- Aquamarina Co. for Hotels was in the process of establishing a tourist yacht marina at Abu Suma Bay within the integrated project site that has been subjected to integrated environmental impact assessment studies.
- The company commissioned Environics to prepare a scoped EIA for the construction and operation of the proposed marina.
- The study aimed at:
- Providing an overview of the proposed marina and its components.
- Providing a description of the receiving environment where the project will be implemented.
- Determining the potential environmental impacts that might arise from the construction and operation of the marina and its components.
- Outlining the options for Environmental Management and sustainable development.
- Environics used and analyzed satellite images to identify the general features of the area, compiled previous available studies covering the area as well as published studies and reports describing beach and marine environment in the area, to obtain a base for field work. Climate data were also reviewed to determine the main climatic features of the area.
- Environics had previously conducted a marine and bathymetric survey of the proposed marina area to determine the environmentally appropriate location for the marina. Several alternative sites were selected and evaluated, and then the most appropriate location for the marina was selected from the environmental and ecological perspective.
- A detailed technical report was prepared on the extent to which the shoreline would be impacted by the construction of the marina.
- Based on these studies, this scoped study was prepared to assess the environmental impacts of the marina during the construction and operation phases, and specific interactions were analyzed to determine their direct impacts on different receptors, and impacts were divided into positive and negative.
- The negative impacts were also carefully analyzed, and mitigation measures and appropriate monitoring plans were recommended to minimize negative impacts to acceptable limits. The proposed procedures were elaborated, as well as the description of the required equipment and appropriate operating requirements.
