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AL-RAJEF82MWWINDPOWERPROJECT

PRELIMINARYENVIRONMENTALASSESSMENT(PEA)

FORTHEOVERHEADTRANSMISSIONLINE

2May2016

REV-0

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Al-RajefWindPowerProject–PEAfortheOHL

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Al-RajefWindPowerProject–PEAfortheOHL

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!Document:tle

!Al-Rajef82MWWindPowerProject–PEAfortheOHL

Status REV-0

Date 2May2016

Client GreenWaMsRenewableEnergy(GWRE)Co.L.L.C

REVISIONRECORD

Rev.No.

CreatedBy InternalReviewBy Date SubmissionStatus

ReviewedBy

Date

Rev0 ECOConsult ECOConsult 2May2016 DraS

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TABLEOFCONTENT

LISTOFTABLES

Table1:MoMANa:onalLandUseMasterPlanAreaDescrip:on 9....................................................................

Table2:Poten:alSensi:veReceptorsinArea1 15.............................................................................................






Table8:ListofFloralSpeciesRecordedOnsite 30...............................................................................................

Table9:ArcheologicalSitesDescrip:ononMEGAJordan 33..............................................................................

Table10:ArcheologicalSitesRecordedaspartoftheRapidAssessment 34......................................................

!LISTOFFIGURES

Figure1:OverviewofProjectLoca:on 2.............................................................................................................

Figure2:ProjectSiteandIndica:veOHLRoute 3...............................................................................................

Figure3:ProjectSiteinRela:ontoAreasofCri:calEnvironmentalConcern 5..................................................

Figure4:ProjectSiteinRela:ontoGrazingReserves 7......................................................................................

Figure5:AreaswithForestTreesinRela:ontotheOHLRoute 7.......................................................................

Figure6:AreaswithForestTreesonPrivateLands 8..........................................................................................

Figure7:MoMANa:onalLandUseMasterPlanfortheProjectSiteanditsSurroundings 9.............................

Figure8:InfrastructureElementswithintheOHLRoute 11................................................................................

Figure9:ElectricityLine2 11...............................................................................................................................

Figure10:ElectricityLine1 12.............................................................................................................................

Figure11:Road3 12............................................................................................................................................

Figure12:LandOwnershipStatusoftheOHLRoute 13......................................................................................

TableofContent ii...............................................................................................................................................

ListofTables ii....................................................................................................................................................

ListofFigures ii...................................................................................................................................................

1. Introduc:on i................................................................................................................................................

2. ProjectDescrip:on ii....................................................................................................................................

3. PreliminaryEnvironmentalAssessment iv...................................................................................................

3.1. LandUse iv

3.2. Biodiversity xxxv...................................................................................................................................

3.3. ArcheologyandCulturalHeritage xxxviii..............................................................................................

3.4. AirQualityandNoise xliv.....................................................................................................................

3.5. GeologyandHydrology(SoilandGroundwater) xliv............................................................................

3.6. Occupa:onalHealthandSafety xliv......................................................................................................

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Figure13:OHLDividedinto7Areas 14...............................................................................................................

Figure14:Poten:alSensi:veReceptorsinArea1 15.........................................................................................

Figure15:PoliceSta:onandTelecommunica:onTowers 15..............................................................................

Figure16:CarRepairWorkshopandHouseStructure 16...................................................................................

Figure17:OliveMill 16........................................................................................................................................

Figure18:Poten:alSensi:veReceptorsinArea2–None 17.............................................................................


Figure20:PrivateAgriculturalFarms(3-1) 18.....................................................................................................


Figure22:NomadicSeMlement 20......................................................................................................................

Figure23:DorVillage 20......................................................................................................................................


Figure25:ClosestHousesinQurainVillagetotheOHL(5-1) 22.........................................................................

Figure26:APrivateAgriculturalFarmwithWheatandBarley(5-2) 22..............................................................

Figure27:APrivateAgriculturalFarmwithOlivePlanta:ons(5-3) 22................................................................

Figure28:CemeteryusedbytheLocalCommuni:es(5-4) 23............................................................................

Figure29:CaravanwhichSeemstobeInhabited 23...........................................................................................

Figure30:CemeteryusedbytheLocalCommuni:es(5-6) 23............................................................................


Figure32:ExcavatedAreasin6-2 25...................................................................................................................

Figure33:ClosestHousesinMreghaVillagetotheOHL 25................................................................................


Figure35:GrazingAc:vi:esUndertakenintheOHLArea 27.............................................................................

Figure36:PloughingUndertakenwithintheOHLArea 27..................................................................................

Figure37:ViewtowardsMreghaVillagefromtheOHL 28..................................................................................

Figure38:RoadLikeStructurefromMreghatoSwaimrehVillage 28.................................................................

Figure39:ExcavatedAreas 28.............................................................................................................................

Figure40:ArcheologicalSitesRecordedwithintheRajefProjectSiteBoundary 34...........................................

Figure41:ArcheologicalSitesRecordedbyRapidAssessmentandMEGAJordan 35.........................................

Figure42:Site3–Dor 35.....................................................................................................................................

Figure43:WallsComposedofBigBoulderStonesinSite5 36...........................................................................

Figure44:GroupofSeveralHeapsofStonesinSite6 36....................................................................................

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1. INTRODUCTION

GreenWaMsRenewableEnergy(GWRE)haspar:cipatedinsubmifnganExpressionofInterest(EOI)totheMinistryofEnergyandMineralResources(MEMR)aspartofthe“DirectProposalSubmissionProcedure”forthedevelopmentofaWindFarmProjectinMa’anGovernorate.GWREwasselectedbyMEMRforthedevelopmentofan82MegaWaM(MW)WindFarmproject,andhasobtainedtheCabinetapprovalon20September2015andsignedaPowerPurchaseAgreement(PPA)inOctober2015.

The environmental clearance for this Project is governed by the Ministry of Environment (MoEnv), ass:pulatedbythe“EnvironmentalImpactAssessmentRegula:onNo.(37)of2005”.TheMoEnvrequirestheprepara:on of a comprehensive Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) for such a Projectbefore an environmental permit is granted, in order to commence with construc:on and opera:onalac:vi:es.

Inaddi:on,theDeveloperwillbeseekingfinancingfortheProjectfrominterna:onalFinancialIns:tu:ons(IFIs) to include the European Bank for Reconstruc:on and Development (EBRD) and the Société dePromo:onetdePar:cipa:onpourlaCoopéra:onEconomiqueS.A.(Proparco).InlinewithEBRD’s “2014EnvironmentalandSocialPolicy”,anESIAstudymustbeundertakenfortheProject.

Inaccordancewith theabove, theESIA for theProjecthasbeenpreparedbyECOConsultandhasbeensubmiMedtotheMoEnv.TheESIAwasapprovedandtheenvironmentalpermitwasgrantedfortheProjectinNovember2015.

TheESIApreparedat that:mecovered theProject componentsbutnot its associated facili:es–whichmainly includes the Over Head Transmission Line (OHL)whichwill connect from the substa:on locatedwithintheProjectsitetothena:onalgrid(andwhichextendsalengthofaround11km).Atthe:meoftheprepara:onoftheESIAdetailedinforma:onontheOHL(e.g.gridconnec:onplans,routefortheline,etc.)werenotavailableandthusitcouldnotbeincludedaspartoftheESIAstudy.

Therefore,theEBRDandProparcoaspartoftheEnvironmentalandSocialduediligenceundertakenfortheProjectinApril2016,hasrequestedthataPreliminaryEnvironmentalAssessment(PEA)isundertakenforthe OHL with the objec:ve of iden:fying any key issues of concern which could poten:ally affect theprojectdevelopment.

Thisreport is thePEAundertakenfortheOHLbyECOConsult.Thisreport isconsideredanannextotheRajefWindFarmESIAstudy.

ItisimportanttonotethatadetailedESIAstudywillbeundertakenfortheOHLatalaterstageoncetheroutehasbeen confirmedand its detaileddesign is available. TheESIAwill bedevelopedbyGWREonbehalfofNEPCO(whomisresponsibleforthedevelopmentoftheOHL).

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2. PROJECTDESCRIPTION

The Project is located within the western borders of Ma’an Governorate in the South of Jordan,approximately200kmsouthofthecapitalcityofAmman.Morespecifically,theProjectsiteislocatedintheSharahhighlands–where the closest villages to theProject site are: (i)Al-Rajef andDlaghah&RasseesbothofwhicharelocatedonthewesternborderoftheProjectsite,(ii)Taybehwhichislocatedaround3kmtonorthoftheProjectsite,and(iii)FardakhandSadaqahlocatedtotheeasternbordersoftheProjectsiteatadistanceofaround2.5and1.5kmrespec:velyaspresentedinFigure1below.

TheProjectareaconsistsmainlyofhillyareasatal:tudesrangingfrom1550-1700mabovesealevel.TheProjectareaischaracterizedasbeingbarrenandheavilydegradedwithfewvegeta:onstripsandscaMeredtreesofremnantforeststhatusetoprevailintheen:remountainofAl-Rajefarea.

TheProjectsiteismainlyaccessedthroughHighway#35(beMerknownasthe‘King’sHighway’);oneofthehighwayswhichconnectsMa’anGovernoratewiththecapitalcityofAmmanintheNorth–butisnotthemajorone.Highway#35runsthroughsomepartsoftheProjectsite.Inaddi:on,withinthesitethereareotheraccessroadsandseveraladdi:onalsmallagriculturalroads.

TheProjectareaisapproximately7.6km2whichwillbeusedforthedevelopmentofthe82MWWindFarmProject. The 7.6 km2 consists of 49 parcels of land that have been leased by GWRE from the localcommunity land owners (mainly Al-Rajef, Dlaghah and Taybeh) for the development of the Project(represented in green in Figure 1 below). Such leased lands are spread over an area of 26km2 whichrepresentstheProjectboundary(representedinblueinFigure1below).

� Figure1:OverviewofProjectLocaTon

The key componentsof theProject are thewind turbineswhich convert the kine:cenergy inwind (i.e.movementofwind)intoelectricity. Therewillbe41turbinesspreadoutthroughouttheProjectsite.Eachturbinewillbeof2.0MWcapacitywithahubheightof80m,rotordiameterof114m(orbladelengthof57m)andthusa:pheightof137m.

Otherbuildingsandinfrastructureneededonsiteinclude:

▪ Officebuildingsusedfornormaldailyopera:onalrelatedwork;

▪ Awarehouseforstorageofequipmentandmachinery;

▪ Cranepadnexttoeachwindturbinetoaccommodatecranesfortheinstalla:onofthewindturbinesandformaintenanceac:vi:esduringopera:on.Eachcranepadwillbearound1,500m2inarea;and

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▪ Aroadnetworkwillberequiredforinstalla:onoftheturbinesduringtheconstruc:onprocessandforease of access to the turbines for maintenance purposes during opera:on. The internal roads aredesignedtofollowtheexis:ngagriculturalroadswithintheProjectareatothegreatestextentpossible.Theroadnetworkwillhaveawidthof6mandatotallengthof28.5km.

TheProjectwillalsoincludeundergroundcableswhichconnectthewindturbineswiththeRajefsubsta:onlocatedonsite.Thesubsta:onisahighvoltagetransformersubsta:onthatcollectsandconvertstheoutputfromtheturbinestoahighervoltage(from33kVto132kV)that isappropriate forconnec:onwiththeHigh Voltage Na:onal Grid (132 kV). The land for the Al-Rajef Substa:on has been secured within theProjectarea.

TheAl-Rajefsubsta:onabovewillbeconnectedtoanotherreceivingsubsta:onwhich isasimplefacilitywith safety breakers and control panels – mainly used to control the connec:on/disconnec:on of theProject to thegrid.This substa:onwillbeconstructedby theNa:onalElectricPowerCompany (NEPCO)andislocatedrightnexttotheAl-Rajefsubsta:oninwhichthelandareahasbeensecured.

FromtheNEPCOsubsta:onanOverHeadTransmissionLine(OHL)(132kV)willrunandconnectwiththena:onal grid for a distance of 11km. The receiving NEPCO substa:on and the overhead high voltagetransmissionlinewillbeconstructedandoperatedbyNEPCO.

Figure2belowpresents the route for theOHL from theNEPCO substa:onun:l its connec:onwith thena:onalgrid.However,itisimportanttonotethattherouteoftheOHLhasnotbeenfullydefinedbutitwillbewithin+/-500mbufferoftherouteindicatedinfigurebelow.Inaddi:on,theheightandloca:onoftheOHLpylonshavenotbeendefinedatthisstage.AlloftheabovewillbedeterminedatalaterstagebyNEPCOaspartofthedetaileddesigntobeprepared.

� Figure2:ProjectSiteandIndicaTveOHLRoute

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3. PRELIMINARYENVIRONMENTALASSESSMENT

This chapter presents the outcomes of the Preliminary Environmental Assessment (PEA) that wasundertakenfor theProject.ThekeyaMributesthatwere inves:gatedaresummarizedbelow. Inaddi:on,for eachaMribute theaddi:onal requirementswhichmustbeundertakenat a later stageof theProjectdevelopmenthavebeeniden:fied.

▪ LandUse;

▪ Biodiversity;

▪ ArcheologyandCulturalHeritage;

▪ AirQualityandNoise;

▪ GeologyandHydrology(SoilandGroundwater);and

▪ Occupa:onalHealthandSafety.

!3.1. LandUse

Thissec:onpresentstheoutcomeofthepreliminaryassessmentundertakenfor landusealongwiththeaddi:onalrequirementswhichmustbetakenintoaccountatalaterstageoftheProjectdevelopment.

!3.1.1. Methodology

Theassessmentwasbasedon collec:onof secondarydataavailable fromvarious governmental en::es(which are highlighted below) in addi:on to a 1 day rapid site assessment (on 28 April 2016) thatwasundertakenfortheOHLrouteanda1kmbufferareaaroundit.

!3.1.2. FormalLandUse

The sec:on below presents the formal land use of the OHL route based on available plans set by therelevantgovernmentalauthori:es.Thisincludesthefollowing:(i)landuseplanningbyMoMA,(ii)planningfor areas of cri:cal environmental concern byMoEnv, and (iii) grazing reserves and forests planning byMoA.

(i) Areas of Cri>cal Environmental Concern - Ministry of Environment/ The Royal Society for theConserva>onofNature

The proposed route could poten:ally conflict with the use of current or planned nearby speciallydesignated areas such as wilderness areas, areas of cri:cal environmental concern, and/or specialrecrea:onmanagementareas.TheMinistryofEnvironment(MoEnv)hastheresponsibilityofestablishingnatural reserves, na:onal parks, and any site of special environmental significance for protec:on andmanagement.

However, theMoEnvdelegates such responsibili:es to theRoyal Society for theConserva:onofNature(RSCN). In accordance with the above, the RSCN has designated four (4) categories for areas ofenvironmentalconcernashighlightedbelow.

▪ Established Reserves: in accordance with the “Na:onal Network of Protected Areas in Jordan” theRSCNhasestablishedanumberof reserveswhichhavebeenannouncedasprotectedareasandarecurrentlymanagedandoperatedbytheRSCN;

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▪ Proposed Reserves: areas proposed within the “Na:onal Network of Protected Areas in Jordan” asprotected areas but have not been announced as reserves yet and currently are not managed oroperatedbytheRSCN;

▪ Reserves Under Establishment: areas proposed within the “Na:onal Network of Protected Areas inJordan” as protected areas and are announced as so, but are s:ll underway to be established,operated,andmanagedbytheRSCN;and

▪ ImportantBirdAreas(IBA’s):areasproposedwithin“ImportantBirdAreasoftheHashemiteKingdomofJordan”.

Takingtheaboveintoaccount,theRSCNhaspreparedacomprehensiveplanthatiden:fiestheloca:onofthe reserves and IBA’s discussed above. As noted in the figure below, there are no areas of cri:calenvironment concernwithin OHL route or its immediate surroundings. A number of preserva:on areasexistfurtherawaywiththeclosestdelinea:onbeingthePetraIBAlocatedaround9kmtothenorth.

Tothisextent, itcanbeconcludedthatnoconflictexistsbetweentheProjectSiteandRSCN’splanningcontext.TheProjectSiteisnotlocatedwithinestablished/plannedreservesorimportantbirdareas.

� Figure3:ProjectSiteinRelaTontoAreasofCriTcalEnvironmentalConcern

!(ii) GrazingReserveandForestLands–MinistryofAgriculture

TheProjectmightconflictwithcurrentorproposedplanningpoliciesoftheMinistryofAgriculture(MoA)for the general area. The most important planning issues that must be inves:gated include poten:alconflictwithgrazingreservesoftheMoAaswellasforestlands.

GrazingReserves

TheMoA is en:tled to planning grazing reserves in the Kingdom on rangelands. The Project site is notlocatedwithinornearanygrazingreserves.Figure4belowpresentstheloca:onoftheGrazingReservesin

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rela:ontotheProjectsite.Asnotedinthefigurebelow,therearenograzingreserveswithinOHLrouteoritsimmediatesurroundings.TheclosestisAyshaGrazingReserveloca:onaround7kmtotheeast.

ForestLands

Accordingtothe“AgricultureLawNo.(44)oftheyear2002”ForestLandsare“landsoftheStatethatareregisteredasforestsandthelandsoftheStatethatareallocatedforforestrypurposes”.Ar:cle32oftheLaw states “ it shall be prohibited to abuse forest lands whether by erec:ng permanent or temporaryresidences, buildings or structures thereon, or digging wells or caves, or installing water, electricity ortelephone lines, or opening sewage lines or canals therein, or by cul:va:on or plowing, or by grazingtherein,withoutalicense”.

Thelawalsoreferstoprivateforestsas“foresttrees,bushes,andplantsgrowingonprivatelyownedlands”.Ar:cle 27(c) states “According to technical condi:ons and criteria specified by the Minister, owners ofprivateforestsshallbepermiMedtoinvesttheirforeststhroughpruningorreplacementofforesttreeswithfruit trees provided that they obtain a license from theMinistry and pay the pre-set fees”. In addi:on,Ar:cle34(a-1)states“itshallbeprohibitedtocutForestTreesorbushesorwildplantswithoutalicensefromtheMinister”.

Based on informa:on collected, the OHL routemainly passes through privately owned lands aswell aslimitednumberofgovernmentallandsbutnoneofwhichareregisteredasforestlands(thisisdiscussedinfurtherdetailsin“Sec:on3.1.4”below).

WithintheprivateownedlandsnoforesttreeswererecordedwithintheOHLandits1kmbufferexceptfora limited area as noted in Figure 5 below. Those areas are mainly privately owned farms used foragriculturalpurposes (mainlyolive treeplanta:onsaswellaswheatandbarley).Theperimeterof thoselandsarefencedwithawireinaddi:ontoplantedforesttreeswhichmainlyincludePinetreesasnotedinFigure6below(itisimportanttonotethatthePinetreesarenotna:vetothearea).

In accordance with the above, once a final detailed design has been prepared and only if construc>onac>vi>esrequireanyforesttreesinthoseiden>fiedareasberemoved,thenasastandardrequirement,thedevelopermustsubmitanapplica:ontotheSherahAgriculturalDevelopmentDirectorate.Theapplica:onmustprovide thefinaldesigndetailsof theProject, theexpectednumberof trees thatwillbe removed,alongwith a proper jus:fica:on as towhy they need to be removed (e.g. possible conflictwith certainProjectcomponents).TheDirectoratewillreviewtheapplica:onandofficialswouldinspectthesiteanditishighlylikelythatsuchanapprovalwillbegrantedshoulditberequired.

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� Figure4:ProjectSiteinRelaTontoGrazingReserves

� Figure5:AreaswithForestTreesinRelaTontotheOHLRoute

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AreaswithPlantedForestTrees

� Figure6:AreaswithForestTreesonPrivateLands

!(iii) LandUsePlanning–MinistryofMunicipalAffairs

The Project might conflict with the allowed land use set for the area by theMoMA, which designatesspecificlandusesinJordanwhereonlycertainac:vi:esareallowed.Thisissuehasbeeninves:gatedandtheresultsarepresentedbelow.

Inaccordancewiththe“LawfortheOrganiza:onofCi:es,VillagesandBuildingsNo.79for1966”,MoMAdesignatesspecificlandusesforareasintheKingdomthatarewithinorganizedboundaries(urbanareas).However,at that:me,no landuseplansweredevelopedforareasthat layoutsideof theorganiza:onalboundaries.Therefore, in2006aprojecttopreparea land-usemapforsuchareas(which lieoutsidetheorganizedboundaries)began.TheoutputwastheNa:onalLandUseMasterPlanof2007;whichisarecentaMempttoproduceaharmonizedlanduseplanforthoseareasthatareoutsideoforganizedboundaries.

Accordingly, the“LandUsePlanningRegula:onNo.6of2007”was issuedtoregulate land-use for thoseareasoutsideoforganizedboundariesandtodivideterritoriesbyusingzoningcryptographyasfollows:

▪ Agriculturalareassector,iden:fiedbythesymbol(A);

▪ Ruralareassector,iden:fiedbythesymbol(B);

▪ Marginalareassector,iden:fiedbythesymbol(C);

▪ Desertareassector,iden:fiedbythesymbol(D);and

▪ Forestareas.

Figure7belowpresentstheloca:onoftheProjectsiteandthelanduseplansetwithintheNa:onalLandUseMasterPlanof2007.

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� Figure7:MoMANaTonalLandUseMasterPlanfortheProjectSiteanditsSurroundings

Thepinkareas includeurbanareaswithinorganizedboundarieswithassigned landusecategories inthe“LawfortheOrganiza:onofCi:es,VillagesandBuildingsNo.79for1966”. Asnotedinthefigureabove,theProjectsiteislocatedoutsideoforganizedboundaryareas,wheretheclosestisQurain,SwaimrehandMraighah.

The rest are areas outside land use planning boundaries and are considered as areas outside planningzoneswithassignedlandusecategoriessetinaccordancewiththe“Regula:onNo.6of2007”.AccordingtoFigure7above,theOHLroutelieswithinthefollowingareas:

Table1:MoMANaTonalLandUseMasterPlanAreaDescripTon

Area DescripTon

Marginal Area ofthe1(C1)

Ar:cle [8(a)–1] of the Regula:on describes C1 areas as “areas suitable for grazing andforestry”.Ar:cle8(b)of theRegula:onspecifically states“In thoseareas the following landuseareallowed:electricpowergenera:onfacili:es,transmission,anddistribu:onnetworks”.


Ar:cle[8(a)–2]oftheRegula:ondescribesC2areasas“areassuitableforgrazing”.Ar:cle8(b)oftheRegula:onspecificallystates“Inthoseareasthefollowinglanduseareallowed:electricpowergenera:onfacili:es,transmission,anddistribu:onnetworks”.


Ar:cle [8(a)–3] of the Regula:on describes C3 areas as “areas suitable for grazing andforestry”.Ar:cle 8(b) of the Regula:on specifically states “In those areas the following land use areallowed:electricpowergenera:onfacili:es,transmission,anddistribu:onnetworks”.

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Tothisextent,itisevidentthattheProjectsitedoesnotconflictwithMOMA’slanduseplan;infactthedesignatedlandusefortheareaallowsthedevelopmentofsuchaProject.

!(iv) Other

Basedonsecondarydatacollectedaswellastherapidsiteassessmentundertakenitwasnotedthatthereareseveral infrastructureelements locatedwithintheOHLrouteand its1kmbufferarea.Suchelementsmust be taken into account as part of the detailed design to be prepared. Based on the preliminaryassessmentthismainlyincludesthefollowing:

▪ Gaspipeline:anundergroundgaspipelinepassesthroughtheOHLrouteasnoted inFigure7above.Therelevantauthority(mostlikelytobetheJordanianEgyp:anFAJRCompany)mustbecontactedinordertoobtainaddi:onalinforma:ononthepipeline(e.g.exactroute,depth,specifica:ons,etc.)andalsotakeintoaccountanyrequirementstheymighthavewithinthedetaileddesigntobepreparedtoensurethatthepipelinewillnotbeaffectedfromtheprojectdevelopment.

▪ Railroad: according to secondary data collected a railroad passes through the OHL route (refer toFigure 7 above). However as part of the site assessment the railroad could not be located on theground–therailroadcouldhavebeendismantledhoweverthiscouldnotbeconfirmedaspartofthisassessment. Nevertheless, the relevant authority (most likely to be the Aqaba Railway Corpora:on)must be contacted in order to obtain addi:onal informa:on on the railroad (e.g. exact route,specifica:ons,etc.)andalsotake intoaccountanyrequirementstheymighthavewithinthedetaileddesigntobepreparedtoensurethattherailroadwillnotbeaffectedfromtheprojectdevelopment.

▪ Electricity distribu:on lines: through the site visit several electricity distribu:on lines were notedthroughout theOHL route as presented in Figure 8 below. The relevant authority (most likely to beElectricityDistribu:onCompany–EDCO)mustbecontactedinordertoobtainaddi:onalinforma:onontheelectricitydistribu:onlines(e.g.exactroutes,specifica:ons,etc.)andalsotakeintoaccountanyrequirementstheymighthavewithinthedetaileddesigntobepreparedtoensurethatthe lineswillnotbeaffectedfromtheprojectdevelopment.

▪ Roadnetworks: throughoutthesitevisit theOHLand its1kmbufferwasnotedtocrossseveralroadnetworksaspresented inFigure8below.Therelevantauthority (most likely tobeMinistryofPublicWorksandHousing–MPWH)mustbecontactedinordertoobtainaddi:onalinforma:onontheroadnetworks (e.g. exact routes, specifica:ons, etc.) and also take into account any requirements theymighthavewithinthedetaileddesigntobepreparedtoensurethattheroadswillnotbeaffectedfromtheprojectdevelopment.

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ForestAreas Ar:cle 10(a) classifies such areas as lands with forest trees. Ar:cle [10(b) – 4D] of theRegula:on specifically states “In those areas with private lands the following land use areallowed: electric power genera:on facili:es, transmission, and distribu:on networks”. It isimportanttonotethatbasedonthesitevisit,theForestareaswerenotedtobeprivatelandsthatare fencedandused foragriculturalpurposes–mainlyplantedwitholive trees,wheatandbarley.Referto“Sec:on3.1.4”foraddi:onaldetails.

Rural Area of the2nd

(B2)

There is no descrip:on for B2 areas in the Regula:on. However, Ar:cle [7(b) – 2] of theRegula:on specifically states “In those areas the following land use are allowed: electricpowergenera:onfacili:es,transmission,anddistribu:onnetworks”.

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� Figure8:InfrastructureElementswithintheOHLRoute

� Figure9:ElectricityLine2

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� Figure10:ElectricityLine1

� Figure11:Road3

!3.1.3. DiscussionandAddiOonalRequirements

Taking theabove intoaccount, theaddi:onal requirementswhichmustbe taken intoaccountat a laterstageoftheProjectdevelopmentincludethefollowing:

1. A limitedpartof theOHL routepasses throughprivate agricultural lands (usedmainly forolive treeplanta:onsaswellaswheatandbarley).Suchareasarefencedwithawireaswellasintroducedforesttrees(pinetrees).Asastandardrequirement,onceafinaldetaileddesignhasbeenpreparedandonly

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if construc:onac:vi:es require any forest trees in theProject sitebe removed, then an applica:onmustbesubmiMedtotheSherahAgriculturalDevelopmentDirectorate.Theapplica:onmustprovidethefinaldesigndetailsoftheProject,theexpectednumberoftreesthatwillberemoved,alongwithaproper jus:fica:on as to why they need to be removed (e.g. possible conflict with certain Projectcomponents).TheDirectoratewill reviewtheapplica:onandofficialswould inspectthesiteand it ishighlylikelythatsuchanapprovalwillbegrantedshoulditberequired

!2. Adetailedsurveymustbeundertakentoiden:fytheinfrastructureelementswhichcouldbeaffected

bytheProjectdevelopment.Therapidassessmentundertakenaspartofthisstudyiden:fiedseveralelements which could poten:ally be within the OHL route; this includes a gas pipeline, railroad,electricity distribu:on lines and road networks. The relevant authori:es for those infrastructureelements must be contacted to obtain addi:onal informa:on (e.g. exact routes for infrastructureelements,specifica:ons,etc.)andalsototakeintoaccountanyrequirementstheymighthaveaspartofthedetaileddesigntobeprepared.

!3.1.4. LandOwnershipandActualLanduse

Thissec:onfirstinves:gatesthelandownershipstatusoftheOHLandtheninves:gatestheactuallanduseoftheroute.

ThefigurebelowpresentsthelandownershipstatusoftheOHLroute.Thelandparcelsshowninredaregovernmentalownedlandswhilethelandparcelsshowninwhiteareprivatelyownedlands. Asnotedinthefigurebelow,theOHLcurrentlypassesthrougharound36privatelyownedlandsand3governmentallands.

� Figure12:LandOwnershipStatusoftheOHLRoute

A rapid site assessment was undertaken for the OHL route and a 1km buffer area around it to beMerunderstandtheactuallanduseofarea. Basedontherapidsiteassessmentundertaken,nokeysensi:vereceptorshavebeen iden:fiedalong theOHL routesuchas structures, community seMlements,etc.The

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OHLmostlypassesthroughvacantlandswhicharemostlyusedforagriculture(mainlywheatandbarley)–mostofwhichareopenareasthatarenotfenced(itisnotclearwhetherthoseareundertakenbythelandownersorcommunitymembersinagreementwiththelandowner).Inaddi:on,withintheareaingeneralgrazersfromthelocalcommuni:eswerenotedaswellasalimitednumberofnomadicpopula:ons.

ThefigurebelowpresentstheOHLrouteandits1kmbufferzone.TheOHLwasdividedinto7areaseachofwhichwasinves:gatedaspartoftherapidsiteassessment.Theresultsarefurtherdiscussedbelow.

� Figure13:OHLDividedinto7Areas

(i) Area1

Withinthisarea,theOHLroutedoesnotseemtopasswithinanykeysensi:vereceptorssuchasstructuresor community seMlements,etc.Within the surroundingareasanumberof receptorswere iden:fiedbutwhichareunlikelytobeaffectedbytheOHL,thoseareiden:fiedinthefigureandtablebelow.

Withintherouteandtheareaingeneralsignsofagriculturalac:vi:esareevidentduetotheploughingofthelandwhichismostlikelyundertakenbythelocalcommuni:esinthearea.Inaddi:on,grazingac:vi:eswerealsonotedintheareaaswellasseveralnomadicseMlements.

� xiv

1-11-3

1-5

1-2

1-4

� Figure14:PotenTalSensiTveReceptorsinArea1

Table2:PotenTalSensiTveReceptorsinArea1

No. DistancefromOHL DescripTon IssuesofConcern

1-1 300m Policesta:on.RefertoFigure15. None. Final detailed design isexpectedtoavoidthisarea.

1-2 580m 3 telecommunica:on transmission towers.RefertoFigure15.

None. Final detailed design isexpectedtoavoidthisarea.

1-3 150m Acarrepairworkshopandahouse.RefertoFigure16


1-4 680m Olivemill.RefertoFigure17. None. Final detailed design isexpectedtoavoidthisarea.

1-5 780m House likestructure.Exactusecouldnotbeiden:fied.


� xv

� Figure15:PoliceStaTonandTelecommunicaTonTowers

� Figure16:CarRepairWorkshopandHouseStructure

� Figure17:OliveMill

(ii) Area2

Withinthisarea,theOHLroutedoesnotseemtopasswithinanykeysensi:vereceptorssuchasstructuresor community seMlements, etc. In addi:on, no surrounding receptors were iden:fied which could beaffectedbytheOHL.

� xvi

Withintherouteandtheareaingeneralsignsofagriculturalac:vi:esareevidentduetotheploughingofthelandwhichismostlikelyundertakenbythelocalcommuni:esinthearea.Inaddi:on,grazingac:vi:eswerealsonotedintheareaaswellasseveralnomadicseMlements

� Figure18:PotenTalSensiTveReceptorsinArea2–None

(iii) Area3


Withintherouteandtheareaingeneralsignsofagriculturalac:vi:esareevidentduetotheploughingofthelandwhichismostlikelyundertakenbythelocalcommuni:esinthearea.Inaddi:on,grazingac:vi:eswerealsonotedintheareaaswellasseveralnomadicseMlementsnearpoint3-1.

� xvii

3-1




3-1 300-800m A number of private agricultural farms thatare fenced some of which include waterreservoirs. Agricultural ac:vi:es mainlyinclude wheat and barley as well as olivetrees.

None. Should detailed design ofthe route pass through this area,l a n d a c q u i s i : o n a n dcompensa:on process will takeplace in accordance with processdiscussedin“Sec:on3.1.6”.

� xviii

� Figure20:PrivateAgriculturalFarms(3-1)

!!(iv) Area4


Withintherouteandtheareaingeneralsignsofagriculturalac:vi:esareevidentduetotheploughingofthelandwhichismostlikelyundertakenbythelocalcommuni:esinthearea.Inaddi:on,grazingac:vi:eswerealsonotedintheareaaswellasseveralnomadicseMlementsnearpoint4-2(refertoFigure22).

� xix

4-1

4-2



!


4-1 780m A small village which consists of around 12houses. This small village is known as Dor.RefertoFigure23below.

None. No organized boundary isi den:fied fo r th i s v i l l age .Nevertheless,finaldetaileddesignisexpectedtoavoidthevillage.

4-2 330m Archeological site known as Dor. This isdiscussedinfurtherdetailsin“Sec:on3.3”.


� xx

� Figure22:NomadicSeblement

� Figure23:DorVillage

(v) Area5


Withintherouteandtheareaingeneralsignsofagriculturalac:vi:esareevidentduetotheploughingofthelandwhichismostlikelyundertakenbythelocalcommuni:esinthearea.Inaddi:on,grazingac:vi:eswerealsonoted.

� xxi

5-1 5-2 5-3

5-4

5-6

5-5




5-1 950m QurainVillage.Closesthouseisaround950mfromtheOHL(refertoFigure25).

None.Detaileddesignisexpectedto avoid regularized boundary ofthevillage.

5-2 370m A private agricultural farm that is fenced.Area is ploughed with what seems to bewheatandbarley(refertoFigure26).


5-3 Within the OHLroute

Aprivateagriculturalfarmthatisfencedandwhich mainly consists of olive planta:ons(refertoFigure27).


5-4 700m A cemetery used by the local community.RefertoFigure28.


� xxii

� Figure25:ClosestHousesinQurainVillagetotheOHL(5-1)

� Figure26:APrivateAgriculturalFarmwithWheatandBarley(5-2)

5-5 900m One caravan which seems to be inhabited.Exactusecouldnotbedetermined.RefertoFigure29.


5-6 350m A cemetery used by the local community.RefertoFigure30.


� xxiii

� Figure27:APrivateAgriculturalFarmwithOlivePlantaTons(5-3)

� Figure28:CemeteryusedbytheLocalCommuniTes(5-4)

� Figure29:CaravanwhichSeemstobeInhabited

� xxiv

� Figure30:CemeteryusedbytheLocalCommuniTes(5-6)

!!(vi) Area6


Withintherouteandtheareaingeneralsignsofagriculturalac:vi:esareevidentduetotheploughingofthelandwhichismostlikelyundertakenbythelocalcommuni:esinthearea.Inaddi:on,grazingac:vi:eswerealsonoted.

� xxv

6-2

6-1



!!


6-1 Around200m Excavatedareawithstonepileswhichseemstobenolongerinuse.Noac:vitywasnotedduringthesitevisit.RefertoFigure32below.

None.

6-2 Around800m MreghaVillage.Closesthouse to theOHL isaround 800m some ofwhich are s:ll underconstruc:on.RefertoFigure33below.

None.Detaileddesignisexpectedto avoid regularized boundary ofthevillage.

� xxvi

� Figure32:ExcavatedAreasin6-2

� Figure33:ClosestHousesinMreghaVillagetotheOHL

(vii) Area7

Generally, within this area, the OHL route does not pass within any key sensi:ve receptors such asstructuresorcommunityseMlements,etc.Theonlyissueispoint7-3presentedinthefigurebelowwhichwasnotedtobearoadlikestructureandwhichcouldmostlikelybethegaspipelinediscussedearlier in“Sec:on3.1.2”.Apart fromthat,withinthesurroundingareasanumberofreceptorswere iden:fiedbutwhichareunlikelytobeaffectedbytheOHL,thoseareiden:fiedinthefigureandtablebelow.

Withintherouteandtheareaingeneralsignsofagriculturalac:vi:esareevidentduetotheploughingoftheland(Figure36)whichismostlikelyundertakenbythelocalcommuni:esinthearea(mainlywheatandbarley).Inaddi:on,grazingac:vi:eswerealsonotedtotakeplaceinthearea(Figure35).

� xxvii7-1

7-27-4

7-3




7-1 Around600m MreghaVillage.RefertoFigure37below. Detailed design is expected toavoidregularizedboundaryofthevillage.

7-2 Around800m SwaimrehVillage. Detailed design is expected toavoidregularizedboundaryofthevillage.

� xxviii

� Figure35:GrazingAcTviTesUndertakenintheOHLArea

� Figure36:PloughingUndertakenwithintheOHLArea

7-3 Within and neartheOHLroute.

This includes excavated areas (white spots)whichseemtobelongerinuse. Inaddi:on,the road like structurewhich connects fromMregha Village to Swaimreh village is mostlikely the gas pipeline discussed earlier in“Sec:on3.1.2”.RefertoFigure38below.

None. As discussed earlier, therelevant authority (most likely tobe the Jordanian Egyp:an FAJRCompany) must be contacted inorder to obta in addi:onalinforma:on on the pipeline (e.g.exact route, depth, specifica:ons,etc.)andthedetaileddesigntobeprepared must ensure that thepipelinewillnotbeaffected fromtheprojectdevelopmentandalsot a k e i n t o a c c o u n t a n yrequirements or specifica:onsfromtherelevantauthority.

7-4 300m Uniden:fied object. Nothing found on theground.

None.

� xxix

!

� Figure37:ViewtowardsMreghaVillagefromtheOHL

� Figure38:RoadLikeStructurefromMreghatoSwaimrehVillage

� xxx

� Figure39:ExcavatedAreas

3.1.5. DiscussionandAddiOonalRequirements

!1. Asdiscussedearlier,currently, theOHLroutepasses througharound36privatelyowned landsand3

governmental lands. Such lands will be subject to a land acquisi:on and compensa:on process byNEPCO.AdiscussionontheNEPCOlandacquisi:onandcompensa:onprocessisdiscussedinfurtherdetailsin“Sec:on3.1.6”below.

2. Nokeysensi:vereceptorshavebeeniden:fiedalongthecurrentOHLroutewhichcouldbeaffectedbytheProjectdevelopmentsuchasstructures,communityseMlements,etc.Therefore,itishighlyunlikelythat the development of the Project would results in any significant impacts on land use such asvoluntary or involuntary reseMlement. However, at a later stage, as part of the detailed design adetailedsurveymustbeundertakentoverifytheoutcomesdiscussedearlierthroughoutthissec:on.Inaddi:on,thedetaileddesignshouldalsotakeintoaccountthevariousreceptorsiden:fiedwithinthe1km buffer area (e.g. cemeteries, local community seMlements, etc.) and avoid si:ng the projectcomponents(mainlythepylons)withinornearsuchreceptors.

3. TheOHLmostlypassesthroughvacantlandswhicharemostlyusedforagriculture(mainlywheatandbarley),mostofwhichareopenareasthatarenotfenced.Itisnotclearwhetherthoseareundertakenbythelandownersorcommunitymembersinagreementwiththelandowner.Inaddi:on,withintheareaingeneralgrazersfromthelocalcommuni:eswerenotedaswellasalimitednumberofnomadicpopula:ons.

It is highly unlikely that the Project would result in any significant impacts on the actual land useac:vi:esundertakenbythelocalcommuni:es(mainlygrazingandagricultural),duetotheverysmallfootprintinwhichconstruc:onandopera:onac:vi:eswilltakeplace(limitedtothepylonloca:ons)andthewidespreadlandsofsimilarhabitatsintheareathatcanbeusedforgrazingandagriculture.

Nevertheless,aspartoftheESIAstudytobeundertakenforthisproject,addi:onalconsulta:onsmustbeundertakenwiththelocalcommuni:es,nomadicgroupsandgrazerstobeMerunderstandthelanduseof thearea. Inaddi:on,appropriatemi:ga:onmeasuresshouldbe iden:fiedtoensurethat thelocal communi:es, grazers and nomadic groups are not affected by the Project. This could includecommitmentstoallowsuchgroupstocon:nuewiththeirgrazingandagriculturalac:vi:eswithintheOHLroute. Inaddi:on,agrievancemechanismmustbepreparedtoensurethatanyissuesrelatedtoprohibi:onofaccesstotheOHLareaddressed.

� xxxi

3.1.6. AcquisiOonandCompensaOonProcessundertakenbyNEPCOfortheOHL

TheNa:onalElectricPowerCompany(NEPCO)isanindependentfinancialandadministra:vestateowneden:ty thatowns,operates,maintainsanddevelops thetransmissionnetworkwithmainresponsibility toregulatetheelectricitysectorinJordan,especiallywithrespecttopowergenera:onanddistribu:on.Itisalsoresponsiblefortheretailsupplybusinessinrespectofprincipalconsumersconnectedtoitsnetwork.

NEPCOhasbeengrantedauthoritybylawtoconfiscatelandaslongasitisforpublicbenefitandbasedonafairandjustcompensa:onforanyProjectAffectedPersons(PAP).

NEPCOmustensurethatanyLandacquisi:onisundertakeninaccordancewiththeLandAcquisi:onLawDecree(12)of1987anditsamendments,commonlyreferredtoastheLandAcquisi:onLaw(LAL).TheLALappliesinallcasesoflandacquisi:onintheJordan.Addi:onally,theGeneralElectricityLawno.64oftheyear 2002 and its amendments iden:fiedprocess to be followed in such cases,which to a great extentmirrorsthats:pulatedwiththeLAL.

NEPCOhasaninternaldivisionthatdealswiththeacquisi:on/confisca:onoflandassociatedwithNEPCOprojects and that is also responsible to nego:ate appropriate payment for par:es affected by NEPCOprojects.

The following process is followed by NEPCO for determining the final OHL route design and the landacquisi:onandcompensa:onprocess:

AcquisiTonandCompensaTonProcessundertakenbyNEPCOfortheOHL

ProvisionalOHLroute

▪NEPCO prepared a provisional route (10.5 km) for the OHL from the NEPCOsubsta:onun:l its connec:onwith thena:onalgrid. It is important tonote thatthe route of the OHL has not been fully defined but it will be within +/- 500mbufferoftherouteandwillbespecifiedbasedonactualsurveysonthegroundandalsoduringtheconstruc:onphasetoavoidanyobstaclesthatmightarise.

(Art.6)ofLAL:Markingof

ExpropriaOononLandRegistryand

PreliminarySurvey

▪NEPCOstartstheprocessbysubmifngacopyofdecisionandacquisi:onplantothelandregistry(DepartmentofLandsandSurvey(DLS))toprovidetheprovisionalroute along with a +/- 500m buffer and request the land ownership within thiszone. This process generally requires around one (1) month to be completed.NEPCOalreadyini:atedthisprocessandcontactedtheDLSfirstweekofMay2016.▪NEPCOwill compile an inventory of landholdings, crops in agricultural land, andbuildingstoiden:fyareasonablelevelofcompensa:onforthelandparcelsalongthetransmissionlineroute.▪NEPCO as developer of the project shall work with representa:ves from localen::esandformacommiMeetoiden:fythepublicbenefitsoftheprojectaswellasagreetheappropriatelevelofcompensa:onwiththePAP’s.Agenciesthatthatcouldprovideassistanceinthisasnecessaryinclude:MinistryofFinance,MinistryofMunicipali:es, Department of Land and Survey (DLS),Ministry of Agriculture,andMinistryofEnvironment.

� xxxii

Project(i.e.OHL)developmentprocessand

detailedsurveys

▪In parallel, NEPCO announces a tender in the local newspapers reques:ng aproposal from a local contractor to undertake required site assessments andsurveys, finalise thedesign, and construct theOHL. Procurementprocess followsgovernmentproceduresandNEPCOawardsthetendertothemostsuitablebidder.NEPCOmayaskacontractor that isalreadyassignedforsimilarwork inanearbyareainordertoexpediteprocess.▪Contractor undertakes site assessments and surveys (topography, geotechnical,infrastructureandu:li:es...etc).▪Thefinaldesign shall take intoaccount themainprinciplewhich is toavoid landacquisi:on of private proper:es to the extent possible, or minimised whereunavoidable.▪Contractorpreparesfinaldesignfortheroute.

(Art.4)ofLALand(Art.43)of

ElectricityLawDeclaraOonofacquisiOonforPublicBenefit

▪Beforeundertakinganyconstruc:onworks,NEPCOisrequiredtoplaceanadvertinat least two (2) daily newspapers sta:ng that in 15 days :me they will startconstruc:ngtheOHL.Theannouncementshall iden:fythelandparcelsonwhichtheOHLwillbeconstructed.▪Land owners wan:ng to receive compensa:on are asked to submit applica:ononceOHLisenergised.

ConstrucOonoftheOHL

▪ASerthe15daysperiod,theconstruc:onworksarestartedandthefinal(as-built)designoftheOHLisdecidedbasedonactualworkonthegroundastheContractormayhavetomodifythedesignstoavoidpoten:alobstacles.▪OHLisenergised.▪Upon final authen:ca:on by the DLS and land valua:on commiMee, anauthen:ca:onoftheCabinetisrequired.

� xxxiii

!!

(Art.9andArt.10)ofLALand(Art.44)ofElectricity

Law:Announcementon

DecisionofExpropriaOonandNegoOaOononCompensaOon

▪Landownerssubmitarequestforcompensa:ononceOHLisenergised.▪NEPCO will provide each PAP with a Compensa:on Statement that records theprecise loss of property (type, physical dimensions, and replacement value) orlivelihoodandstatethecompensa:ondueforthislosstoeachpropertyholder.Ifthe PAPs confirm the content of the Statement and his acceptance of thecompensa:onoffered,he/shewillsigntheStatement.▪According to Ar:cle 9 of the law, direct nego:a:on between NEPCO and landowners may be conducted un:l agreement is reached. However, compensa:onamountsarebasedonthe landvalua:onandcompensa:onamountsdecidedbythecommiMee.▪Oncethecompensa:onamountshavebeennego:atedandagreedupon,NEPCOwilldeliverthecompensa:ontothelandownersdirectlyorplaceitintheTreasuryundertheirnamesaccordingtotherequirementsoftheLALof1987ar:cles14and16D.TheofficialsattheDLSorthelocalMunicipalitywillverifythedeliveryofthenego:atedamountofcompensa:on.▪NEPCO’s land acquisi:on team will monitor the delivery of such funds so as toensurethatallamountsreachallintendedbeneficiaries.▪In theevent thatagreementcannotbe foundbetween the twopar:escasesarereferredtothePrimaryCourtthathasjurisdic:oninthisareaandtohighercourtsif necessary. On referral to the court, issue will be resolved in accordance withar:cle 10 of the LAL. The ar:cle states that the court can be assisted bygovernmentalexpertsfromtheMinistryofFinance,DirectorateofLand,orothersas necessary to assist in establishing the proper amount of just and faircompensa:on.(Note:NEPCOalreadyiden:fiedlandvalua:onincollabora:onwiththeseen::essocompensa:onamountsaremainlyfixed).▪PAPs are given three (3) years from thedate of energising of theOHL to submitcompensa:onclaims.TheirrequestsarerejectedaSerthisperiod.

� xxxiv

3.2. Biodiversity

This sec:onpresents theoutcomeof thepreliminaryassessmentundertaken forbiodiversity alongwiththeaddi:onalrequirementswhichmustbetakenintoaccountatalaterstageoftheProjectdevelopment.

!3.2.1. Methodology

Arapidsiteassessmentwasundertakenthroughaonedayfieldvisit (on28April2016)byabiodiversityexpert.Theassessmentconsistedofawalkthroughoftheen:rerouteofOHLandits1kmbufferareatothegreatestextentpossible. Theobjec:vewastoassessthegeneralecologicalstateandbiodiversityofthestudyareaand iden:fy, listandrecordall faunal,flora,andavi-faunalspeciesencounteredalongtherouteanditssurroundings;

!3.2.2. ResultsandOutcomes

Discussedbelowaretheoutcomesofthesiteassessmentwithregardstoflora,faunaandavi-fauna.

Plantspeciesandfloraldiversitywasno:cedtobehigherbythewesternpartofthestudyareawhilethediversityandvegeta:oncovercon:nuedtodecreaseeastwards.Throughoutthesurveyitwasno:cedthatnaturalvegeta:onwouldmakeupnotmorethan50%of thestudyarea.Theremaining landsareeitheragriculturefieldsplantedwithannualssuchaswheatandbarleyorarepreviouslyfarmedlands.Thesitesurvey recorded a total of 25 species are presented in the table below. Generally, the plant speciesrecordedareconsideredofleastconcern.

Table8:ListofFloralSpeciesRecordedOnsite

Family ScienTficname ConservaTon Status – IUCNRegionalAssessmentofJordan

Chenopodiaceae Noaeamucronata(Forssk.)Asch.&Schweinf.

LeastConcern

Compositae(Asteraceae) Achillea fragran>ssima (Forssk.)Sch.Bip.

LeastConcern

ArtemisiasieberiBesserSyn.Artemisiaherba-alba

LeastConcern

Carlinalibano>caBoiss. NotEvaluated

CentaureadamascenaBoiss. LeastConcern

FilagodesertorumPomel LeastConcern

Launaea angus>folia (Forssk.)Sch.Bip.exKuntze

LeastConcern

OnopordumambiguumFresen. LeastConcern

Senecioflavus(Decne.)Sch.Bip. LeastConcern

Cruciferae(Brassicaceae Diplotaxisharra(forssk.)Boiss. LeastConcern

Geraniaceae Erodiumlaciniatum(Cav.)Willd. LeastConcern

Graminae(Poaceae) AvenabarbataPoMexLink LeastConcern

Bromustectorum LeastConcern

HordeumglaucumSteud. LeastCOncern

� xxxv

http://flora.org.il/en/plants/systematics/avena

Withregardstofauna,onlyasinglespecieswasrecordedduringthefieldsurveyandthatwastheSmallSpoMedLizard(Mesalinagu^ulata). Itshouldbehighlightedthatthespecieswasrecordedintheeasternside of the study area in the part coveredby scaMered rockswhich could provide a suitable habitat forsmall-sizedfauna.ThisspeciesisconsideredacommonspeciesinJordan.Itisimportanttonotethatsuchresultsarebasedonarapidsiteassessmentundertaken.Otherpoten:alfaunalspeciesarelikelytooccurin the area, someofwhich could have a conserva:on status such as the Spur-thighed Tortoise (Testudogreacea),andtheEurasianBadger(Melesmeles).!Finally,asforavi-fauna,9specieswererecordedinthefieldsurveyaslistedbelow.Allspeciesrecordedareconsideredofleastconcern.!

!

Labiatae(Lamiaceae) Salviamul>caulisVahl. NotEvaluated

TeucriumleucocladumBoiss. LeastConcern

Papilionaceae Astragalus spinosus (Forssk.)Muschl.

LeastConcern

OnonisnatrixL. LeastConcern

Ranunculaceae Ranunculusasia>cusL. LeastConcern

Resedaceae ResedaluteaL. LeastConcern

Scrophulariaceae Anarrhinum forskahlii (J.F. Gmel.)Cuf.

LeastConcern

VerbascumeremobiumMurb. NotEvaluated

Verbascumsinai>cumBenth. NotEvaluaed

Solanaceae LyciumshawiiRoem.&Schult. LeastConcern

Zygophylaceae PegnumharmalaL. LeastConcern

CommonName ScienTficNameIUCN Red List Status(2015)

Regional Red List Statuss(2015)

S t a t u s i nJordan

HoneyBuzzard PernisapivorusLeastConcern LeastConcern P a s s a g e

migrant

CollaredDoveS t r e p t o p e l i adecaocto

LeastConcern LeastConcern Resident

CrestedLark Galeridacristata LeastConcern LeastConcern Resident

DesertLarkA m m o m a n e sdeser>


Temminck’sLark Eremophilabilopha LeastConcern LeasConcern Resident

IsabellineWheatear Oenantheisabellina Leastconcern LeastConcern Resident

B l a c k - e a r e dWheatear Oenanthehispanica


EurasianLinnet Cardueliscannabina LeastConcern LeastConcern Resident

HouseSparrow Passerdomes>cus LeastConcern LeastConcern Resident

� xxxvi

http://flora.org.il/en/plants/systematics/anarrhinum

Thebiodiversityofthesiteingeneralisconsideredtobeoflowsensi:vity.Theareaingeneralisconsideredto be heavily disturbed due to the extensive agricultural and grazing ac:vi:es undertaken and this hasgreatly affected the natural habitat of the site. In addi:on, the floral, faunal and avi-faunal species thatwere recorded as part of the assessment are considered of least concern and common to such areahabitats. Finally, no key sensi:ve habitats were recorded or noted on site (such as breeding habitats,poten:alroos:ngsitesforbats,etc.)


Siteprepara:onac:vi:eswhicharetotakeplaceforconstruc:onoftheOHLareexpectedtoincludelandclearing ac:vi:es, excava:on, grading, etc. Such ac:vi:es are expected to be limited areas where thepylonsaretobeinstalledandthustheactualareaofdisturbanceisrela:velyminimal.Suchconstruc:onac:vi:escouldresultslocalhabitatlossanddisturbancestothehabitatsinthearea–howeveritisunlikelythatsignificantpoten:alimpactswilloccurduetothelowsensi:vityofthesiteasdiscussedabove.

Inaddi:on,nosignificantpoten:alimpactsonavi-faunaisexpectedduringtheopera:onphasefromrisksofcollisionsandstrikeswiththeOHL.TheESIAforRajefWindFarmProjectconcludesthatthesiteisnotconsidered within a highly sensi:ve area in terms of avi-fauna for several reasons, but which mostimportantlyincludesitsdistancefromtheriSvalleyanditsmarginswhichisconsideredthemainmigra:onrouteinJordan.TheOHLextendsoutheastfromtheRajefwindfarmmakingitatagreaterdistancefromtheriSvalleyanditsmargins.

Theaddi:onalrequirementstobeconsideredincludethefollowing:

1. Asdiscussedearliera rapidbiodiversity surveywasundertaken inwhichnokeysensi:vehabitatsorspecieswerenoted.However,aspartoftheESIAadetailedbiodiversitysurveymustbeundertakentoconfirmtheoutcomesoftherapidassessmentabove.Thedetailedbiodiversitysurveymustincludethe11kmOHLroutealongwithanappropriatebufferareainwhichconstruc:onac:vi:esareexpectedtotake place. The surveymust cover flora, fauna and avi-fauna and any key sensi:ve speciesmust berecorded. Based on the outcomes of the detailed biodiversity survey the appropriate mi:ga:onmeasures must be iden:fied should any key sensi:ve species be recorded. This could include forexamplethereloca:onofsuchkeyspeciestooutsideofconstruc:onac:veareas.

2. Withregardstoavi-faunaspecifically,aspartoftheRajefESIAabirdbaselinesurveywasundertakenattheProjectsite in4differentseasonsto includespring2012,autumn2012,autumn2013andspring2015.Atotalof547monitoringhourswereundertakenduringthespringseasonand250hoursduringautumn.Suchsecondarydatainaddi:ontodesktopreviewshouldbeu:lizedtoassessthepoten:alimpactsonavi-faunaduringtheopera:onphase,andtypicalmi:ga:onmeasuresaretobeiden:fiedtominimizeanypoten:alcollisionrisks(suchaswiremarkers,birddivertersetc.).Suchsecondarydataisconsideredsufficientfortheassessmentpurposewithnoneedtoundertakeaddi:onalmonitoringstudies.

!

� xxxvii

3.3. ArcheologyandCulturalHeritage

Thissec:onpresentstheoutcomeofthepreliminaryassessmentundertakenforarcheologyandculturalheritagealongwiththeaddi:onalrequirementswhichmustbetakenintoaccountata laterstageoftheProjectdevelopment.

!3.3.1. Methodology

The preliminary assessment first included a literature review through collec:on of data from previousarcheological surveys and studies undertaken in Jordan which are registered in the Middle EasternGeodatabase for An:qui:es (MEGA) – Jordan. MEGA Jordan is a database, prepared by the GeMyConserva:on Ins:tute in collabora:on with DoA, that encompasses and registers all the knownarcheologicalsitesinJordan.

Inaddi:on,arapidsiteassessmentwasundertakenthroughaonedayfieldvisit(on28April2016)byanarcheologyandculturalheritageexpert.TheassessmentconsistedofarapidwalkthroughoftheOHLrouteanda1kmbufferarea. Theobjec:veoftherapidassessmentwasto:(i)iden:fyandassessarcheologicalandculturalheritageremainslocatedwithintheroute(ifany);(ii)inves:gateandassessarcheologicalandculturalheritageremainsintheProjectAreathathavebeeniden:fiedaspartofMEGAJordan.

!3.3.2. OutcomesandResults

Aspartof theESIAundertakenfor theRajefwindfarmproject, theDepartmentofAn:qui:es (DoA)hasalreadyundertakenasitesurveyoftheRajefProjectsite(representedinblueinFigure2earlier)inwhichthefirst2.5kmoftheOHLis located.Thesurvey iden:fiedatotalof18sitesconsideredofarcheologicalimportancewithintheRajefProjectsite.AsnotedinFigure40below,nositesrecordedbytheDoAsurveyarewithintheOHLroute,howeversomeofthesitesarelocatedwithinthe1kmbufferarea.

Takingtheaboveintoaccount,thefocusofthepreliminaryassessmentwasontheremaining8.5kmoftheOHLwhichrunsfromtheendoftheRajefProjectsiteboundary:lltheendoftheroute.

AsearchofMEGAJordanfor8.5kmOHLandits1kmbufferareaiden:fied3sites.ThesitesarepresentedinFigure41belowalongwiththedescrip:onasavailableonMEGAJordaninTable9below.

Table9:ArcheologicalSitesDescripTononMEGAJordan

Aspartof thepreliminary siteassessment, several siteswerealso recordedwithin theOHLand its1kmbuffer.Nevertheless,itisimportanttonotethattheexactboundaryofsucharcheologicalsitescouldnotbedetermined as part of the rapid assessment. The sites are presented in Figure 41 below along with adescrip:oninTable10below.

Site MEGAJORDANDescripTon DistancefromOHL

Dor – MEGA No.8905

Archaeological remains related to different periods from the IronAge II,7thcenturyBC:ll theOMomanperiods.Boundaryofthesiteas includedwithinMEGAJordanispresentedinthefigurebelow.

330m to theeast

Um Raps – MEGANo.4204

ANabataean seMlement that includes sherds and flint scaMer. Based onthe siteassessmentundertaken (discussedbelow) this sitewasnoted tobe completely destroyed most likely due to agricultural ac:vi:esundertaken in the area. No boundary of the site is included in MEGAJordan.

50m to thewest.

MEGANo.8913 Remains of Roman towerwith sherds and flint scaMer. Boundary of thesiteasincludedwithinMEGAJordanispresentedinthefigurebelow.

570m to thewest.

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!Table10:ArcheologicalSitesRecordedaspartoftheRapidAssessment

Site DescripTon Distance f romOHL

1 Traces of founda:onwall and heapof stones. TwopoMery sherdswere foundwithinthesiteda:ngtotheRomanPeriod.Func:onorclassifica:onofthesitecould not be determined but it could be described as a ‘Khirbeh’. The exactboundariesofthesitecouldnotbedeterminedaspartoftheassessment.

400mtotheeast.

2 Groupof several heapsof stonesand remainsofwall founda:ons.NopoMerysherdswerefoundandthereforetheda:ngperiodcouldnotbeiden:fied.Theexactboundariesofthesitecouldnotbedeterminedaspartoftheassessment.

WithinOHLroute.

3 Dor Site already reported under MEGA Jordan (site No. 8905). Site containsseveralarchaeologicalremainsrelatedtodifferentperiods,fromtheIronAgeII,7th centuryBC:ll theOMomanperiods. Themost important siteelementsarethe remains of stone founda:on, circular structure andmodern houseswhichmightbedatedtothelate19presentedinthefigurebelowasprovidedinMEGAJordan.

330mtotheeast

4 UmRassitealreadyreportedunderMEGAJordan(siteNo.4204)asaNabataeanseMlement that includes sherdsandflint scaMer.Basedon the siteassessmentthe sitewas noted to be completely destroyedmost likely due to agriculturalac:vi:esundertaken in thearea.Noboundaryof thesite is included inMEGAJordan.

50mtothewest.

5 Wallscomposedofbigboulderstoneswhichcouldmostlikelybeanoldstreet. 100mtotheeast.

6 Groupof several heapsof stonesand remainsofwall founda:ons.NopoMerysherdswerefoundandthereforetheda:ngperiodcouldnotbeiden:fied.Theexactboundariesofthesitecouldnotbedeterminedaspartoftheassessment.

560mtotheeast.

7 SitealreadyreportedunderMEGAJordan(siteNo.8913)asRemainsofRomantower with sherds and flint scaMer. Boundary of the site as included withinMEGAJordanispresentedinthefigurebelow.

570mtothewest.

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� Figure40:ArcheologicalSitesRecordedwithintheRajefProjectSiteBoundaryaspartoftheRajefWindFarmESIA

� Figure41:ArcheologicalSitesRecordedbyRapidAssessmentandMEGAJordan

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� Figure42:Site3–Dor

� Figure43:WallsComposedofBigBoulderStonesinSite5

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� Figure44:GroupofSeveralHeapsofStonesinSite6

!!!Takingtheaboveintoaccount,itisevidentthatthereareseveralsiteslocatedwithintheOHL1kmbufferarea. Such sites are considered important given their archeological and cultural value and should beprotected frompoten:al damageor destruc:on throughout the various project ac:vi:es.However, it isimportanttonotethattheexpertdidnotconsidersuchsitesuniquenordis:nc:vearcheologicalfeaturesand most importantly would not affect the Project development; such sites can be found extensivelyespecially in the Petra Region and in such mountainous areas which have most likely had ancient/oldhumanpresenceespeciallyduringtheNabataean/Romaneraduetoitsagriculturalpoten:al.


Siteprepara:onac:vi:eswhicharetotakeplaceforconstruc:onoftheOHLareexpectedtoincludelandclearing ac:vi:es, excava:on, grading, etc. Such ac:vi:es are expected to be limited areas where thepylonsaretobeinstalledandthustheactualareaofdisturbanceisrela:velyminimal.Nevertheless,ifsuchac:vi:es are improperlymanaged they could damage or disturb archaeological remains present on thesurfaceoftheProjectsitewhichwasdiscussedabove.

AspartoftheESIAthatwillbeundertakenfortheOHLatalaterstage,adetailedarcheologicalsurveymustbeundertakentheDepartmentofAn:qui:es(DoA)–theofficialgovernmentalen:tyinJordanresponsiblefor theprotec:on, conserva:on, andpreserva:onof an:qui:es in accordancewith the “An:qui:es LawNo.21for1988anditsamendmentsNo.23for2004”.

Thesurveymustincludethe11kmOHLroutealongwithanappropriatebufferareainwhichconstruc:onac:vi:es are expected to take place. The objec:ve of the detailed survey is to: (i) iden:fy the exactboundariesofthearcheologicalsitesiden:fiedearlier;(ii)determinewhethersuchsitesarelocatedwithintheOHLroute–mainlypylonloca:onsoriden:fiedconstruc:onac:vityareas;(iii)assesstheimportanceoftherecordedsites(i.e.whethertheyshouldbeprotectedornotgiventhatsomeofthesitesrecorded

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werenoted tobe completelydestroyed); and (iv) documentandassess anyother archeological remainswhichcouldbepresentwithintheOHLroute.

Basedon theoutcomesof thedetailed site survey, appropriatemi:ga:onmeasuresmust be iden:fied.Thiscouldincludeforexamplereloca:onofarcheologicalsitesoutsideoftheOHLrouteinagreementwiththe DoA (if located within pylon loca:ons or construc:on areas) or shiS of pylon loca:ons outside ofrecordedareasaspartofthedetaileddesignthatwillbeundertaken. Inaddi:on,appropriatemi:ga:onmeasuresmust also be iden:fied to ensure that construc:on ac:vi:es (e.g.movement of vehicles andmachinery into/out of the site) avoid such areas (through for example proper planning of construc:onac:vi:es,fencingofrecordedsites,awarenessraisingandtrainingtoconstruc:onworkers,etc.).

Finally,throughouttheconstruc:onphaseandasthecasewithanyProjectdevelopmentthatentailssuchconstruc:onac:vi:esthereisachancethatpoten:alarchaeologicalremainsinthegroundarediscovered.Therefore,chancefindproceduresmustbeimplementedandwhicharestandardrequirementsbytheDoAasrequiredbythe“An:qui:esLawNo.21for1988anditsamendmentsNo.23for2004”.

!!!

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3.4. AirQualityandNoise

Typicalimpactsonairqualityandnoiseareexpectedduringtheconstruc:onphaseandwhichareunlikelytobesignificant.Thiswillincludeanincreasedlevelofdustandpar:culatemaMeremissions,whichinturnwilldirectlyandtemporarilyimpactambientairquality.Ifimproperlymanaged,thereisariskofnuisanceand health effects to construc:on workers onsite and to a lesser extent to the nearby surroundingreceptorsfromwindblowndust(suchaslocalcommuni:es,nomadicgroups,etc.).Inaddi:on,construc:onac:vi:eswilllikelyentailtheuseofvehicles,machineryandequipment(suchasgenerators,compressors,etc.)whichareexpectedtobeasourceofotherpollutantemissions.

In addi:on, the use of machinery and equipment such as generators, compressors, loaders, etc. areexpectedtobeasourceofnoiseandvibra:ongenera:onwithintheProjectsiteand itssurroundings. Ifimproperlymanaged, there is riskofnuisanceandhealthaffectstoconstruc:onworkersonsiteandtoalesserextenttothenearbysurroundingreceptors(suchasthelocalcommuni:es,nomadicgroups,etc.).

TheESIAmustassesspoten:alimpactsonairqualityandnoiseandiden:fytypicalmi:ga:onmeasuresfordustandnoisesuppressiontoreduceandminimizesuchimpacts.

!3.5. GeologyandHydrology(SoilandGroundwater)

Typicalimpactsonsoilandgroundwaterarelimitedtoimproperhousekeepingprac:cesofwastestreamsduring the construc:on and opera:on phase (to include solid waste, wastewater, hazardous waste,hazardous material). Improper housekeeping prac:ces (such as illegal disposal of waste to land andimproper storageofhazardousmaterials) couldcontaminateandpollute soilwhich in turncouldpollutegroundwater resources. This couldalso indirectly affectflora/faunaand thegeneralhealthand safetyofworkers(frombeingexposedtosuchwastestreams).

Nevertheless, such impacts can be adequately controlled through the implementa:on of general bestprac:cehousekeepingmeasureswhichmustbeiden:fiedwithintheESIAstudyandwhichareexpectedtobeimplementedduringtheconstruc:onandopera:onphase.

!3.6. OccupaTonalHealthandSafety

Impacts on occupa:onal health and safety are expected during the construc:on and opera:on phase.Throughout theconstruc:onphase therewillbegenericoccupa:onalhealthandsafety risks toworkersfrom working on construc:on sites. Such risks include: slips and falls, struck-by objects, movingmachineries,workingatheights,electricshocks,etc.

Similarly, during opera:on therewill be occupa:onal health and safety risks from rou:nemaintenanceac:vi:esaswellcorrec:vemaintenance.Suchmaintenanceac:vi:escouldentailvarioushealthandsafetyriskssuchaselectricshocks.

Nevertheless,anOccupa:onalHealthandSafetyPlanisexpectedtobedevelopedfortheconstruc:onandopera:on phase in accordance with the provisions of the Labor Law No. 8 for the Year 1996 and itsamendments,includingChapterIX,Occupa:onalSafety&Healthbeforeconstruc:onac:vi:escommence.The Planmust address the likely hazards, emergency response procedures, and provision of protec:veclothing,adequatesafetymanagement.

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