While all Performance Standards are applicable to this investment, IFCs environmental and social due diligence indicates that the investment will have impacts which must be managed in a manner consistent with the following Performance Standards. 

PS 1 – Assessment and Management of Environmental and Social Risks and Impacts
PS 2 - Labor and working conditions
PS 3 - Resource Efficiency and Pollution Prevention
PS 4 – Community Health, Safety and Security

If IFC's investment proceeds, IFC will periodically review the the project’s ongoing compliance with the Performance Standards.

The proposed project will be located in an area devoid of human settlements. SELTEC Ing. Ltda, acquired the site on 2011 on a willing buyer/willing seller basis. Even though the final decision about the route of the transmission line has not been reached, neither of the proposed alternatives is occupied by dwellers and it is anticipated that the use of the right-of-way use will be compensated through a commercial transaction. Thus, PS 5 – Land Acquisition and Involuntary Resettlement is not applicable.

PS 6 - Biodiversity Conservation and Sustainable Natural Resource Management is not applicable since the project site is not located in either a sensitive modified or critical habitats area and will not affect ecosystem services.

Since there are no communities in the Project’s area of influence that would be considered as ‘Indigenous’ as defined by the World Bank Group, PS 7 - Indigenous People does not apply.

There are no known archaeological or historic sites within the project site’s boundaries, proposed right of way or the immediate vicinity of the project site; thus PS8 - Cultural Heritage does not apply.

The proposed investment is a Category B project because the potentially limited environmental and social impacts that may result from constructing and operating the solar power generation and transmission facilities can be avoided or mitigated by adhering to generally recognized good practices and design criteria.

The Company has presented information and plans that will seek to address environmental and social risks and impacts in accordance with the Chilean laws and regulations, the IFC Performance Standards on Social and Environment Sustainability, the applicable elements of the World Bank Group (WBG) General EHS Guidelines, and the attached Environmental and Social Action Plan (ESAP).

IFC's appraisal considered the environmental and social management planning process and documentation for the project and gaps, if any, between these and IFCs requirements. Where necessary, corrective measures, intended to close these gaps within a reasonable period of time, are summarized in the paragraphs that follow and (if applicable) in an agreed Environmental and Social Action Plan (ESAP). Through the implementation of these measures, the project is expected to be designed and operated in accordance with Performance Standards objectives.

Environmental and Social (E&S) Assessment

For purposes of assessing the impacts of the project, Selray Energias Ltda. engaged a Chilean Environmental consultant firm to conduct an assessment of the environmental impacts of the project. Once the transmission line route is defined, the Company will assess and identify the associated impacts and mitigation, in accordance with the IFC PS requirements. Copy of this assessment will be submitted to IFC once completed but prior to the first disbursement as indicated in the ESAP. The Project is in the process of obtaining the necessary Chilean environmental permits.



Environment, Health, Safety (EHS), Social Management Program and Organization

The Company is committed to adopting and implementing an Environmental, Social, Health, and Safety Management System (ESHS-MS) for the project based on the Chilean regulations; IFC’s Performance Standards; and the relevant WBG Environmental, Health and Safety (EHS) Guidelines. The ESHS-MS will be designed in line with internationally recognized ESHS-MS standards (i.e. ISO 14000 and OHSAS 18000) and will include (a) procedures for identifying social and environmental risks and impacts; (b) development and implementation of environmental and social management plans (ESMP); (c) monitoring and internal audits; and (d) development and implementation of Community Outreach Programs.



To ensure sound EHS contractors performance, the Company is developing detailed procedures including contractual clauses about EHS compliance, use of personnel protective equipment, work permits, report of incidents/accidents, compliance with local labor laws, etc. In addition, construction contractors will be contractually required to have on-site OHS supervisors for their operations and the Company will conduct periodic EHS performance evaluations to the contractor to assess its EHS performance.



The Company will have dedicated qualified personnel to handle the EHS aspects of its operations as well as ensure there will also personnel dedicated to deal with community engagement. The Manager of the EHS Department will report directly to the General Manager. In addition, the Company will assign dedicated personnel as community relations liaisons. As needed, the company will also hire environmental consultants, to conduct studies, monitoring, audits, etc.



Training, monitoring, and reporting

The Company will periodically conduct EHS training for all its own employees and contractors on aspects such as safety audits, job related risks, hazardous materials, fire prevention, proper use and disposal of residues and products, etc. The Company will develop dedicated training programs for all new employees as well as in-house and off-site training for first responders. The company will establish a monitoring program to assess the EHS performance of its operations including ambient noise, ambient air, number of accidents/incidents, etc. The Company will also implement a Contrac
tor Monitoring Procedure in accordance with relevant labor laws and IFC PS requirements, as indicated in the ESAP. The Company will submit annual environmental and social performance reports to regulators, lenders and investors.

Human Resources Policy and Management

The Company will develop its project-level Human Resources (HR) Policy and Procedures based on the IFC PS2 requirements. The HR Policy and Procedures will include provisions related to non-discrimination and equal opportunity, wages and benefits, no engagement in forced or child labor, grievance mechanism and adequate working and living conditions and will be submitted to IFC as specified in the ESAP. These procedures will be appropriately communicated to all employees.



The Company will establish a worker’s grievance mechanism defining the channels available to submit the grievances (i.e., mail, phone, verbal report to immediate supervisor/reporting authority; etc.) The grievance mechanism, which is part of the HR policy, will be communicated to all employees. The company will maintain a database with information regarding grievances outcomes.



It is expected that the proposed project will generate approximately 70 jobs during construction. The majority of non skilled workers are anticipated to be locally hired from the surrounding villages. Any skilled worker not from the surrounding villages will be accommodated in existing local housing facilities nearby with necessary travel arrangements. The project will generate approximately 5 employees during the operation phase which will live in the nearby communities. Permanently, there will be a person in charge of vigilance, who will live in the premises. Vigilance/security personnel will leave on site premises. The housing accommodations are adequate as per PS2 requirements with access to drinking water as well as sanitary facilities.



Occupational Health and Safety (H&S)

The Company will establish an H&S management system aiming to have a zero accident policy. Key safety measures will include: ear protection when workers noise exposure is 85 dB (A) or more, equipment enclosures and buffers wherever noise levels are above 90 dB (A), preventive equipment maintenance, planning daytime activity for heavy vehicles and construction machinery activity, etc. The Company will also focus on the prevention of risks related to work at height, work with live power lines and equipment, fire, exposure to chemicals, exposure to electromagnetic fields, etc. The Company will provide and make compulsory the use of personal protective equipment (PPE.)

The design of the project is based on established state-of-art and worldwide applied technologies whose performances are both predictable and well proven in operation, so that no significant variations are expected to be found between predicted and actual performance in the field.



The water needed for the construction will be provided by authorized water tankers and for human consumption it will buy bottled water. The water for the operation phase will be stored in two 10 m3 each storage tanks. The source of water needed for the operation phase to be used for the cleanup of the panels has not being decided by the company. The company is considering either using underground water or buying water which would be transported by trucks to the project site. The company will assess the likelihood of using ground water for its operations, with is estimated to be 2040 m3/year, for which it will determine the availability of the aquifer to satisfy project needs, and to ascertain there will not be negative impacts to potential downstream users.  In addition, if suitable the Company will process the required permits with the local authorities. The results of this assessment and, if granted, copy of the respective permits; will be submitted to IFC three months prior beginning operations, as indicated in the ESAP.



To handle the domestic wastes during the construction phase, the company will install chemical sanitaries which will be maintained by authorized contractors. For the operation phase, the project anticipates also using chemical sanitaries. The minimum amounts of wastewater resulting from the clean up wastewater falling on the ground beneath the PV Modules will not need to be treated in advance since it just contains the material removed from the panels.



The main source of emissions (SO2, NOX and particulate matter) during the construction phase relates to the movement of equipment and vehicles. Prevention measures during this phase will include sprinkling of water on roads, periodic checks for proper vehicles and equipments maintenance. The impact on the air quality during the operation phase is very limited since the operation does not generate air emissions.



The project will make a direct contribution towards increasing the use of renewable energy thus reducing generation of CO2 and other greenhouse emissions. The project anticipates avoiding generation between 30,000 to 40,000 tonnes of CO2 per year.



Access to the site is considered suitable for the construction phase, especially for truck circulation for material delivery. Additionally, the road access is also suitable for the operational phase when circulation of personnel and maintenance vehicles is foreseen. Minor works might be required from the local authorities on the foreseen access roads during the construction phase (e.g. road preparation to avoid dust lifting). In any case, as needed, the Company will control the generation of road dust during construction.
Vehicular traffic during operation is expected to be minimum.



The solid waste to be generated during construction includes domestic, recyclable, and construction waste. Domestic and construction waste will be transported to the municipal landfill by authorized contractors and the recyclable waste (i.e., paper, plastic, glass, scrap metal, etc.) will be properly segregated, stored in designated waste bins/containers, and sold to local recyclers. No toxic and/or hazardous materials will be used in the construction other than diesel oils for vehicles, which will be collected by authorized contractors and properly disposed. The wastes generated during operation will be mainly oil contaminated wastes and discarded panels. The oily waste will be disposed by authorized contractors and the discarded panel will be sent back to the manufacturer for proper disposal. The company will establish adequate storage for the wastes to avoid potential of soil contamination. The Company will not use PCB transformers, ozone depleting substances, or banned/phased out substances.



The main noise sources during construction will relate to the operation of machinery and vehicular traffic. To minimize the impact, the work will be carried out during daytime hours, preventive maintenance equipment will be conducted, construction schedules will be optimized and vehicular traffic will be routed away from the nearest settlement. Equipment generating noise during operation will be enclosed to reduce noise to levels in accordance with the IFC requirements.



The project area as well as its surroundings appeared overall as being highly affected by anthropogenic impacts. The general landscape can be characterized by flat surface covered six species among short bushes and some small trees, mostly tamarugo and algarrobo which are listed as vulnerable. The Company is committed to preserve the few individuals of the algarrobo (4) and tamarugo (7) vulnerable species present in the project site and replace any that could be affected during the construction. In addition, it is committed to maintaining all tamarugo trees bordering the project site. Once it has decided the route for the transmission line, the Company will assess potential impacts and as appropriate establish forestry management measures to ensure that any potential impact to vegetation will be properly handled. Details of these actions will be submitted to IFC as part of the impacts assessment of the transmission line.

The project will have low negative impacts to the communities. Any potential induced influx to nearby areas resulting from the construction phase will be due to the expectation of new employment opportunities. However, it is anticipated this impact will be temporal given the duration of the construction phase which will take approximately 8-10 months. In addition, the contractor will provide transportation for its workers who will be living in nearby communities. Traffic volumes from the transport of workers, equipment, and materials during the construction phase are not estimated to the considerable and the Company along with the contractor will establish the optimum transportation routes, the traffic management measures, and appropriate site access provisions that will reduce impacts.



The Company will develop the emergency response plan for the construction and operation phases, as indicated in the ESAP. As part of its emergency response planning, The Company will have trained emergency response personnel at all times, and it will involve the local authorities in the development of the emergency response planning.



The Company will hire only unarmed private security and vigilance personnel and will not require any support of Chilean public armed forces. The Company will implement security policies and procedures commensurate to the project risks and will conduct training for the private security personnel to ensure appropriate conduct with neighboring communities.

Due to the remoteness and nature of the Project, little to no communities will be affected by the construction and/or operation of the Project. However, the Company is committed to develop community outreach activities, conduct consultation and awareness campaigns to inform local communities about the Project. The Company has committed to install signaling about the Project given that this is in the route to the touristic city of La Pica and the authorities and community see the project as one more aspect contributing to the tourism in the area.
SEA, the local environmental authority, conducted public consultation on April 2013 as part of their assessment process. Approximately 50 people from the nearby rural communities of La Huayca and Pica participated. During the public consultation, they learned about the project and its potential impacts and proposed mitigations; and provided their views about the project. They were in support of the project and asked the company to install traffic signals on road A665 connecting Iquique to La Tirana-La Huayca-Pica, to support the tourism since those are typical touristic places.
As indicated in the ESAP, the Company will design a procedure to receive, register, redress, and monitor grievances as part of the ESHS-MS for the project. This procedure will be designed to be easily accessible, efficient, and to respond to the grievances in a culturally appropriate way.
For the construction phase, the contractors will develop and implement grievance mechanisms to address any issues raised related to the contractors’ activities. The Company will supervise the effective resolution of grievances raised during this phase.
Community relations staff will meet periodically with nearby community members and municipal authorities. As part of the project, The Company will also prepare an Stakeholder Engagement Plan, as indicated in the ESAP, including (a) stakeholder identification and analysis, (b) disclosure contractor responsibilities in relation to community relations during the construction program, (c) identification of relevant information for local disclosure including results of local hiring plan, (d) communication of emergency plan procedures, and (e) community grievance management system that will be communicated and accessible to communities and should include the procedures to disseminate the availability of the grievance mechanism by the communities.

The Company will disclose this document in Spanish language in both Pica and la Huayca communities. In Pica, it will use de “Public Mayor Office Auditorium” and in la Huayca, it will use the “Casa de la Junta Vecinal Número 4.”

Please contact the following for enquiries or concerns about the environmental and social impacts of this project:

Client’s contacts: SELRAY ENERGIAS LTDA.
Name: Marcela Berenguela
Title: Asistente Gerencia Selray Energias Ltda.
Address: Sitio2, Manzana F, via 5, Bajo Molle, Iquique
Phone: 5657-2248726

Broad Community Support is not applicable for this project

Action	Due Date
Submit copy of the environmental and social management ESHS-MS procedures/organizational structure	30-Jun-13
Submit copy of the impacts assessment and proposed mitigations for theTransmission line	15-Jul-13
Submit copy of the local environmental permits for tranmisiion line	31-Aug-13
Submit copy of the Human Resources Policy	30-Jun-13
Submit copy of the Contractors Monitoring procedure to be established	30-Jun-13
Submit copies of (a) the groundwater availability and impacts/mitigation assessment report, (b) environmental authority authorization permit for groundwater use, and (c) confirm water use source for the operation phase	Three months prior commencement of operation
Submit copy of the Emergency Response Plan for construction	30-Jun-13
Submit copy of the Emergency Response Plan for operation	Three months prior commencement of operation
Submit copy of the community grievance program	30-Jun-13
Submit copy of permit(s) issued by the Chilean environmental authorites for project (a) construction and (b) operation phases	(a)    August 31, 2013 (b)   October 31, 2013
Submit copy of the Communiyt Engagement Plan	30-Jul-13