preliminary report may 21-26, 2016: visit to quang ninh...

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PRELIMINARYREPORTMAY21-26,2016:VISITTOQUANGNINHPROVINCEBYOMEGAGLOBALINITIATIVEANDGREENCITIESFUNDTOINVESTIGATETHEPOSSIBILITIESOFTHEIMPLEMENTATIONOFTHEOMEGASYSTEM

MeetingwithHauHuyDang,ViceChairmanPeople’sCommitteeofQuangNinhProvince.(Lefttoright:HaThuTran,DepartmentofNaturalResourcesandtheEnvironment,NguyetNguyenGCFculturalliaison,JonathanTrent,OmegaGlobalInitiative;HauHuyDang;TomMiller,GreenCitiesFund;SonNguyen,ViceDirectorof“Vanphong”ofthePeople’sCommittee;ChienCaoDeputyDirectoroftheDepartmentofNaturalResourcesandEnvironment.

Nướclớnmênhmông,trămsôngchầuvàoRiversgotothevastocean

Núinon,laliệtrảirácnhưquâncờ,váchđáliềntrời

Mountainslielikechesspieces,rockslinkedtothesky…

MuônthuởtrờiNam,nonsôngbềnvữngThesouthskyremainseverlastingandstrong

Bâygiờchínhlàlúcgiảmviệcvõ,tusửaviệcvăn.

Nowitistimetoputasidemartialartsandtofocusonlifeandlearning.

KingLeThanhTong,Spring1468,HaLongmountain,

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To:ChristopherAbrams,Director,EnvironmentandSocialDevelopmentOfficeFrom:GreenCitiesFund(GCF)andtheOMEGAGlobalInitiative(OGI)Authors:JonathanTrent,TomMiller,andNguyetNguyenPhotographer:HieuNgoSummary:ThissecondvisittoHaLongfundedbytheGreenCitiesFundconfirmedthattherearemanypotentialsitesforOMEGAinstallationsanddemonstratedanopennessandwillingnessofthedecisionmakersintheprovincetosupportthedevelopmentofthistechnology.Duringourvisit,wemetwiththeDeputyDirectoroftheDepartmentofNaturalResourcesandEnvironmentandtoprepresentativesfromtheDepartmentofConstruction,theDepartmentofScienceandTechnology,theDepartmentofAgricultureandRuralDevelopmentandtheDepartmentofTourismtodiscusstheproposedOMEGAproject.WewereescortedtofivepotentialOMEGAsites:CoTienlake,YetKieuLake,HaKhanhwastewatertreatmentplant,Muoicanal,andBaiChaywastewatertreatmentplant(seeEXHIBITsbelow).AllofthesesitesappearedtomeetthebasicrequirementsforOMEGA,butmoredetailedevaluationsbyengineers,scientists,andarchitectswillberequiredtodeterminewhatdesignswouldbemostpracticalandtoassesscosts.ItisimportanttonotethatallsiteswereselectedbyProvinceofficialsandcouldbeavailableinapproximatelytwomonthsfromthetimefundingisavailable.TheOMEGAsystemusesCO2forthegrowthofalgaeandanaccessiblesourceofconcentratedCO2isanimportantconsiderationintheselectionofOMEGAsites.On25Maywevisitedacoal-firedpowerplantandtwocementfactoriestodetermineiftheirfluegashasbeenanalyzedforCO2,ifitwouldbelogisticallypossibletoaccessfluegas,andiftheoperatorsandmanagerswerecooperative.FluegaseswereanalyzedforNOx,SO2,andCO,indicatingthatapproximateCO2valuescanbeinferredfromknownratiosoffluegasesforsimilarcoal-firedsystems.InallcasestheoperatorsandmanagersshowedinterestintheOMEGAsystemasawaytomitigatetheCO2releasedbytheirplantsandgavetheimpressiontheywouldbefullycooperative.Wealsovisitedafloatingfish-farm,VongViengvillage,faroutintheBayanddiscussedOMEGAwithamulti-generationgroupofboatresidentswhoexpressedtheireagernesstocontinuetheirlifeafloatunderimprovedconditionsandwithsupportandapprovalfromthegovernment.Theyexpressedinterestedinthe

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OMEGAsustainablesystemandcouldprovidevaluableinformationaswellasgenerationsofexperienceinaquaculture.Ourfour-dayvisittoHaLongculminatedinthesigningofaMoUbetweenGCF/OGIandtheDepartmentofNaturalResourcesandtheEnvironmentofthePeople’sCommitteetopartner,subjecttofunding,ondatacollectionforthedevelopmentofacomputermodelthatwillprovideasimulation,aswellasecologicalandeconometricmodelsforOMEGAprojectsinHaLong.ThemodelwouldbeextremelyvaluablewithrespecttoanyfutureOMEGAprojects.HauHuyDangfromthePeople’sCommitteepledgeditssupportfromexperts,accesstolocations,andassistanceneededinthedevelopmentofOMEGA.WeattributetheenthusiasticreceptionofOMEGAinHaLongto1)thetechnologysavvypeoplewemetwhorealizedthepotentialofOMEGA’sservicesandproducts;2)agrowingpublicconcernforenvironmentalissuesthatwasstimulatedrecentlybyamassivefishkillattributedtoindustrialpollution;and3)PresidentObama’ssimultaneousvisittoViet-Namandthewarmreceptionhereceivedonalllevels.Withfunding,GreenCitiesFund/OMEGAGlobalInitiativecouldcommenceworkwithinweeks.Wearehopeful,therefore,youwillcontinuetoassistinlocatingthefundingwerequestedtotakethefirstimportantstepsforOMEGAtobecomepartoftheHaLongBayandasustainableworldheritage.AttachedarethefollowingExhibits:EXHIBIT1-BriefdescriptionsofpotentialOMEGAsiteswithphotos.EXHIBIT2-LetterofsupportfromHauHuyDang,ViceChairmanofthePeople’sCommitteeofQuangNinhProvincetoTheHon.TedOsius,UnitedStatesAmbassadorEXHIBIT3–MoUbetweenGreenCitiesFund/OMEGAGlobalInitiativeandtheDepartmentofNaturalResourcesandtheEnvironment.

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EXHIBIT1:SelectedphotosofpotentialOMEGAsitesvisited

Site1:HoCoTien:Thesiteiscentrallylocatedandnearachildren’splayground,whichcouldaddaneducationalcomponenttotheOMEGApilotactivity.•Wastewateravailablefromthesurroundingneighborhoodandstreetrunoff.TheOMEGAinstallationwouldincludeananalyticalfacilitytomonitorwaterqualityandanalgaeprocessingfacility.Waterpurificationtodrinkingwater.•TheCO2sourcecouldeitherbefromonshoreanaerobicdigestersorfromanaircollection/concentrator(TBD).•Solarpanelscouldbedistributedonoroverfloatingwalkways.•Aquaculturespecieswilldependonthesalinityandwaterquality.Probablyfocusonornamentalfishfordisplaypurposes.

Site2:HoYetKieuAresidentialpondnearabusyhighwaythatwouldbehighprofilelocationforOMEGApilottotestallcomponentsonasmallscale.

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•Wastewateravailablefromthesurroundingneighborhoodandstreetrunoffthroughconduits.TheOMEGAinstallationwouldincludeananalyticalfacilitytomonitorwaterquality.Therewouldalsobeanalgaeprocessingfacility.Waterpurificationtopotablestandard.Goaltocleanthepollutedlaketouseaportionofitintoaneighborhoodswimmingarea.•TheCO2sourcecouldeitherbefromunderwateranaerobicdigestersorfromanaircollection/concentratorthatcouldpullairfromalongsidethebusyhighway.•Solarpanelscouldbedistributedonoroverfloatingwalkways.•Aquaculturespecieswilldependonthesalinityandwaterquality.

Site3&4:HaKhanhwastewaterplantandMuoicanaltobay.Thewastewatertreatmentplanthadmultiplesettlingpondsandthewaterisreleasedintoacanalthatreceivesadditionalwastefromresidentsandrunoff.•Wastewateravailablefromthesurroundingneighborhoodandstreetrunoff.TheOMEGAinstallationwouldincludeananalyticalfacilitytomonitorwaterqualityandanalgaeprocessingfacility.Waterpurificationtodrinkingwater.•TheCO2sourcecouldeitherbefromunderwateranaerobicdigestersorfroman

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aircollection/concentratorthatcouldpullairfromalongsidethebusyhighway.•Solarpanelscouldbedistributedonoroverfloatingwalkways.•Aquaculturespecieswilldependonthesalinityandwaterquality.

Sites5:BaiChaywastewaterplantandlakeHungThang:Thewastewaterplantwithaerobictankandalgaepondsisuphillwithin200mofthelake(right).Theoutfallinthelakecanbeseeninthecenterofthisimageasaboil.Thephototakenfromthesideoftheroad.•Wastewateravailablefromthetreatmentplantneedtodetermineresidualnutrientcontent.•TheCO2sourcefromunderwateranaerobicdigesters.•Solarpanelsdistributedonoroverfloatingwalkways.•Aquaculturedependsonconditions

Socialconsiderationswithrespecttofloatingcommunities:Therearemanylocalexpertsinengineering,science,economics,andecology,alsorelevantgovernmentagencies,establishedcorporateentities,andalocaltraditionofaquaculture—allstakeholdersthatcouldsupportOMEGAdevelopment.Inparticular.HaLongBayhasalonghistoryoffloatingplatformsthatprovideshelterandaquaculture,butin2014,thelocalauthoritiesofHaLongCitymoved364houseboatsontheBaytoresettlementareas.Someofthoseremovedarereturning

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totheseaillegallybecausetheycanfindnoworkandwishtocontinuetheirlifeonthesea.Reasonsforremovalincludedlackofhealthcareandeducationforthechildren,aswellasaestheticconsiderationswithrespecttoattractingtourists–allconsiderationsthatcanbedealtwithbyengagingtheoffshorecommunityinnear-shoreOMEGAsystems.The proposed floating OMEGA system would stimulate a sustainable circulareconomybycreatingjobsinallaspectsofthewaterandenergyproductionaswellas aquaculture supply and demand sides. The OMEGA system synergisticallycombines and optimizes established technologies for wastewater-potable reuse,hybridsolar,andaquacultureontoanoffshoreplatformthatwillbewellsuitedtoemploypeoplewithexperiencelivingoffshore.

Duringour60-minmeetingwithlive-aboardfishfarmers,theydescribedtheimpactofonshoregovernmentrelocationplansandgovernmentregulationsontheirlifestyleandlivelihood.Theysaidtheyweremovedonshore,butnotprovidedwithretrainingorappropriateworktohelpthemadapttotheirnewenvironment.Theysaidtheydon’tmindlivingonshore,buttheycouldnotfindjobsandmanyofthemhadtoreturntothewater.Fornow,someworkasrowersfortouristsandsome

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workasfishfarmers.Fishfarmingisillegalhowever,andtheydescribedmanyrestrictionontheirfarmingpracticeaswellasthesizeoftheirboats.

- Theirfamilieshavelivedonfloatingplatformsforgenerationsandtheytoldusthattheywouldliketocontinuethatlifestyle.

- Sincetheyarerestrictedinwhattheycanbuild,theirstructureisveryweak.Whentheweatherisbad,thefloatingstructuresareoftendamagedbybadweatherandwithoutsufficientfundstheyarenoteasilyrepaired.Thiscreatesaviciouscycle.Theysaidtheywouldliketohavesomethingmoresturdythatcouldwithstandnaturaldisasters.

- TheyexpressedstronginterestinOMEGAandsaidthey’dvolunteertheirknowledgeabouttheBayfortheaquaculturecomponentofOMEGA.TheyaskedquestionsaboutOMEGA,andthelastquestionwas:WhereareyouintheprocessandwhatisyourchanceofsuccessinbringingOMEGAhere?

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EXHIBIT2:LettertotheHon.TedOsius,USAmbassador,fromHauHuyDang,ViceChairman,People’sCommitteeQuangNinhProvince(VietnamesewithEnglishtranslationbyNguyetNguyen).

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SOCIALISTREPUBLICOFVIETNAM QUANGNINH’SPEOPLE’S COMMITTEE

219NguyễnVănCừ,HạLong,QuảngNinh

Tel:+84-33-383-5852 Fax:+84-33-383-5353E-mail:vpubnd@quangninh.gov.vn http://www.quangninh.gov.vn

Number:/CV-MT

QuảngNinh,26May2016

Attn:InsupportofthebuildingofanOMEGADemoProjectinHalong,QuangNinh

To: TheHonorableTedOsius,

AmbassadoroftheUnitedStatesofAmerica7LangHa,ThanhCong,Hanoi,Vietnam

ThePeople’sCommitteeofQuangNinhProvincewish to convey

itsbestregardstotheHonorableTedOsius,Ambassadorof theUnitedStates of America in Vietnam andwould like to express gratitude foryour ongoing support in efforts to protect the environment ofHalongBay and to promote sustainable development of Halong in particularandQuangNinhingeneral.

From themeetings and discussions between the Department ofNatural Resources and Envionment (with presence and input from anumber of other Departments and agencies in the province) and Dr.Jonathan Trent (Director of OMEGA Global Initiative OGI) and TomMiller(PresidentofGreenCitiesFundGCF),wearedelightedtolearnoftheproposalofademoprojectofOMEGAinHalong,QuangNinh.

WeareexcitedabouttheirproposalandbelieveOMEGAis

suitableforHalongnotonlybecauseitwillprovidevaluedproductsand

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services,interestingjobsthathelplocalpeopledealwithclimatechange,promotecommunityeducation,andprovideenvironmentalprotectionforHaLongBayanditsvariousindustries,butalsobecauseitwillmakeQuangNinhProvinceafocalpointintheworldforthedevelopmentofOMEGAsystemsandaleaderingreentechnology.OurenthusiasmfortheprojectisincreasedbytheexplicitplanofGFC/OGItocollaboratewithlocalexpertstodevelopOMEGA.

Duringtheirvisit,Dr.TrentandMr.Millerhavevisitedanumberof potential OMEGA sites with experts provided by the People’sCommitteeanddiscussedthesesiteswiththemat length.ThePeople’sCommittee also assigned the Department of Natural Resources andEnvironment to sign aMemorandumof UnderstandingwithOGI/GCF.We believe they would form an effective partnership with us for theimmediatefuturedevelopmentofOMEGA.

We understand that the USAID director of Environmental andSocialDevelopmentOfficehasindicatedhewillmakehisbesteffortstofind the funding needed to commence theOMEGAprogram if there isstronglocalsupport.WewritethislettertowishtoassureyouthereisstrongsupportandenthusiasticwillingnesstocooperatewithOGI/GCFto realizeOMEGAaccording to theproposalbyOGI/GCF.ThePeople’sCommittee of Quang Ninh will also provide all of its available laborresourcestocreateallnecessaryandfavorableconditionsforOMEGA.

Wehope, therefore, theUnitedStateswillprovide thenecessaryfinancialassistancetohelpinitiatetheOMEGAprojectinHalong,QuangNinhat thistimewhenHalongBayfacescriticalenvironmental issues;atthesametimeQuangNinhprovinceisfocusinggreatlyondevelopinggreentechnologiestomakeourdevelopmentsustainable.

The People’s Committee of Quang Ninh province once againwishestoexpressitsbestregardstotheHonorableTedOsius,andhopetocontinuetoreceiveyourfavorableconsiderationandassistance.

Sincerely,Hau Huy Dang,

Deputy Chairman of the Quang Ninh People’s Committee

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EXHIBIT3:SignedMOU(VietnamesewithEnglish)

cc:ChristopherAbrams,DirectorEnvironmentandSocialDevelopmentOfficeUSAID/Viet-Nam15/FTungShingBuilding#2NgoQuyenStreetHanoi,Viet-Nam

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