Project: National Highway Sector Project II
Environmental Impact Assessment
Client: Asian Development Bank
Location: India
Type of Project: Environmental Impact Analysis
Start: 2004
National Highways Development Program, including
improvement of the main central highway in India comprising most of the
NH26 and NH7 in the states of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharastra
and Andhra Pradesh, is being carried out by the National Highways
Authority of India.
Madhya Pradesh sector of national highway develpment
The project involves widening to a dual two lane
carriageway with central reservation. The aim is to shorten traveling
times in the north south corridor and attract traffic from the better
roads to the east and west and attract development and commerce to the
central states. The Project was reconfirmed as a category B
environmentally non-sensitive Project in accordance with the ADB’s
requirements of 2003. Therefore IEEs were undertaken for the various
sub projects. Alternative routes, including minor realignment of the
existing route and major bypasses were assessed during the selection of
the preferred alignments.

Towns and villages bypassed
In places the existing alignment passes through Reserve
Forest (RF) and impacts were reduced by widening one side. Impacts to
sensitive locations such as wildlife sanctuaries and buffer areas were
reduced by improving alignments and shortening roads in the sensitive
locations. Archaeological sites, antiquities and monuments were
avoided by careful realignment of the widened trace.
Wildlife Sanctuaries and forests avoided
David Green conducted a state wide Sector Impact
Assessment to assess the overall impacts from the loan activities. He
also assisted with capacity strenghthening for the local consultants
with advce on the compilation of IEEs to comply with ADB guidelines.
Environmental management plans were compiled with typical environmental
mitigation requirements which will serve to manage the impacts from all
phase 1 improvements and guide implementation of future plans. |