This is a Category B project, according to IFC’s Procedure for Environmental and Social Review of Projects because a limited number of specific environmental and social impacts may result which can be avoided or mitigated by adhering to generally recognized performance standards, guidelines or design criteria. The review of this project consisted of appraising technical and environmental/social information submitted by the project sponsor. The information reviewed include: (i) Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), 120 MW Combined Cycle, Bogue, Montego Bay, prepared by JPSCO, September 2001; (ii) Final Report, Public Consultation, Jamaica Public Service Company Ltd. (JPSCo) Expansion at Bogue, St. James, November 2001; and (iii) updated information since the preparation of the EIA.
The following potential environmental, health and safety and social impacts of the project were analyzed:
(A) the development of the 120MW diesel fuel-fired combined cycle power plant:
Necessity of 120MW expansion at Bogue: The existing Bogue Power Station has 103.5 MW capacity, consisting of six simple cycle gas turbines, developed in 1973 (21.5MW, GT3), 1990 (14MW x 2, GT6, GT7), 1992 (14MW, GT8, and 20MW, GT9) and 2001 (20MW, GT11). The Company has a total generating capacity of 505 MW, and adding 120MW combined cycle power plant at Bogue was planned based on a least cost generation expansion plan to meet the growing electricity demand in Jamaica.
Technical Specifications: The 120MW expansion plant will consist of two GE PG6551B combustion turbines, two vertical Heat Recovery Steam Generators (HRSGs) and one Steam Turbine (ST) resulting in nominal output of 122MW. The gas turbines will have dual-fuel capability (No. 2 diesel fuel oil and natural gas), but will be using No. 2 diesel fuel oil only. NOx emissions will be reduced by using water injection to meet 80ppm (15% O2, 0 Celsius, 1 atm). The HRSGs will not be equipped with duct burners. The stack height is 25m. The existing oil storage facility at Bogue Power Station (3 tanks) will be expanded by two new tanks with 5.5 million litre capacity each. The fuel treatment system will be upgraded for the entire station. A circulating cooling water system consisting of a multi-cell evaporative cooling tower will be provided. The 120MW expansion is being developed in two phases: (i) Phase 1 to complete 2 x 40MW combustion turbines (simple cycle mode) in 2002, and (ii) Phase 2 to add HRSG and ST to complete the plant as 120MW combined cycle in 2003. The proposed expansion will be developed on a 6.5 ha land adjacent to the existing Bogue Power Station (4.1ha).
Site Selection: The Bogue Power Station is located in the parish of St. James, the Northwestern section of Jamaica. The parish contains the tourist capital Montego Bay. The site is about 8 km south-west of the Sangster International Airport and about 4 km from downtown Montego Bay. The immediate surroundings of the site has no direct tourist interests. Over a period of years, the company has been exploring options for the siting of new power facilities to accommodate the increase in demand for electricity. In late 1980s, a total of 28 sites were studied. Eleven sites were selected for further studies. Recently, five sites were evaluated and screened based on evaluation factors of (i) land availability, and (ii) economic / environmental factors. Expansion at Bogue Power Station was determined as a preferred site for the 120MW new generating capacity.
Land Acquisition: The land for the expansion (6.5 ha) was acquired by JPSCo from a single land owner whose family has owned a large sugar cane plantation, including this parcel of land, in the area for many years. They have been selling portions of the estate over the past few years. The land was cultivated with sugar cane at the time of the sale, and although it was low grade cane, the laborers who cleared the site took the cane for some productive use.
Associated Facilities (Transmission line / Oil pipeline): The transmission system in the Bogue area will be capable of exporting the full output of the Bogue Power Station even after the 120MW expansion is completed, and therefore no expansion of transmission lines is planned. Only the substation within the Bogue Power Station will be expanded. The diesel fuel oil is currently being delivered to Bogue Power Station by the existing pipeline from Petrojam''s fuel facility located in Montego Bay Freeport. No additional pipeline is planned because of the 120MW expansion.
Fuel Supply and Treatment: Fuel delivered by Petrojam by existing pipeline will be pumped, metered and filtered to the final condition required by the combustion turbine manufacturer. The fuel oil management system will include fuel shut-off valve, sump tank and sump pump, spill containment structures - including secondary structures and oil-water separators.
Air Quality: Air quality in the vicinity of the Bogue Power Station is expected to be fairly good due to the rural setting along the coast with no other major industrial activity near the site. The EIA included a detailed ambient air dispersion modeling report prepared by an independent environmental consulting firm, Parker & Associates. The EIA concludes that with the addition of more energy efficient and less polluting units, 20MW gas turbine (GT11) in 2001 and the additional 120MW expansion under development, the use of existing, older units will be reduced, and as a result, there will be a reduction in the total emissions of the facility. The maximum predicted ground level concentrations by the Bogue Power Station (after completion of the 120MW expansion) in the EIA indicate that ambient air quality levels will be below the Jamaican ambient air quality standards for NOx, CO, SO2 and PM10.
Noise: The EIA states that the measured noise level at the perimeter of the existing Bogue Power Station with all the turbines in operation is exceeding the Jamaican draft noise standards of 70 to 75 dB (applicable to Industrial zone) at three locations of the six boundary locations. The range was from 76 dBA to 81 dBA. The EIA concludes that introduction of additional turbines (120MW expansion) should cause some residents to perceive an increase in noise, but the measured noise should still be within the Community Noise Equivalence Level (CNEL) of 65 dBA if the Company ensures that the silencers attenuate noise to meet 93 dBA at one meter and other mitigative measures are implemented. The EIA proposed several mitigation measure to ensure that noise requirements are met.
Water Supply and Water Treatment: The groundwater resources in the area are restricted to a deep limestone aquifer. One potable water well is currently located on the facility. Bogue Power Station, after expanding 120MW, will receive water from two sources: potable water from the existing well and effluent from the National Water Commission Bogue Sewage Treatment Plant (stabilization ponds), located about 2.5km from the Station. The effluent water will be pumped to the site via 250 mm coated carbon steel pipe, processed through microfiltration system, and chlorinated before it is discharged to a 2.3 million litres raw water storage tank at the plant. The effluent (raw) water storage tank will supply water to the water treatment (demineralizer) plant.About 4.5 million litres per day of water will be used by the 120MW expansion plant. The water treatment system will produce high quality boiler make-up water and high quality injection water for NOx abatement. The water treatment system will have 2 x 100% capacity trains to treat 456.6 - 909.2 litres per minute of raw water. Each train will consist of a mixed media filter, strong acid cation unit, decarbonator, a strong base anion unit followed by a mixed bed unit. A neutralization system will be provided. Chemical feed system will be provided for boiler water, cooling water, and auxiliary cooling water and condensate treatment. The chemical feed system will include the necessary tanks for storage, measurement and mixing of the chemicals, mixers, feed pumps and associated controls. Chemicals will include sodium phosphate, hypochloride, sulfuric acid, copper corrosion inhibitor, etc.
Wastewater Treatment: Effluent from the plant (including cooling tower blowdown) will be treated where necessary to be in compliance with the 1995 Trade Effluent Standards and World Bank liquid effluent guidelines. The estimated discharge from the plant at the end of Phase 2 is to be finalized.
Natural Hazard Vulnerability: Jamaica is located in a high intensity earthquake zone. Engineering designs of the 120MW expansion have incorporated relevant regulations and code.
Ecological Environment: The Bogue Power Station is in a zoned industrial site. According to the EIA, the land/area does not support any endangered or threatened species, and there are no wetlands in the immediate surrounding area of the proposed site.
Economic Impacts: The EIA summarizes that the proposed 120MW expansion will cause positive economic impacts through payments for construction material, labor (unskilled and skilled), transportation (local and shipping), salaries and maintenance activities, etc.
Compliance with Jamaican environmental regulations and World Bank Group environmental and social policies and guidelines: The National Environmental Protection Agency (NEPA), formerly known as Natural Resources Conservation Authority (NRCA), is the environmental agency implementing Jamaican environmental regulations. NEPA has issued various draft environmental regulations that may become applicable to the new 120MW plant in the areas of air emissions, noise, liquid effluent, environmental monitoring, hazardous waste management, etc. The EIA explains that the development of the 120MW expansion will be implemented in conformance to all Jamaican regulations and standards (including the draft versions) , and where local standards do not exist, US EPA and World Bank Standards should be adopted. The Company has further confirmed that the 120MW expansion will also meet World Bank Group Standards regardless of the existence of local standards. According to IFC''s review of the EIA, there are no issues related to World Bank Group Social Policies on cultural property, indigenous people, involuntary resettlement, forced labor and harmful child labor.
Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Energy Efficiency: Assuming 70% annual capacity factor and 40% thermal efficiency (LHV), the 120MW expansion plant will generate 736 GWh of electricity per year, combusting 6,600 TJ of diesel fuel oil. Using a carbon emission factor of 20.2 tC/TJ and a fraction of carbon oxidized of 0.99 recommended by the Intergovermental Panel on Climate Change, the annual combustion of 6,600 TJ diesel fuel oil will emit 132,000 t-C or 486,000 t-CO2 of carbon dioxide per year. The 120MW expansion plant will be the first combined cycle power plant in Jamaica, and its high energy efficiency will increase the overall thermal generation efficiency of the Bogue Power Station (currently about 22 % thermal efficiency in 2001/2002).
Public Consultation / Disclosure of the EIA and Environmental Permit: The company prepared the Environmental Impact Assessment in September 2001, and held a public meeting as required by NEPA, in October 2001. Many stakeholders were invited to the meeting, and the main issue raised was regarding the reliability of power supply. Regarding the expansion of the power station on the site, there were some concerns over increased noise which were adequately addressed by the project team present at the meeting. The company received the Environmental Permit from the Jamaican Natural Resources Conservation Authority on November 19, 2001.
Labor Issues: Prior to acquisition by Mirant, JPSCo carried out necessary retrenchment of staff who voluntarily accepted the severance packages offered by the company. Mirant does not have a plan to carry out any further retrenchment of labor forces.
(B) for existing operation of the Company:
Corporate Environmental Management System: After Mirant''s acquisition of JPSCo, the Company strengthened its corporate Environmental Management System. The company has established Environmental Affairs Department consisting of Manager and three staff (Environmental Specialist, etc.). Each thermal power plant has Environmental Coordinator. Environmental Task Force was established to coordinate cross-departmental issues. The company is completing the corporate environmental management procedure document to implement the Environmental Management System. Environmental Performance Indicators were established within the Company to evaluate yearly performance and identify opportunities for improvement. After these are reviewed by senior management of JPSCo, the evaluation and recommendation are communicated to the Mirant''s Vice President of Environmental Affairs.
Environmental Audits: The company retained environmental consulting firms to carry out environmental audits on (i) air emissions to identify stack emission compliance with the Jamaican draft air emission standards in 2001, and (ii) soil and water contamination to refine the estimated remediation associated with the recognized environmental conditions at each facility in 2000. Based on these and other reviews by Mirant''s experts, the company is developing (i) Compliance Program to determine mitigation measures required to bring the facility into compliance, and (ii) Remediation Project to deal with a number of issues at their existing facilities. The Remediation Project includes construction of a landfill to dispose existing solid waste and waste generated during the remediation project, including PCB contaminated waste. A total cost of US$9.2 million is estimated to implement environmental projects described above during 2001-2004.
