LOCAL BUILDING MATERIALS STRATEGY PHASE 1

NON TECHNICAL SUMMARY QUARRY SITE #2

1 INTRODUCTION

As part of the Vision 2030 Plan, the Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU) has approved a Framework Plan to significantly and responsibly develop the area for tourism, benefiting national and local economy. To fulfil this plan, a large quantity of various materials is already necessary and will be in the coming years. Currently most building materials come from distant quarries. Some geomaterials surveys have indicated that AlUla has the potential to develop a Local Building Materials (LBM) industry. So RCU, with the help of EGIS consultancy, developed a long-term strategy to grow a local, sustainable, quarry industry in AlUla.

Four potential quarry sites were selected first (see Figure 1), including site 2 for sand and andesite/basalt (in red on the map)

• Quantity and quality of material in line with needs.
• Locations sufficiently far from nature reserves (exploitation areas are located several km (between 3 and 9km) from the Wadi Nakhlah nature reserve), and existing roads.
• Operating hours in line with the current operating hours (no night work).
• High production rates and flow. Although not being the best practice, it is considered as a default option that the most polluting and noisiest equipment will operate continuously. This principle, even if it will be avoided as much as possible, was selected in order to ensure that all future operating schemes defined by the contractor would be covered.

This ESIA defines a framework and the future operators shall comply with the targeted areas, the operating hours, the maximum operating flows and the mitigation measures requested.

To do this, contractors will have to submit an Environmental and Social Management Plan (ESMP) whose framework has been also prepared by Egis.

 

 

2 PROJECT LOCATION

AlUla is a governorate located northwest of Saudi Arabia (Medina Region). AlUla covers around 25,000 km² and encompasses the first UNESCO World Heritage Site in Saudi Arabia which is the Nabatean-civilization city at Hegra (22 km to the north of AlUla).

As shown in Figure 2, the site n°2 (sand and andesite/basalt) is located approximately 65 km southeast of AlUla and is accessible by the main Road 375. Several extraction areas are possible depending on the type of materials desired.

 

Figure 2: AlUla quarry site n°2

 

3 ANALYSIS OF ALTERNATIVES

During the design process of the Project, several options have been considered for the Project components. These options were evaluated based on which one would be the most sustainable and suitable for AlUla. Egis has identified alternatives for the activity, process, scheduling, design, and location.

A summary of the identified alternatives is provided below:

• Activity Alternatives: It was found that there are no alternatives since raw materials are a vital component of the Project.
• No Project Alternative: The aim of developing a quarry site at AlUla is to supply local raw materials to reduce carbon footprint. In the absence of quarry at AlUla, the projects should be supplied with raw materials from 330km. It would increase the carbon footprint by 52,230 t eCO2. The project would not be in agreement with the AlUla target to be net Zero Carbon by 2035. As such, ‘No Project’ is rejected.
• Process Alternatives: As part of the demand from the stakeholders’ consultation process, both the construction and operation phase shall include reduction of dust especially during windy days. In addition, the construction and the operation of the quarry will consider alternatives and implement cost-effective options to reduce project related GHG emissions.
• Scheduling Alternatives: The Project timeline adapts to the forecasted raw materials demand under the given strategy for AlUla. In order to optimize the tourism and environmental impact, the Project will be executed in phases that adjust to construct facilities.
• Design Alternative: The design will be chosen in accordance with applicable RCU sustainability standards and shall minimize the visual impact and nuisance, i.e., to align with the natural landscape.
• Location Alternative: Limited use of excess materials from other site activity were identified on an ad hoc basis.

4 STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT

Egis has undertaken the below series of tasks for the stakeholder engagement process:

The ESIA has also included a proposal for a Grievance Redress Mechanism (GRM) to ensure that the Project is implemented in accordance with the best social standards and practices.

 

5 EXISTING ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL CONDITION

In order to acquire a good understanding of the status of the Project site and its vicinity, and provide information needed for impact assessment, a baseline study with a combination of literature review, site walk over and field survey was carried out to cover the environmental and social components relevant to the proposed Project. The field surveys were conducted during April and May 2022 (Air Quality, Noise, Biodiversity and Landscape).

5.1 Noise and Vibration

Acoustic measurements were carried out in accordance with KSA and French measurement standards to define the noise that currently exists around the extraction site. The results have shown that the sound environment around the Project area is extremely quiet. The only existing source of noise in the study area is the Road 375.

5.2 Air Qualiy

An assessment of the air quality impacts of implementing the Project has been carried out in accordance with RCU’s requirements and supplemented with international best practice to give an overview of local air quality around the pre-selected site and compare it with KSA standards.

All the gaseous pollutants (NO₂, SO₂, BTEX) presented very low concentrations which were lower than the standards. The particulate pollutants (PM2.5, PM10) showed concentrations slightly lower than the standards. However, the measurements are consistent with the desert conditions of the study area.

5.3 Topography

AlUla is situated at the junction between the raised interior desert plateau and the coastal Hijaz range of mountains. The region is made up of sandy desertic plains and complex mountain systems with volcanic harrats crossed by corridors and canyons. Settlements are concentrated at the heart of this step mountain environment. The landscape of the region is also shaped by the dry beds of multiple wadis.

5.4 Climate

The desert climate of AlUla is characterized by extreme heat during the day and severe drop of temperature at night. There is very low annual rainfall.

5.5 Geology and Soil

As Site 2 is a huge area with the size of approximatively 280km², the geology encountered is made up of various types of formations (rocks or soils).

The north-western part of the site is composed of pediment alluvium (Qu) made up of sand, gravel, and silt from quaternary deposits. The eastern part of the site is composed of granodiorite formation (gqm) in addition to quaternary alluvium (Qal) with sand and gravel.

On the south-western part of the site, high reliefs are present, and the geological map indicates that these mountains are made up of Al Ays group from the Matran formation (am) and Thaa formation (at). The types of rock encountered are likely to be mafic, felsic volcanic, and volcaniclastic rocks.

In situ study has been conducted during 2022 by Fugro. It has been observed that the site 2 is composed of five geotechnical zones:

• Zone 1a: Healthy relief of Andesite/basalt intercepted by Rhyolite.
• Zone 1b: Weathered relief of Andesite/basalt intercepted by Rhyolite.
• Zone 2: Healthy relief of Andesite/basalt;
• Zone 3: Relief of Granodiorite.
• Zone 4: Sand dune area; and
• Zone 5: Alluvial deposits.

5.6 Surface and Groundwater

KSA is the largest country in the world without a natural, perennial river connection to the sea. Consequently, the principal source of water in the Kingdom is groundwater, which is massively exploited due to agricultural activities. The Kingdom is also experiencing a rapid depletion of its aquifers which could lead to major dryness in the country in the next few years. Water available also comes from surface water (primarily in the form of dams to capture rainwater), desalination and reclaimed wastewater.

The site is covered by multiples wadis and rivers, which could lead to a flooding risk.  The flood risk has been assessed as part of the ESIA.

The site also located on the Saq aquifer. On site 2, no groundwater table was observed during geotechnical investigations in soil and rocky. According to geological context and geomorphology, no groundwater level is expected at site 2. Nevertheless, water flow could be encountered in andesite/basalt relief within fracturation. In that case, the potential flows should be very limited.

5.7 Biodiversity

Several methodologies were used to identify the resident vertebrate diversity in the study site; transects (driving and walking) trapping (active and passive) and camera traps were all used to study the biodiversity assemblages. The surveys revealed the below:

 

• The Project is near the Wadi Nakhlah reserve
• The project areas are generally richer near the mountains.
• The dominant tree species identified is Acacia.
• The main the resident vertebrate are reptiles, few domestic mammals, and birds.
• The area is under threat due to extensive overgrazing, where unpalatable species such as Rhazya stricta is dominant.
• The area is suffering from tourism activities, with almost dry vegetation cover and signs of human activities.

Additional survey focused on the extraction areas have shown that:

• Threatened flora species are not present in the extraction areas.
• Concerning the birds, only Black Redstart is nearly threatened however this specie is not breeding in the Arabian Peninsula. It will not be affected by the extraction process. All the other species are considered of Least Concern.
• For the reptiles, the Spiny-tailed lizard Uromastyx sp. Has been identified on the extraction areas. It is considered of conversations status.
• 2 carnivores of low conservations status are expected on the extraction areas. They are not suitable for other carnivorous species with a higher conservation status.

5.8 Cultural Heritage

The AlUla valley has a rich history and features many archaeological sites. There are few unidentified archaeological features identified on the site. The site is also located on the north of the Hijaz Railway, submitted to UNESCO Tentative List for designation in 2015.

An HIA (Heritage and Impact Assessment) is being conducted for this project.

5.9 Landscape and Visual

AlUla is situated between the eastern margins of the Hejaz Highlands and the western edge of the Nejd Plateau. The county is made up by diverse assemblage of geological features: Harrats, wadis, canyons, sandstones, sculptures, and sandy desert.

Site 2 is located in the Mughayra Desert. The landscape is defined as a lowland desert situated in the bowl created by the ridgeland plateau. The site is composed of:

• Sand area.
• Slightly raised sandbanks with rocky outcrops, mainly in the north.
• Large areas without relief of fine gravel;
• Series of small rocky, steep and sharp reliefs (altitude ranges from 650m to 1100m).

The landscape is already impacted by the presence of quarries currently in operation on site 2. All access to the sites is from Road 375. Road 375 is the principal receptor.

Near the study site and particularly along Route 375 there are numerous rock extraction site (either in the final stages of operation or still active). To date, no integration measures have been taken to limit the impact on landscape.

5.10 Socio-Economic

Desktop studies have shown that AlUla governate has a population of 40,543. AlUla Central is characterized primarily by a concentric road structure supporting villas and commercial, retail and public uses clustered along corridors. AlUla South is characterized by a grid structure, mostly residential areas with high plot vacancies resulting in large areas of empty land.

The adjacent land is no cultivated or resided. The location is uninhabited.

In south corner of the site, several licenses for building materials are already emitted, where are located the existing crushers.

The nearest settlement is named Dha’a, far of 7,3 km on the south of the site but all the houses are empty. People come to the village time to time.

5.11 Waste Management

Saudi Arabia produces around 53 million tons of waste every year, contaminating its soil and groundwater. According to Saudi Arabia’s National Center for Waste Management, the environmental degradation caused by solid waste in 2021 was estimated at $1.3 billion.  Most landfills in Saudi Arabia are on the brink of reaching their capacity.  Recycling in KSA is limited.  The majority of municipal waste is disposed of, untreated, in landfills, while some is incinerated. Once the landfill sites are full, the land typically cannot be used for other purposes. Landfills in Saudi Arabia are usually not engineered to limit their harmful effects.

6 SUMMARY OF ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS AND MITIGATION MEASURES

6.1 Environmental and Social Benefits and Risks

The key benefits of the Project include the below:

• No land acquisition is necessary for the Project.
• Economic opportunities for the locality, leading to an increase in the amenity of certain neighbourhoods both for residential and commercial use; and
• Increased employment opportunities for local population during the construction and operation.

The key risks of the Project include the below:

• In the surrounding area, some herders and livestock will be impacted by an increase of dust, noise and truck activity;
• On the affected land, the Project may a need for removal of few structures: camel fences, barracks and water tank. This removal will cause a temporary economic displacement for a small group of herders; and
• Construction activities will occur to a close public amenity located in the surrounding of the quarry. This location may impact in few cases limited access for people to these amenities.

6.2 Environmental and Social Adverse Impacts and Mitigation Measures During Construction

A summary of the identified impacts and the planned mitigation measures during the construction phase are provided in Table 2 below.

 

 

6.3 Environmental and Social Adverse Impacts and Mitigation Measures During Operation

A summary of the identified impacts and the planned mitigation measures during the operation phase are provided in Table 3 below. For air quality, noise, and carbon footprint and climate change modelling and estimates have been undertaken on the basis of the fictional majorant scenario of exploitation. The impact’s significance after implementation of the mitigation measure is available in the column “Residual Impact”.

 

 

7 ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL MANAGEMENT AND MONITORING PLANS

Environmental and social monitoring will be implemented during both construction and operation phases. 

Quarry sites are expected to be regularly monitored for its operations by the contractors (consumption of water, electricity, utilities, production of waste, noise levels, dust emissions, truck traffic, etc.), as well as early warning and communication systems in place. The proponents should provide the following management plans in the ESMP:

• Air Quality Management Plan.
• Erosion and Sediment Management Plan.
• Soil and Groundwater Management Plan.
• Biodiversity Management Plan.
• Water Management Plan.
• Noise and Vibration Management Plan.
• Traffic Management Plan.
• Waste Management.
• Chemical and Hazardous Materials Management Plan.
• Contingency Plan.
• Security and Emergency Plan.
• Lighting Management Plan.
• Cultural Heritage Management Plan.
• Workers Welfare Management Plan.
• Grievance mechanism.
• Stakeholder Engagement Plan.

 

8 CONCLUSION

This ESIA report follows the RCU guidance document ‘Guidelines for Environmental and Social Impact Assessment in AlUla County’ and provides all the Project details, applicable laws and standards, baseline studies, impact assessment methodology, and also identifies all impacts and risks associated with the Project execution including construction, operation and decommissioning phases.

The significance of each identified environmental and social aspect has been assessed based on the RCU methodology, and measures should be put in place to mitigate negative impacts and enhance beneficial impacts.