LOAN: PRC 33437-01 | Songhua River Flood Management (Sector) Project

China,People'sRep.of

LOAN: PRC 33437-01

Songhua River Flood Management (Sector) Project

•	Missions
•	Loan Approval Date
•	Estimated Completion Date
•	Cost and Financing Plan
•	Description
•	Development Objectives
•	Thematic Classification
•	Poverty Classification
•	Rationale
•	Objectives and Scope
•	Policy Dialogue
•	Environment Category
•	Env't Impact and Mitigation
•	Social Aspects and Remedies
•	Benefits and Beneficiaries
•	Public Consultation
•	Beneficiary Participation in Formulation
•	Beneficiary Participation in Implementation
•	Consulting Services
•	Procurement
•	Contacts
•	Remarks

Location
Songhua River basin in Northeast China

Sector
Agriculture & Natural Resources /Water Resources Management

Initial Listing
5 August 1999

Most Recent Update
19 April 2007

Executing Agency(ies)

Jilin Province

Heilongjiang Province

Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region

Missions

Loan Approval Date

20 September 2002

Estimated Completion Date

Cost and Financing Plan (in US$ million)

Source	Foreign Cost	Local Cost	Total
Bank	134.00	16.00	150.00
Cofinancing	0.00	0.00	0.00
Borrower	0.00	207.70	207.70
Beneficiaries	0.00	0.00	0.00
Others	0.00	0.00	0.00
Project/Program Cost	134.00	223.70	357.70

OCR ADF Total

Loan Amount 150.00 0.00 150.00

Description

The proposed Songhua River Flood Management Project aims to reduce flooding and flood hazards throughout the Songhua River basin by strengthening, improving, and bringing to a consistent standard the existing flood protection measures.

Thematic Classification

Rationale

Floods have produced some of PRC's worst natural disasters, causing indescribable human misery over thousands of years of history. Many flood control dikes and other works date from ancient times. Despite significant construction in modern times many older works fail during major floods, and there has been inadequate maintenance of the system. The general standard of flood protection is only the equivalent of about a 20-year flood recurrence. The design standard for important cities is to protect against a 100-200 year flood and in rural areas is 35-50 years. Many dams and reservoirs for irrigation, water supply, and flood control require remedial work to ensure their continued functioning and safety. Increasing population and expansion into flood prone areas have significantly increased the risk of economic damage by flooding. The Government supports a shift in focus from flood control only to an approach which emphasizes flood management through integrated land and water resources management, optimal water management throughout river basins, flood protection measures, and complementary flood forecasting and warning systems. Improving institutional capacity to adopt an integrated approach is a vital concern of the Government.

Objectives and Scope

The overall goal of the Project is to improve peoples lives and to promote sustainable economic growth through improved river basin management and reduction of flood risk in the Songhua River Basin. The objective of the Project is to reduce flood damage in the Songhua River Basin through integrated river basin management and improved flood protection. The Project comprises (i) implementing a flood management system (incorporating flood forecasting and early warning systems) to facilitate coordinated flood emergency response; (ii) structural flood control works including upgrading dikes and building new ones, to enable the Songhua River to convey floods up to the design standard; and (iii) supporting project management and institutional capacity.

Policy Dialogue

Major issues which were discussed with the Government during TA preparation, and which will be further refined during TA implementation, relate to (i) coordination between different ministries and agencies whose activities relate to flood management; (ii) financing of capital investment and operation and maintenance costs; (iii) cost recovery; (iv) control of encroachment into flood plains by urban development; (v) protection and restoration of flood retention basins and wetland areas; (vi) flood plain zoning and flood risk mapping; (vii) enhancement of positive environmental impacts wherever possible through adjustment of the arrangement and function of project interventions; (viii) rationalization of design standards and approaches to planning flood protection; (ix) dam safety and related remedial measures; and (x) disproportionate weight given, in the selection of subprojects, to the ability of the subproject to generate revenue and thereby to provide counterpart funds.

Environment Category: B

Environment Impact and Mitigation

By approaching flood protection as a particular application of natural resources management throughout the whole river basin, the Project will aim to provide an overall improvement in environmental conditions. Environmental concerns will be met by adhering strictly to the Government's environmental legislation and by applying the Bank's environmental policies and guidelines. Environmental impact assessments (EIAs) and Summary EIAs will be prepared for all core subprojects during the TA. EIAs/Summary EIAs will be made available to interested parties within and outside PRC prior to implementation of works. Because most of the flood protection measures are already in place and the project's objective is to improve them in a consistent manner, the negative environmental impacts are not expected to be severe. However, there is generally a need at provincial level to integrate environmental considerations into the planning, design, and implementation processes as they are currently managed to ensure that potentially negative impacts will be avoided or reduced to an acceptable limit, and to enhance the long term sustainability of all such measures. There is also a need to increase the awareness throughout the community of the value of environmental safeguards as opposed to short-term solutions to isolated problems.

Social Aspects and Remedies

Effective flood management will protect up to about 16 million persons (the number of people affected by the flood of 1998), and their property and livelihoods within an area of about 85,000 square kilometers (km2). Rural incomes in the flood-affected area, already significantly lower than the average for Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and Heilongjiang and Jilin provinces, have fallen, and it has been estimated that an additional 1.8 million persons are living in poverty as a result of the 1998 flood. Land acquisition and resettlement for construction of flood protection will be kept to a minimum, and will be handled in accordance with the Government's new Land Administration Law and the Bank's policies and guidelines for involuntary resettlement. The TA will formulate appropriate ways to avoid adverse effects on poor households of all programs, and will propose measures to ensure benefits reach the poor and help alleviate poverty.

Benefits and Beneficiaries

Beneficiaries will include many of the families residing in the floodplains of Songhua River and its tributaries, including about 16 million persons who were affected by floods in 1998.

Public Consultation

Arranged by

Date for Consultation : To be determined.

Groups Consulted : To be determined

Beneficiary Participation in Formulation

The TA fact-finding mission made field visits to the sites of proposed flood control and protection works in Innger Mongolia Autonomous Region and the provinces of Heilongjiang and Jilin. The Mission consulted at community level with intended beneficiaries and potentially affected persons.

Beneficiary Participation in Implementation

Extensive beneficiary participation and consultation will be undertaken as part of the TA, started in the second half of 1999.

Consulting Services

Consultants will be selected and engaged through an international consulting firm in accordance with ADB's Guidelines on the Use of Consultants, and other arrangements acceptable to ADB on the selection and engagement of domestic consultants. The consultants required under the Project are 80 person-months (pm) of international consultants and 608 pm of domestic consultants, a total of 688 pm. Of these services, 484 pm (70 percent, comprising 51 pm international and 433 pm domestic consultants), will be for the flood management system. The consultants will provide assistance in the areas of a geographic information system for flood control, mathematical flood model, flood forecasting, research into standards for major cities and a decision support system and specifications and procurement of the flood management system equipment. The consultants under the other two components (32 pm of international and 175 pm of domestic consultants) will support the monitoring of environmental mitigation measures, resettlement planning, economic analysis, project/construction management, tender documents, contract evaluation and subproject commissioning, special assistance for Inner Mongolia in subproject identification and feasibility, and legal and regulatory aspects. The consultants will also offer on-the-job training, especially in the economic analysis of subprojects.

Procurement

The procurement of goods and services for ADB-financed contracts will be carried out in accordance with ADB's Guidelines for Procurement. Major contracts for equipment with a value of $500,000 equivalent or more will be undertaken through ADB's international competitive bidding procedures. Smaller equipment packages, under $500,000 equivalent each, will be procured following international shopping procedures. Direct purchase will be allowed for contracts valued at $100,000 equivalent or less. Civil works contracts estimated to cost $5 million or more will be carried out using ICB bidding procedures while those below $5 million equivalent will be carried out using local competitive procedures in accordance with the Tendering and Bidding Law, and related regulations that are being drafted with ADB assistance and ADB requirements. The project will consist of a large number of civil works (mainly earth-related works) located in different parts of the project area. It is considered unlikely that international contractors will be interested in bidding for such civil works contracts.

Contacts

Bank

Bruce Carrad
Principal Natural Resources Economist
EAAE
Tel. No.:
E-mail:

Executing Agency
Jilin Province

Contact Person : Wen Guo Zhi, Vice Director
Tel. No. : (0431) 8904580
Fax. No. : (043) 8939001
E-mail :

Contact Person :
Tel. No. :
Fax. No. :
E-mail :

Heilongjiang Province

Contact Person : Jiangzaibin, Vice Director
Tel. No. : 0451-3641933; 3658583-5619
Fax. No. : 0451 - 3641933
E-mail : bofwb@public.hr.hl.cn

Contact Person :
Tel. No. :
Fax. No. :
E-mail :

Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region

Contact Person : Jia Feng, Vice Director
Tel. No. : 86 - 471 - 6945304; 6968081
Fax. No. : 86 - 471 - 6934977; 6961451
E-mail : xmrz@mx.nmg.cei.gov.cn

Contact Person :
Tel. No. :
Fax. No. :
E-mail :

Remarks

Projects