environmental & social management plan 2021

Environmental & Social

Management Plan 2021

Outline

Environmental & Social Management Plan Addendum

Environmental & Social Management Plan

Grievance Redress Mechanism


Management Plan

Background● Oman Broadband is:

○ a Company established in 2015 to support the implementation of the National Broadband

● Strategy

○ Wholly-owned by the Government of the Sultanate of Oman

○ Focused on the deployment of a broadband infrastructure

Background● Oman Broadband’s objectives comprise of:

○ Construction and maintenance of a broadband infrastructure for service providers in the

Sultanate

○ Works in co-operation with other infrastructure service providers such as water, electricity,

gas and sanitation companies to unlock the potential of amenities available in the

Sultanate

○ Achieve the optimal use of existing unused infrastructure such as fiber optic lines,

networks and national assets in partnership with the Government and private investors

● Oman Broadband has contracted Environmental Resources Management to conduct an

independent Environmental and Social Assessment (ESA) of its current and planned

activities in adherence to the Omani laws and regulations, and the Asian Infrastructure

Investment Bank (AIIB) Environmental and Social Policy.

● Oman Broad band's policies, this ESMP and relevant procedures are applicable to all its

activities and its contractors' activities.

Overview

● Oman Broadband Company SAOC (Oman Broadband) is investing in the rollout of a fiber

optic broadband cable network to an estimated 369,439 homes/premises by the end of

2021. It is comprised of laying cables of c. 4,097 km and drop cables of c. 9,535 km, and

installing supporting infrastructure such as fiber distribution hubs.

● Fiber Network Roll-out Plan: Oman Broadband’s nationwide fiber optic rollout plans have

been designed using two principles:

○ Impact based Roll-out: Oman Broadband will consider key usage patterns, population

densities and projected statistics that chart the future demand for high speed broadband

services in the Sultanate.

○ Efficient Roll-out: Oman Broadband will work with other Government owned entities to

decrease cost of infrastructure deployment, taking into account already available

infrastructure that can be commercially utilized.

Overview

● Oman Broadband operates by covering the

country area by area, i.e. passing in front of

each house before releasing one given

area (Homes Passed). Once an area is

released, service operators can offer

broadband services within the area. Oman

Broadband then has 10 days to provide

final connection to the end user (Home

connection).

ActivitiesProject activities consist of laying optic fiber cables, connecting individual users and maintaining

the network.

● Oman Broadband outsources all civil work and fiber deployment to numerous companies

(contractors), selected according to an open tender process :

○ In order to utilize synergies with other state- owned entities and in case excavations are

planned in certain areas by such entities (e.g. Haya Waters), civil work is excluded from

Oman Broadband’s scope and only fiber cable deployment is conducted by Oman

Broadband’s direct contractors.

○ Where necessary, Oman Broadband directly appoints contractors to trench and lay

cabling ducts and oversees the connection to the end user (home/facility).

○ Service Operations Centre (SOC) and Network Operations Centre (NOC) are fully

insourced, while field maintenance is again outsourced to subcontractors.

Activities

Environmental and Social Management Plan

● The management of the ESMP will be done through an Environmental and Social

Management System (ESMS). The main elements of an ESMS comprise the following four

phases:

○ Planning: Establishing the objectives and processes necessary to deliver results in

accordance with the Oman Broadband EHS Policy.

○ Doing: Implementing the processes through defining mitigation measures and assigning

responsibilities for undertaking or implementing such mitigation measures.

○ Checking: Monitoring and measuring these processes against the policy, objectives and

targets, legal and other requirements (such as those of the AIIB, IFC, etc.), and reporting

of the results.

○ Acting: Taking actions to continually improve performance of the ESMS through the

training of personnel and auditing of results.

● The ESMP includes the mitigation, monitoring and management measures detailed in the

slides below, and include also training, audits, inspections and reporting.

Environmental and Social Management Plan

(ESMP)● The ESMP includes the mitigation,

monitoring and management

measures detailed in the slides below,

and include also training, audits,

inspections and reporting.

● The Documents are posted on our

website at :

○ https://omanbroadband.om/Environ

mental+%26+Social+Management

+Plan.html

ESMP implementation

institutional arrangements

ESMP implementation institutional

arrangements

● Oman Broadband has issued relevant Policies and selected Procedures, in addition to this

ESMP which will be subject to regular review to assess their efficiency and suitability in

complying with the relevant regulations and standards.

● Oman Broadband meets potential contractors as part of its selection process and

introduce them to its EHS requirements.

● Oman Broadband also engages with its ‘partners’ such as Haya Water, and other utilities

companies to inform them of their commitments and discuss alignment on QHSE

standards for shared civil work construction.

● Oman Broadband is committed to conducting training for its staff and contractor, and to

conduct internal reporting on its EHS performances.

ESMP implementation institutional

arrangements

● In practice, the following engagement activities ensure the implementation and monitoring

of this ESMP:

○ Meetings at all level within Company and with Contractors on a regular basis.

○ Toolbox talks will be conducted by Contractors on a daily basis.

○ Regular reporting and monitoring of performances and compliance with applicable

standards (e.g. Laws, Regulations, AIIB’s ESP, etc.) will be conducted.

The main Project activities resulting air emissions include:

○ Fuel combustion in engines (vehicles, generators, excavators, etc.) emitting gaseous

pollutants (including CO2 NO2, SO2, CO and PM10/2.5),

○ Movement of soils during excavations, grading, and cut and fill activities

○ Transportation (of people, equipment, waste, etc.) along roads in residential areas/close to

settlements

Physical Impact :

Impact on Ambient Air

Measure & Monitoring

Requirements

● The EPC contractors shall use vehicles, generators and equipment with exhausts emissions

compliant with local and international emission standards, and conduct regular

maintenance of all combustion engines

● Use ONLY low-sulfur content diesel (≤0.5% sulfur by weight) as fuel for power generator,

heavy machinery as well as vehicles.

● All work sites and stockpiles will be regularly sprinkled with water throughout construction

& rehabilitation


Requirements

● A maximum speed limit of 30 km per hour will be applied when traveling on unpaved road,

and when transporting friable material (e.g. soil), which must be covered by tarp during

storage and transportation;

● Provide onsite staff with visible emissions observation training (EPA Method 9) prior to

taking on duties, and halt construction activities when visible fugitive dust emissions exceed

20% opacity;

● Ambient air quality at receptor shall be tested at representative location/times no less than

3 times a year

Physical Impact :

Impact from Noise and Vibration

● Construction noise:

○ Operation of light and heavy vehicles and construction equipment (including excavators,

generators, etc.) on site will lead to generation of noise in their vicinity. Construction traffic

(deliveries, transport of personnel etc.) will have the potential to impact residents and

visitors to nearby areas by potential increases in traffic noise.


Requirements

● Where possible noisy equipment shall be housed within acoustic enclosures (e.g.

generators).

● Machinery, equipment and vehicles shall be regularly inspected and conservatively

maintained.

● Dropping from height, metal to metal contact, clustering of equipment near sensible

receptors avoided.

● Throttle settings on plant and machinery shall be reduced and equipment and plant shall be

turned off when not being used, noise monitoring implemented and noise emissions on

site kept below 85dB.


Requirements

● Speed limit of 30Kph for all type of project related vehicles in residential area, limit the size

of night time (9:00pm – 6:00am) fleet to not exceed three trucks in populated areas and

establishment of a detailed traffic management plan for both construction phase and

operation phase.

● Implement noise monitoring against the performance criteria (55 dB(A) LAeq daytime and

45 dB(A) LAeq,15min nighttime at receptor) if persistent noise complaints are received

through the Grievance Mechanism, and no less than 4 times a year (one/quarter) are

representative locations

Physical Impact :

Impact from Waste Generation

● The proposed Project will generate wastes including soil, domestic wastes, industrial non

hazardous wastes (e.g. packaging), recyclables, and may generate waste oils (lubricants),

wastewater, batteries, contaminated packaging, and splicing waste.


Requirements ● Install temporary waste sorting and storage facilities at all main construction sites and

worker accommodation sites during construction and manned facilities during operations

considering climatic factors

● During the construction phase wastewater will be handled a portable integrated biological

treatment unit before being transported to a local WWTP via tanker.

● The hazardous splicing waste must be collected using masking tapes and these tapes

must be carefully disposed after completion of splicing activities.

● Liquid waste container shall be stored in a bunded area. This area shall be 110% greater in

volume that the largest container.


Requirements ● Wastes should be reused, recycle, treated on site or exported to existing government-

licensed/approved recycling facilities / landfill in Oman by the end of each shift and no later

than within 48h during hot season.

● Waste transportation shall be carried out by licensed transportation (and disposal)

contractors.

Socio-Economic Impact : Impact to

Workers’ Health and Safety (OHS)

● The principal construction related occupational health and safety impacts are :

○ Working in proximity to traffic axis.

○ Slip, trip and fall: Generally, excavation and trenching activities pose serious hazards to

the workers involved. The depth of the excavation trenches within the current scope of

the Project is mostly of 65 cm and therefore the risk of cave-in and hazardous

atmosphere is considerably reduced.

○ Other potential hazards associated with trenching and duct laying work include falling

loads, noise/dust exposure, electrical hazards, mechanical hazards and hazards from

mobile equipment.

○ Heat Stress

Measure & Monitoring Requirements ● Contractors will develop their own EHS Management System (including Policies,

Procedures, Standard Operating Procedure and Records) in accordance with the policies of

the Company and develop an effective Risk Assessment (or HSE Plan) for all tasks at

different locations.

● Appropriate Personal Protective Equipment and Training will be provided to all employees

of Company, Contractors and their Subcontractors. Records of PPE issuance and trainings

will be kept for inspection.

● All near-misses, incidents and accidents will be recorded, investigated and accounted for on

a bi- yearly basis.

● Workers will be provided with primary health care and basic first aid at construction camps /

worksites.

● All employees will undergo pre-employment screening which will include testing for TB and

other communicable diseases and voluntary testing for sexually transmitted diseases. No

worker will be denied employment on the basis of the testing (as long as they are fit to

work).

Socio-Economic Impact : Impact

on Community Health and Safety

● The construction activities will result in impacts to community health, safety and security

including:

○ Site trespass: at work fronts in particular where trenching, cable pulling or connecting.

○ Increased vehicle movements.

○ Annoyance: associated with temporary construction noise, dust and disruption to access.

○ Increased disease transmission: due to the presence of an external workforce living

nearby communities

● The Workers Code of Conduct will establish guidelines for engagement with communities

to limit and prevent transmission of disease and other unsafe interactions.

● Signage warning of dangers and communicating requirements, and adequate fencing shall

be in place at all construction sites. All signs shall be in diagram form to ensure those with

low levels of literacy understand the signs.

● The EPC contractor shall make all necessary efforts to avoid possible community exposure

to health and safety risks, including developing a Health and Safety Management Plan,

Emergency Response Plan and Traffic Management Plan, training workers on how to

control and mitigate any unexpected situations, including spills or road accidents.

Measure & Monitoring Requirements

Socio-Economic Impact : Impact on

Labor and Working Conditions

● The construction activities will present the following Labor and Working Conditions risks to

Company, Contractors and sub-Contractors’ employees:

○ Worker recruitment and employment criteria and procedures,

○ Workers’ freedom of association

○ Workers’ supervision and management,

○ Workers’ occupational health and safety training and conditions,

○ Working area conditions (accommodation camps, workshops, equipment, working hours,

heat stress, etc.)

○ Workers’ retrenchment and dismissal.

● Company, contractors and subcontractors shall develop and implement a labor policy and

procedures in line with the Omani legislation and ratified ILO conventions, and develop

means to monitor their and their suppliers’ compliance at all time. Quarterly Company

monitoring and yearly third-party monitoring is scheduled

● All workers shall be sensitized on their responsibilities and rights and their conditions of

employment (inc.: representation & collective bargaining, wages, working hours and leave,

welfare facilities at site, adequate accommodation, timelines of Project activities), and shall

be engaged from an early stage about any impending retrenchments or termination of

employment.

● Contractors shall develop health and safety policy and procedures consistent with the

Company OHS requirements. The policy and procedures shall cover all risks related to the

Project and provide adequate measures, including budget allocation and recruitment of

competent personnel


● The Company, contractors, and their sub-contractors shall ensure that location, sanitation,

safety and quality of accommodation camps, working areas and equipment shall be

adequately satisfactory, and that contracted and temporary employees are provided with

appropriate first aid on site, medical insurance and access to medical treatment for work

related injuries.

● The EPC contractor and sub-contractors shall develop and implement effective grievance

mechanism accessible to all employees (including anonymously).


Socio-Economic Impact : Impact to

Employment and Economic Development

● Positive impacts will occur during the construction phase through the employment of

workers and procurement of goods and services by Company, Contractors and Sub-

Contractors. It also includes jobs supplying goods and services needed to support the

construction process. Induced economic effects include spending by employees, and

payment of taxes and fees to the government.

● Disclose the employment and procurement procedures publicly.

● Provide clear information on employment and procurement opportunities available along

with any minimum standards to enable local supplier companies and individuals to acquire

the required skills.

● Ensure compliance with Omanizaton Law and

● Review positive impacts for affected communities through the accounting of local Omani

employees at Company, Contractors and suppliers (number of local employees involved in

Project), and percentage of capital and operational costs spent on local contractors and

suppliers.

● Set yearly targets for percentage of contribution to local economy and capacity building.



Management Plan Addendum

Introduction

● OBB now intends to undertake the Phase-II of the project extending the broadband

infrastructures in the remaining areas including the rural communities of Oman.

● The existing ESMP stands mostly valid for OBIP-II since its activities are quite similar to the

original project activities. However, the present Addendum to ESMP has been prepared to

address a few gaps that have been identified in the existing ESMP.

Project Overview

● The Project involves two phases.

○ In Phase 1 of OBC’s roll-out plan, it has been focused primarily on providing fiber-to-the-

home (FTTH) coverage in Muscat plus some urban areas outside Muscat. This involved

the installation of fiber optic cables and associated infrastructure, such as telephone

exchange nodes (transmitters and receivers), remote integrated multiplexers (RIM) or

customer multiplexers (CMUX), and premises receivers, covering Muscat and other urban

areas of Oman under OBIP-I.

○ In Phase 2 of OBC’s roll-out plan, it is focused on providing coverage outside Muscat

using a mix of FTTH and 5G fixed-wireless access (FWA) technologies in appropriate

areas. FWA is considered to be a complimentary technology to FTTH, and used to expand

the coverage of broadband in areas where FTTH would prove to be too expensive in the

short term.

Environmental and Social

Impacts● The potential impacts of the Projects activities include the following:

○ Air emissions

○ Noise

○ Wastes including hazardous wastes

○ Road traffic

○ Occupational health and safety (OHS)

○ Community health and safety (CHS)

○ Labor and working conditions

○ Cultural heritage

○ Employment and economic development.

● In addition, the construction work can potentially cause access restriction to general public.

Environmental and Social Management● Various management plans have been presented in original ESMP and they remain valid.

These include the following specific plans:

○ Air quality management plan

○ Soil and groundwater management plan

○ Noise and vibration management plans

○ Waste management plan

○ Workforce management plan

○ Community health and safety management plan

○ Cultural heritage management plan

○ Occupational health and safety plan (measures for health, safety and labor).

● In addition to the above, the contractors will ensure the following:

○ Covid-19 guidelines as defined by the Sultanate of Oman

(https://www.moh.gov.om/en/corona) and international organizations.

○ The contractors will ensure that the construction activities do not cause any access

restriction to general public (residential, commercial or public).

Grievance Redress Mechanism

Grievance Management Procedure

● Grievances can be received orally or in written at all construction sites, at Company’s

office(s), at Contractors’ office(s), through official channels (authorities), or social media

● Grievances can be communicated in person, by telephone, through paper (letter) or

electronic (email, message, communication

● Grievances need to be addressed in a consistent and verifiable manner

● In order for grievances to be recorded and responded to, grieving person’s or entity’s

contacts will be required

● Grievances may be linked to actual incidents, in which case the incident also need to be

reported and captured within the operation’s Incident Reporting System

● Grievances will all be responded to within the agreed, determined timeframe

● Grievances' validity (and receivability) will be evaluated as per established categories, for

which a processing time (from receipt to close-out) is allocated

Grievance Management Procedure

Closing Statement

Way Forward

● All documents are/will be posted on Oman Broadband’s web page

○ Final ESM Plan (In English with short version in Arabic)

○ ESMP Addendum (In English with short version in Arabic)

○ This presentation (English and Arabic version)

○ Grievance Redress Mechanism (English and Arabic version)

● Feedback is important to Oman Broadband – until November 22nd

○ Today from the feedback form

○ In person or by email/telephone in Oman Broadband

○ [email protected] – 80090000

Thank You