ADB Ho Chih Minh City Mass Rapid Transit Line 2 Programme 2010 Environmental Specialist and review of Resettlement Action Plans

Ho Chi Minh City is the largest city in Vietnam, and is the commercial centre for the country. The population of HCMC is approaching 10 million in 2024, with at least a further 3 million in the surrounding provinces. The city population continues to grow quickly as the rate of urbanisation in Vietnam has increasing rapidly in the last decade. Whilst future population increases are expected to be largely in the suburbs, employment activity has grown in the CBD and central areas and demand for travel has increased rapidly. The Authorities including Management Authority of Urban Railways (MAUR) have developed a public transport system essential to support the planned growth of the city. With vision the authorities set an ambitious target to increase the proportion of trips made by public transport in the Metro areas from 5% in 2010 to around 45% by year 2025. Ho Chi Minh Metro Line 2 is one of six MRT lines in the transport master plan for the city. The MRT lines are intended to provide the backbone of the public transport network, but have been complemented by major expansion and restructuring of the bus network, and other physical and policy initiatives to discourage use of private vehicles and to encourage use of public transport. Dr Green completed the environmental workstream Metro Line 2 for the lead consultant on TA 7343 VIE advising the Bank’s SE Asia Department and Metropolitan Authority for Urban Railways (MAUR). Providing technical assistance for the preparation of the MFF. Review of Vietnamese EIA and review of EIA conducted under the TA 6842 VIE for compliance with ADB safeguards. Resettlement Action Plans were reviewed for inclusion in Initial Environmental Examination (IEE). Preparation of the EARF for the MFF. Preparation of REA and IEE for advance works on depot. The main environmental component was the EIA for the conceptual design and construction of about 10km of underground and elevated urban railway with Environmental Management Plan (EMP) for the detailed design and construction of MTR line 2 and capacity building (MAUR). Dr David Green led the environmental work stream, compiling all environmental reports in line with ADB procedures and checking compliance versus on Vietnam environmental assessment rules. The environmental assessments were carried out before ADB’s Safeguard Policy Statement 2009 (SPS) and further studies and therefore by 2010 additional environmental assessments were needed to meet the requirements of SPS. An Environmental Assessment and Review Framework (EARF) was prepared for the MFF and an IEE was completed for the advance enabling works at the depot that will take place in Tranche 1.

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