Page 1 INTEGRATED SAFEGUARDS DATASHEET APPRAISAL STAGE I. Basic Information Date prepared/updated: 12/06/2007 Report No.: AC3324 1. Basic Project Data Country: Yemen, Republic of Project ID: P109219 Project Name: Taiz Municipal Development and Flood Protection Project Task Team Leader: Stephen George Karam Estimated Appraisal Date: December 14, 2007 Estimated Board Date: January 29, 2008 Managing Unit: MNSSD Lending Instrument: Specific Investment Loan Sector: Flood protection (70%);Sub-national government administration (30%) Theme: Access to urban services and housing (P);Municipal governance and institution building (S) IBRD Amount (US$m.): 0.00 IDA Amount (US$m.): 20.00 GEF Amount (US$m.): 0.00 PCF Amount (US$m.): 0.00 Other financing amounts by source: BORROWER/RECIPIENT 2.05 2.05 Environmental Category: B - Partial Assessment Simplified Processing Simple [] Repeater [] Is this project processed under OP 8.50 (Emergency Recovery) or OP 8.00 (Rapid Response to Crises and Emergencies) Yes [ ] No [X] 2. Project Objectives The original Project has three development objectives: (i) Taiz local government develops its capacity to carry out a major part of their responsibilities under the country's new Local Authorities Law; (ii) to protect city residents, businesses and infrastructure from seasonal destructive flash flooding; and (iii) initiate support for Yemen's decentralization program. Under the additional financing, all three objectives would remain valid and thus have not been modified. 3. Project Description The proposed additional financing retains essentially the same project structure of the original project. Of the original three components, two will be utilized, as follows: (i) Flood damage protection infrastructure and related public sector infrastructure; (ii) Resettlement (no longer necessary as there will be no resettlement under the additional financing) would not be financed under the additional financing; and (iii) Local Council capacity building program. A forth component is added to cover the budget for project management by the Project Management Unit (PMU). Although Component 2 will no longer be financed under the project, as there would be no resettlement, IDA is working Page 2 with Government and City counterparts to define a program of continued support to the Resettlement Village and to several NGOs working with the residents of Birrara to ensure sustained impact and integration of the resettled community. A brief description of each component is given below: Component 1- Flood Damage Protection Infrastructure (US$18.30 Million Equivalent). Component 1 entails the construction of about: (i) 4.4 kilometers length of flood damage protection channels to protect populated areas, (ii) 20.45 kilometers length of street paving in tributary areas to the flood damage protection structures to improve rainfall surface drainage and prevent soil erosion to minimize potential damages and the cost of maintenance of flood structures while improving pedestrian and vehicular access; (iii) 1.04 kilometers length of retaining walls to protect built-up areas and nearby flood damage protection structures from potential risk of landslides; (iv) 1.38 kilometers length of footpaths in steep walkways to control erosion while providing safe pedestrian access; and (v) 13.91 kilometers length of sewage collection pipes, and about 1,400 house connections to reduce water pollution caused by sewage discharges onto the flood channels. This component would be executed through ten contractual packages. The size of each contract has been determined by grouping the works within the same geographic area, or by the type of work to be carried out, the duration of each contract not to exceed eighteen months, and by limiting the cost of each contract to sizes suitable for competition among medium and larger size contractors. Component 2- Resettlement. (Not financed under the Additional Financing) This component would no longer be financed under the additional financing, as no resettlement would be required under the project. The proposed set of civil works projects noted in Component 1 above are identified and have been reviewed by an independent social specialist and determined not to require any resettlement. However, careful monitoring during the implementation phase will be carried out by a full-time social officer to ensure compliance with OP 4.12 concerning involuntary resettlement. Should any unforeseen circumstances arise that might trigger this policy, such as temporary resettlement during the construction phase, an abbreviated resettlement action plan (RAP) would be prepared based on guidance from the Team’s social safeguards specialist. Furthermore, the work of the task team will be complemented by a parallel assignment carried out by the Bank’s social team in which specially targeted technical assistance and capacity building would be provided to the Resettlement Village developed under the original project and to the NGOs providing services to residents in the village. This assistance is proposed to be supported by a JSDF (Japan Social Development Fund) grant and would be intended to ensure sustainability of the village and integration of the residents into local society, provide access to employment opportunities, and help to engender broader social acceptance. Component 3- Capacity Building for Local Councils (US$3.37 Million Equivalent). Component 3 consists of scaling-up the capacity building program for local councils and administrations in support of the government’s decentralization agenda through assisting the city of Taiz in fulfilling its responsibilities under the Local Administration Law of Page 3 2000. This component also includes construction of two Local Council buildings in Taizieh and Salw Districts (both within Taiz Governorate) and equipping such buildings with furniture and office equipment necessary for Local Councils to fulfill their mandate under the Law.. This component would consist of the following programs: 1. Traffic system management study (US$0.30 Million equivalent). A consultant would study and recommend options for addressing traffic flows in the expanded road network alongside the flood damage prevention channels aiming at reducing congestion and identifying strategic sites suitable for parking areas in the vicinity of commercial areas and markets, which would be designed to enhance vehicular and pedestrian safety and access within the city; 2. Street Addressing and Parcel Numbering (US$0.44 Million equivalent). This program would complement the new Taiz GIS system developed under the masterplan to enhance local tax collection and improve delivery of public services. The assignment would be undertaken jointly by the Taiz public works and finance departments, under the guidance and direction of the Taiz Local Council. This activity would consist of: (i) a study carried out in consultation with the Local Council and an already-established Street Addressing City Committee, including survey work, system design, and implementation plan. In addition, bidding documents would be prepared for the supply and installation of signs and postings of street names and parcel numbers (US$0.12 Million equivalent); and (ii) the supply and installation of street names and parcel numbers (US$0.315 Million equivalent). 3. Strategy for strengthening civil defense response capacity (US$0.20 Million equivalent). This activity entails developing a civil defense strategy and provision of basic equipment for initial implementation of a program for future expansion and coordination among all concerned stakeholders. The support would be aimed at improving the response time and capacity of service providers to flood-affected victims in all parts of the city. 4. Master Plan detailed designs (US$0.30 Million equivalent). This activity would develop additional detailed maps of Taiz (five in total) to expand the already developed system under the original project, including technical assistance and capacity building of technical staff to enhance detailed planning efforts at the city level. 5. Municipal Service Delivery Study (US$0.23 Million equivalent). This activity would consist of a set of assignments in support of the city’s efforts to consolidate its services and administrative structures into a municipal management framework. The study would look into various options such as establishing a position of city manager, local tax administration study for consolidating all municipal revenues and expenditures into a single budgetary framework and developing a new organization chart with functional departments and corresponding operations manuals. This activity would also support the review of the Government’s proposed amendments to the Local Administration Law. 6. Strengthening Land Management (US$0.50 Million equivalent). This activity would assist the Government in formulating a viable national and local level framework for public land management and land registration following establishment of the General Authority for Land, Survey and Urban Planning (GALSUP). Page 4 7. Studies and Design for Sanitary Solid Waste Disposal (US$0.27 Million equivalent). This activity includes undertaking: (i) a study to implement the solid waste management strategy carried out under phase 2 project (US$0.02 Million equivalent); (ii) design of a sanitary landfill and drafting of bidding documents of a selected site for construction under a separate program (US$0.15 Million equivalent); and (iii) undertaking an Independent Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (IESIA) for the proposed solid waste management project to be executed under a separate program (US$0.10 Million equivalent). 8. Construction and Equipping Local Government Administration Buildings (US$1.13 Million equivalent). This activity would construct and equip two Local Council (LC) buildings and equip the local office of GALSUP. 4. Project Location and salient physical characteristics relevant to the safeguard analysis Taiz is the second largest urban settlement in Yemen, located in the interior highlands at altitudes ranging between 1,100m and 1,600m above sea level, at the foothills of Sabir Mountain (altitude 3,000m). The city is the administrative capital of Taiz Governorate, the most populated of Yemen’s 20 governorates with close to 16% of the total population. Taiz city’s population is estimated today to be around 540,000 inhabitants, out of a total population in the Governorate of 3 million. Due to its location at the base of Mt. Sabir, Taiz City is subject to severe seasonal flash flooding that annually claims at least one life, injures scores of city residents, and inflicts significant damage and financial losses on the residences and businesses of the city. In response to this daunting challenge, the World Bank-financed Taiz Municipal Development and Flood Protection Project was designed with the main aim of erecting flood protection structures to protect the City’s residents and businesses by channeling the flood waters through open and closed flood structures to a catch basin south of the city. The Project investments under the additional financing would take place entirely within Taiz Governorate. Other than the local Council building to be constructed in Salw, all other civil works will be confined to the City of Taiz. The vast majority of the additional financing (around 83%) would be devoted to small-scale works to construct flood protection channels, inner-city roads, pedestrian footpaths, stormwater drainage, and wastewater collection networks. 5. Environmental and Social Safeguards Specialists Mr Knut Opsal (MNSSD) Mr Maged Mahmoud Hamed (MNSSD) Page 5 6. Safeguard Policies Triggered Yes No Environmental Assessment (OP/BP 4.01) X Natural Habitats (OP/BP 4.04) X Forests (OP/BP 4.36) X Pest Management (OP 4.09) X Physical Cultural Resources (OP/BP 4.11) X Indigenous Peoples (OP/BP 4.10) X Involuntary Resettlement (OP/BP 4.12) X Safety of Dams (OP/BP 4.37) X Projects on International Waterways (OP/BP 7.50) X Projects in Disputed Areas (OP/BP 7.60) X II. Key Safeguard Policy Issues and Their Management A. Summary of Key Safeguard Issues 1. Describe any safeguard issues and impacts associated with the proposed project. Identify and describe any potential large scale, significant and/or irreversible impacts: The original project had an Environmental Category “A” classification with the most significant issue identified in the Project Appraisal Document (PAD) as the resettlement of 170 families from areas where construction works were planned to take place. Under the additional financing, no involuntary resettlement is envisaged or would be undertaken. As such, the additional financing integrated social and environmental classification is proposed to be downgraded to Category B according to the World Bank’s Operational Policy on Environmental Assessment (OP 4.01). The proposal to downgrade the Additional Financing environmental classification is also based on the following considerations, which include measures undertaken under the original project to address specific environmental risks identified at project appraisal in 2001 (page 14, PAD) as follows: o Spillway capacity on the agricultural dam receiving flood flows: Under the original project, the spillway dam has been completely upgraded to a capacity that exceeds anticipated flood waters resulting from a 30 year rainfall event; o Introduction of stones, debris, and solid waste into the flood structures: The flood structure contracts financed under the original project included installation of several boulder traps and flood structure screens and grates that prevent the build up of stones and debris within the flood structures; over $250,000 of flood structure equipment has been procured under the original project for the purposes of cleaning and maintaining the structures; a solid waste management strategy has been prepared under the original project and has defined flood structure maintenance and cleaning plans which are now in place and under implementation; the Governor has issued a formal decree assigning both the equipment and flood structure maintenance and cleaning to the Taiz City Cleaning and Improvement Fund. o Institutional capacity to maintain the flood structures: Specific training, maintenance programs and performance standards have been designed for flood structure maintenance and cleaning by a Municipal Management Specialist for the Cleaning and Page 6 Improvement Fund. Public awareness training has been carried out and this program of support would be extended under the proposed additional financing. o Indirect impacts/presence of Malaria related to another IDA Project: The flood structures installed under the original project provide graded, smooth surface conduits for rainfall and flood waters to pass easily and quickly through the core areas of the city out to the retention basin north of the city. The incidence of malaria in the city was reported by the Social Scientist to have declined significantly over the past several years. This is due in part to the flood structures replacing the natural flood paths (wadis) where malaria- infested mosquitos were reproducing in small pools of residual flood waters (less than 15 cm.) o Means of escape from the flood structures: Each of the existing flood structures have escape ladders installed to ease exit from the structures and the same design feature is included in the proposed flood structure extensions. As an Environmental Category “B” Project, a Partial Environmental Assessment isrequired. An environmental impact assessment report (EIA) was prepared, following OP 4.01 guidelines. An Environmental Management Plan (EMP) is included with the EIA, and it addresses potential environmental and social impacts, the necessary mitigation measures and monitoring plan, and the capacity building requirements for the EMP implementation. An additional issue that was not explicitly addressed in the original project environmental assessment is the matter of illegal piping of domestic wastewater from households surrounding the wadis/flood structures into the structures. Provision has been made under the original and the proposed additional financing to correct this problem by installing wastewater collection pipes along the flood structures to channel the effluent to the Al-Burayhi treatment ponds downstream.The Al-Burayhi Wastewater Treatment Plant is currently undergoing cleaning and capacity upgrading carried out under the Bank-financed Urban Water and Sanitation Project; this work is expected to be completed by February 2008. An estimated 1,400 household connections would be made under the proposed additional financing to prevent dumping of wastewater into the structures. The EIA carries out a review of the wastewater treatment facility. The facility has a design capacity of 4,000 m3/day (total detention time of 69,200 mw storage/4000 m3/day = 17 days). Actual sewage volume is less than 4,000 m3/day but no measurements are available. Of the less than 2,000 wastewater connections proposed under the additional financing a total volume of 100-200 m3/day is anticipated. This would represent an anticipated 2.5-5% of the total wastewater treatment plant design capacity. Some farmers have been observed drawing some of the untreated wastewater from the collection system downstream for use in agriculture. Although not directly related to the project, the downstream risk of some farmers potentially misusing untreated wastewater passing through the network installed under the project would be addressed by organizing on a periodic basis for the duration of the project public awareness sessions concerning the inherent health risks in using this water prior to appropriate treatment. This assistance is specified in the project EMP and would be the responsibility of the Page 7 consultant providing capacity building support on solid waste management and environmental health awareness. Operational Policy on Cultural Property (OP 4.11) may be triggered during construction, if chance finds of archeological or cultural significance is encountered. This issue is not expected to be significant, however, as the construction of the drainage channels, boulder traps, and sewers is done in wadis, whereas the development of Taiz city is predominantly at high grounds and on hill tops. Nonetheless, OP 4.11 should be evaluated during construction. The construction contracts should include a Chance Find procedure according to OPN 11.03. Involuntary Resettlement (OP 4.12). A detailed social assessment (SA) was carried out by an independent social scientist during the preparation stage of the project and confirmed that no resettlement would take place and that no land acquisition would therefore be required for implementation of this operation. 2. Describe any potential indirect and/or long term impacts due to anticipated future activities in the project area: Positive environmental and social impacts are expected to result from the reduction of negative consequences of floods on health, environment, and quality of life. The overall quality of life is also expected to be improved trough the provision of wastewater connections in un-served areas. These impacts were determined to far outweigh any potentially negative environmental impacts. Most of the project impacts are expected to result from the construction phase. Examples include disruption of traffic, air quality and noise impacts from construction activities, and possible safety concerns during construction. These impacts are expected to be localized, short lived, and reversible. Operational phase impacts, related to the issues of sewerage collection impact on existing treatment plants, reuse of wastewater, and solid waste disposal in the channels are dealt with through other on-going investment projects (World Bank-financed Urban Water and Sanitation Project), proposed studies and/or training/awareness programs as identified in the EMP. Furthermore, mitigation measures for these impacts will be included in the tender document and contract with the selected contractors. Violation or deviation from these measures would be handled accordingly, and specific measures to respond will be include in the special conditions of the contracts. 3. Describe any project alternatives (if relevant) considered to help avoid or minimize adverse impacts. The project will utilize widely accepted norms and equipment for construction. No alternative construction methods are expected to reduce the impacts. The design will consider alternative building materials and will select the optimal one based on multi criteria analysis of technical and economic feasibility, and environmental aspects. Page 8 4. Describe measures taken by the borrower to address safeguard policy issues. Provide an assessment of borrower capacity to plan and implement the measures described. The project will utilize widely accepted norms and equipment for construction. No alternative construction methods are expected to reduce the impacts. The design will consider alternative building materials and will select the optimal one based on multi criteria analysis of technical and economic feasibility, and environmental aspects. 4. Describe measures taken by the borrower to address safeguard policy issues. Provide an assessment of borrower capacity to plan and implement the measures described: The agency responsible for environmental matters in Yemen is the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA). EPA has a limited capacity in following up environmental projects. However, this is a non-issue as the environmental mitigation and monitoring plans will be carried out by the Project Management Unit, which includes a full-time Environmental Officer). The EO will implement the EMP and the environmental aspects included in the project’s Operations Manual. The EO was in charge of supervising the work for Phases I and II of the project. The EO will continue to act in the same capacity for the additional financing works. In addition, the project will be hiring a Social Officer to monitor activities during the construction phase and to ensure that no resettlement issues are triggered. With regard to broader social development issues, a very thorough social assessment (SA) has been carried out and its findings have been incorporated into overall project design. 5. Identify the key stakeholders and describe the mechanisms for consultation and disclosure on safeguard policies, with an emphasis on potentially affected people. Public consultations were carried out during the environmental assessment of Phases I and II. Subsequently, public consultation workshops were held in March 2001; and May, June, and September 2005, and included all relevant stakeholders, such as: (a) residents living in the districts where the project would be implemented, (b) community leaders, (c) local council members, (d) NGOs, (e) District Police, and (f) National Water and Sanitation Authority. A very thorough Social Assessment (SA), including public consultations of the affected population, was also carried out in September 2007 concerning the impacts of the original project and with the aim of incorporating lessons learned into the activities supported under the Additional Financing. The SA was carried out by an independent, internationally-qualified reviewer, and involved numerous consultations with affected communities and other city and project stakeholders.The SA determined that none of the proposed work sites would require any resettlement. The SA investigated expected socio-economic impacts of the TMFPP Additional Financing (AF) as well as social risk and safety issues through field visits, the analysis of project documents and data collected by 30 surveyors in interviews and focus group discussions with altogether 314 beneficiaries in 16 areas where AF investments will be implemented. Project measures under the AF are largely the same and complementary to those implemented under Phase I and II of the TMFPP. Page 9 Benefits and risks identified through impact analysis of previous project investments are thus projected to be similar to those of the AF. The SA revealed that previous project measures yielded significant benefits for public health through the protection of lives and the reduction of water-borne and pollution related diseases. Project measures had also had clear poverty alleviation effects through stimulation of economic development and job creation as a result of improved access, transportation and protection of property in addition to saving expenditures for replacement or repair of damaged property after ravaging floods. The project greatly facilitated the introduction of infrastructure and garbage collection through improved access and protection from flood damage. Protective measures and improvements of access and transportation have also increased children’s attendance in school and have largely eliminated the social isolation of residents in newly-established flood structure areas. The social assessment did, however, highlight additional safety issues to be taken into account in sub-project design in order to ensure preventative measures are in place, including expansion in the provision of safety railings to prevent any inadvertent entry into the flood structures by children and/or other city residents. B. Disclosure Requirements Date Environmental Assessment/Audit/Management Plan/Other: Was the document disclosed prior to appraisal? Yes Date of receipt by the Bank 12/06/2007 Date of "in-country" disclosure 12/07/2007 Date of submission to InfoShop 12/06/2007 For category A projects, date of distributing the Executive Summary of the EA to the Executive Directors * If the project triggers the Pest Management and/or Physical Cultural Resources, the respective issues are to be addressed and disclosed as part of the Environmental Assessment/Audit/or EMP. If in-country disclosure of any of the above documents is not expected, please explain why: C. Compliance Monitoring Indicators at the Corporate Level (to be filled in when the ISDS is finalized by the project decision meeting) OP/BP/GP 4.01 - Environment Assessment Does the project require a stand-alone EA (including EMP) report? Yes If yes, then did the Regional Environment Unit or Sector Manager (SM) review and approve the EA report? Yes Are the cost and the accountabilities for the EMP incorporated in the credit/loan? Yes Page 10 OP/BP 4.11 - Physical Cultural Resources Does the EA include adequate measures related to cultural property? N/A Does the credit/loan incorporate mechanisms to mitigate the potential adverse impacts on cultural property? Yes The World Bank Policy on Disclosure of Information Have relevant safeguard policies documents been sent to the World Bank's Infoshop? Yes Have relevant documents been disclosed in-country in a public place in a form and language that are understandable and accessible to project-affected groups and local NGOs? Yes All Safeguard Policies Have satisfactory calendar, budget and clear institutional responsibilities been prepared for the implementation of measures related to safeguard policies? Yes Have costs related to safeguard policy measures been included in the project cost? Yes Does the Monitoring and Evaluation system of the project include the monitoring of safeguard impacts and measures related to safeguard policies? Yes Have satisfactory implementation arrangements been agreed with the borrower and the same been adequately reflected in the project legal documents? Yes D. Approvals Signed and submitted by: Name Date Task Team Leader: Mr Stephen George Karam 11/30/2007 Environmental Specialist: Mr Maged Mahmoud Hamed 11/30/2007 Social Development Specialist Mr Knut Opsal 11/30/2007 Additional Environmental and/or Social Development Specialist(s): Mr Jaafar Sadok Friaa 12/04/2007 Approved by: Regional Safeguards Coordinator: Mr Hocine Chalal 12/04/2007 Comments: Sector Manager: Mr Hedi Larbi 11/30/2007 Comments: