionals is engaged mostly in the quality control and supervision monitoring of the environmental and social safeguard issues of the projects developed by the BPC subsidiary companies. They also provide training and backstopping support to the field level staff of subsidiary companies responsible for handling of the environmental and social safeguards.

KEL has established Kabeli-A Environment and Community Development Unit (KAECDU) to undertake social and environmental monitoring of the KAHEP. KEL mobilized full team of KAECDU including the Environmental Manager, Mitigation and Compensation Officer, Anthropologist, Livelihood Officer, Environmental Officer, Public Relation Officer, Environmental Engineer, Health and Safety Officer and three Public Relation Assistants (PRAs) on site in 2011. However, KAECDU was downsized as there have been delays in the KAHEP implementation. At present, there are three professionals engaged in the Unit namely Anthropologist, Livelihood officer and Environmental Officer in addition to the three PRAs. Three PRAs are deployed by the Project in different locations of the Project area. The roles of PRAs are important for timely communication, information dissemination, identification and documentation of issues and grievances and resolving them on time at local level. In other words, these are the front line staff to work as mediators between the Project and the people.

When the project construction work starts the remaining vacancies in the Unit will be filled accordingly. In addition, HCE, as KEL, is the subsidiary of BPC that apart from project engineering also looks into the environmental and social matters pertaining to BPC and its sister companies. The team of Environmental and Social Specialists of HCE will support the KEL team in all the issues pertaining to environmental and social safeguards during the implementation of KHEP.

If these arrangements still have some gaps, required additional experts will be hired and trained on the issues and management requirements during the implementation stage. BPC and funding agencies’ support in selection and training of the selected professionals on safeguard is an essential element for the proper management and monitoring of the KAHEP during implementation stage.

Other project stakeholders (refer section 8.2.2.2), particularly the affected Village Development Committees and District Development Committee and local level Non-government Organizations, Community Based Organizations (Community Forest Users Groups, and other users groups etc.), have a limited understanding of the project action and impacts. Despite a public disclosure and grievance handling mechanism in place, there will still be gap in the information dissemination and understanding of the project actions, impacts and measures envisaged to mitigate the impacts to the acceptable levels and the roles/responsibilities of the local level stakeholders. Proactive role of the Project Information Center (PIC) with a strong public relation backup is needed throughout the project life cycle to facilitate participation of the local level stakeholders in the project. The PIC has been established onsite in August 2011 and continuously works with the information dissemination despite the fact that there has been no project implementation.

8.2.2.2 Project Stakeholders for Environmental Management

Key stakeholders, including KAHEP, to be involved in the project environmental management, in the order of hierarchy, are:

1. 
   Project Sponsors;
   
2. 
   Ministry of Energy (MOE);
   

1. 
   Ministry of Forest and Soil Conservation (MOFSC);
   

1. 
   Department of Electricity Development (DOED);
   

1. 
   Department of Forest and its line District Offices;
   

1. 
   The Proponent (KEL);
   

1. 
   Kabeli - A Environment and Community Development Unit (KAECDU);
   

1. 
   Supervising Engineers (SE);
   

1. 
   Construction Contractor (CC);
   

1. 
   Affected Village Development Committees and District Development Committee;
   
2. 
   Non-government Organizations, Community Based Organizations (Community Forest User Groups, and other user groups), etc..
   

The main roles and responsibilities of different parties in the various phases of project development are briefly presented in Table 8.1.

Table 8.1: Roles and Responsibilities of the Stakeholders

SN	Stakeholder	Roles and Responsibilities	Time Schedule
1	Sponsors	Approval of EIA and financial arrangements	Prior to project financing
		Approval of contract bid documents	Prior to publication of contract bid for contractor
		Monitoring/auditing and feed back	During construction/operation through review mission
2	MOE/DOED	Final approval of IEE	IEE approval
		Licensing and permission for Project Implementation	After approval of EIA/IEE
		Review project design and contract documents , against approved EIA measures and national environmental standards and provide comments for corrective actions	Before contract bidding
		Review of monitoring reports of project construction and operation and provide comments for corrective actions	As and when required during construction and operation phases
		Field supervision once a year during construction and provide inputs to the KAHEP management	Once a year
3	MOFSC/DFO	Review and comment on EIA/IEE for Final approval of EIA/IEE	Prior to EIA/IEE approval
		Give approval and permission for forest clearance of the national forest land	After approval of EIA/IEE
		Assist proponent in pegging, measuring and evaluation of the forest resources of the affected forest stretch	Pre-construction phase
		Review of monitoring reports of project construction and operation and provide comments for corrective actions related to forest and ecology	Before construction starts
		Assist the proponent in identification of compensatory afforestation areas as per the plans of the district	As and when required during construction and operation phases
		Advise and assist the proponent in the forestry awareness programs	As and when required during construction and operation phases, twice a year
		Supervision to the construction sites nearby forest areas and provide input to the KAHEP management during construction	Twice a year
4	Proponent and its institutional line offices	Ensure that the EIA mitigation measures are incorporated in the final project design and tender documents of project construction and operation	Prior to contract award
		Acquire necessary permits and approval for project construction and operation	Before construction
		Ensure that the project construction and operation activities are in accordance with EIA and other GON legislative requirements	During construction, and operation phase
		Monitoring and record keeping regarding environmental measures and impacts	During construction and operation
		Ensure public participation and involvement in project implementation and operation	During construction and operation.
		Compilation of environmental monitoring and performance report and dispatch for review through proponent to stakeholders	Every 2 months during construction
		Compilation of environmental monitoring and performance report of construction activity and dispatch for review through proponent to stakeholders	Once within 3 months of construction completion
		Compilation of environmental monitoring and performance report of operation activity and dispatch for review to stakeholders	Once within 3 months for the first two years of operation
5	Kabeli-A Environment and Community Development Unit (KAECDU)	Supervision, baseline, compliance and impact monitoring of construction contractor's activities as per responsibilities in the contract document; advise the proponent and supervising engineers on needed actions on site in regular environmental management meetings	Daily, weekly, monthly, every 3 months
		Monitoring implementation of the socio-economic physical, cultural, chemical and biological environmental responsibilities of the proponent not included in the contractual documents and advise the proponent on needed actions	Regularly during construction phase
		Provide needed corrective actions as per the field requirements to minimize the impacts	Regularly during construction phase
		Prepare environmental monitoring report of the project construction and forward to the proponent for review	Bi-monthly during construction and after three months of the project construction completion.
6	Construction Supervising Engineers	Supervise the construction works as per the provisions of EIA and direct construction contractor in consultation with the environmental engineers for the environmental improvements	Regularly during construction phase
		Preside monthly Environmental Management and Health and Safety Meetings of the supervising engineers, contractors and Environmental Engineers and maintain the records for implementation status and needed corrective actions	Monthly during construction
7	Construction Contractor	Implement mitigation measures as specified in EIA or as instructed by supervising engineer	Daily during construction phase
		First hand monitoring and record keeping of environmental mitigation measures implemented and their performance	Regularly during construction phase
		Implement any corrective actions specified by supervising engineers within specified time	Regularly during construction phase
		Provide training to operator	First 1 year of operation phase
8	District Development Committees	Provide recommendations to the proponent with comments and suggestions and assist proponent in the project implementation	Prior to proposal implementation
		Assist in public consultation awareness building organized by the proponent	During construction and operation
		Assist and provide suggestions to the proponent in the matters related to community mobilization	During construction and operation
		Review monitoring reports of project construction and operation and provide comments for corrective actions	As and when required during construction and operation phases
		Ensure that transparency in the project activities is maintained by all concerned stakeholders as per IEE report and commitments	Regularly during construction and operation
9	Affected Village Development Committees	Provide recommendations to the proponent with comments and suggestions and assist proponent in the project implementation	Prior to proposal implementation
		Assist in public consultation awareness building organized by the proponent	During construction and operation
		Assist and provide suggestions to the proponent in the matters related to community mobilization	During construction and operation
		Review monitoring reports of project construction and operation and give comments for corrective actions	As and when required during construction and operation phases
		Form Environmental Enhancement committees in each of the project affected VDCs and a central committee of EEC of the affected VDCs through a public franchise process to select and assist programs of Environmental Enhancement implementation	Pre-construction and as and when required during construction and operation
		Ensure that transparency in the project activities is maintained by all concerned stakeholders as per IEE report and commitments	Regularly during construction and operation
10	NGOs ,CBOs, WUG, CFUG	Provide recommendations to the proponent with comments and suggestions and assist proponent in the project implementation	Prior to proposal implementation
		Assist in public consultation awareness building organized by the proponent	During construction and operation
		Assist and provide suggestions to the proponent in the matters related to community mobilization	During construction and operation
		Review monitoring reports of project construction and operation and provide comments for corrective actions	As and when required dueing construction and operation phases
		Assist project affected VDCs to form Environmental Enhancement committees in each of the project affected VDCs and a central committee of EEC of the affected VDCs through a public franchise process to select and assist programs of Environmental Enhancement implementation	Pre-construction and as and when required during construction and operation
		Ensure that transparency in the project activities is maintained by all concerned stakeholders as per IEE report and commitments	Regularly during construction and operation

To effectively integrate various stakeholders of the KAHEP into an Environmental Management system, an institutional framework for different phases of the project development and implementation has been established. The objective of the institutional framework is to establish linkages of various stakeholders so that project activities are taken forward through a linear command and control, while inputs from various stakeholders are internalized in the project implementation at various levels.

8.2.2.3 Interagency Coordination

Multiple stakeholders involved in the project represent different institutions. There is a need to have an interagency coordination. Environmental and Community Development Unit of the KAHEP (KAEDU) project management office is the key agency involved in the interagency coordination. It has been assigned the key role in the information dissemination and operation of the Project Information Center (PIC) at the project site. The Environment Manager of the Unit will be responsible for the organization of meetings with the stakeholders, particularly district and VDC based stakeholders of the project affected area. At least once in two months an interagency coordination meeting will be called by KAECDU to give first-hand information of the project activities, progresses, and issues that need participatory approach for resolution, etc. KAECDU will provide issues which need participatory actions to the local level monitoring. . The inputs from the stakeholders will be taken into consideration for further actions. An update on the resolution progress of issues raised by the stakeholders in earlier meetings will be also shared with the local stakeholder in these meetings.

8.2.2.4 Institutional Arrangements

From the past experiences it has been proven that timely engagement of local people through a local organization can bridge project and people to implement EMP and Social Action Plan (SAP) effectively. Similarly, it is equally helpful to address and manage the upcoming environmental and social affairs pragmatically during the construction and operation of the project. KAHEP will be the primary agency to plan, implement and monitor the project related environmental and social action plans. A comprehensive EMP, SAP and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)/Benefit Sharing Strategy have been prepared based on the Governmental and corporate Policies., and the World Bank safeguards.

An organizational setup for the EMP, SAP and CSR implementation is necessary to ensure compliance with policies and procedures, land acquisition and resettlement activities and implementation of mitigation measures. To ensure the achievement of these activities, organizational implementation and management for EMP and SAP will occur at both central and site levels.

Figure8.1: Organization chart for planning and implementation of EMP and SAP

DOED

WB

PoE

Consultants

KAHEP Project Manager

Kabeli-A Environment & Community Dev. Unit (KAECDU) Environment Manager

Environmental Monitoring Unit

Public Relation Unit

Community Development Unit

Community Guidance Committee

Compensation Fixation Committee

Note: Bold line is the line of command

Central level arrangement

The KEL management will be responsible for overall project coordination and management of the EMP, SAP and CSR/BS implementation and budget arrangement. KAHEP Environment Manager, in close coordination with the Project manager, will lead the overall management of environmental and social issues, review and approval of EMP/SAP/CSR and their periodic monitoring and successful implementation.

Project level arrangement

KAHEP will design plans and programs that will be implemented and monitored at the project level by the Kabeli-A Environment and Community Development Unit (KAECDU) after a review by the Panel of Expert (PoE). The KAHEP site office is functioning since 2010, since the start of the project study. A full team of KAECDU has been deployed at the site since October 2011. Due to the project implementation delays, the Environmental and social team is now downsized and working at the project head office in Kathmandu with frequent site visits as necessary. A Public Information Centre has been established in August 2011 and is still functioning. The KAECDU is responsible for the periodic monitoring of the planned activities implementation.

Community Guidance Committee (CGC) will be formed with the representatives (elected or accepted persons from villages) from each of the direct project impact area. This Committee will be supported by the project and will work in close co-operation with the DDCs, VDCs, DFOs, CFUGs and NGOs during the implementation phase. The KAECDU will liaise with all relevant local GOs, NGOs and CBOs.

8.2.2.5 Roles and Responsibilities of Proponent, Environment and Community Development Unit, Supervising Engineers, Contractors and Sponsors in Monitoring/Auditing, Records and Reporting

To demonstrate compliance with the environment health and safety management, the proponent will instruct the construction contractors through supervising engineer to maintain daily records of the mitigation implementation and monitoring works in retrievable forms during the construction phase. Additionally, contractors will keep record of the local area people employment, Nepali and foreigners and will submit such records to the Supervising Engineers every month. Similarly, records of occupational health will be documented in retrievable forms and submitted to the Supervising Engineer every month. Records of instructions, trainings, and land area rented with agreements will also be submitted to the Supervising Engineers regularly. Similarly, the KAECDU will maintain records of tree felled, land area acquired, and expenses of land acquisition, resettlement and rehabilitation and other environmental enhancement programs implemented.

The KAECDU will carry out monitoring/auditing works of the activities of the construction contractors, will keep the retrievable records of contractors and forward them to the project engineer. KAECDU in coordination with the Supervising Engineer will fix dates for monthly meetings on environmental management and health and safety with the contractor. Such meetings will be chaired by Supervising Engineers, while the Environment Manager of unit will be present in the meeting. Environmental Manger will brief on the project performance related to environment and social issues and flag issues to be resolved in the construction sites with recommendations on corrective actions. The meetings deliberation and agreements with the contractors will be recorded and signed for future actions. As per the requirement, the Environmental Manager will send the corrective actions to be taken by the contractor through the supervising engineer.

Bi-monthly reports produced by the KAECDU will be distributed to the concerned stakeholders for their comments and suggestions.

The KAECDU will compile the environmental monitoring/auditing report of the construction phase within 3 months of the construction completion and submit to the proponent. Proponent will pass the report to the stakeholders to obtain their feedback and develop a database of environmental management works of the proposal for the future use.

During the operation phase, the Operation Manager will keep records of the mitigation and monitoring as required in the retrievable forms. Once a year, the Operation Manager will prepare a compiled report of the project operations. The report will be passed to the concerned stakeholders for comments and suggestions. The operation management office will implement stakeholders’ recommendations and suggestions.

Additionally, an independent Panel of Experts (POE), comprising an environmental expert and a social expert, was established for the project preparation phase as per the World Bank Operational Policy on Environmental Assessment and Involuntary Resettlement of Indigenous People. The POE will be continued during the implementation of the project. The Panel will, inter alia, review, comment, provide suggestions/ recommendations as necessary and appropriate, or as requested by the KEL or its consultants, for a successful completion and approval of the environmental and social studies.