Design sheet

Mauritius

Design Sheet

Wastewater Treatment Plant No

Ministry of Housing and Lands

August 2012

Mauritius Wastewater Treatment Plant 1.0

Introduction

In line with go vernment’s initiatives to protec t our environment and to ensure the long term sustainab ility of our tourism industry, G overnment has decided that every hotel premises must include a wastewater treatment plant. Many hotels, mainly those which have 50+ roo ms alrea dy have a treatment plant.  This PPG makes it compulsory for all propo sed including

boutique

hotels of 50+ rooms

hotels, Real Estate Scheme (RES) and Integrated Resort

Scheme (IRS) projects to include

a wastewater treatment plant in their

project provided they are not connected to the main sewers network.

2.0

Bac kground

On ac count of the projected increa se in tourist a rrivals in the next few years it is antic ipated that a number o f additiona l ho tels will be constructed in the coa stal zones. As a ma tter of fac t there will be a greater need to protect and manage our coastal zone, including our lagoo ns. Thus, a high standa rd of environmental protec tion will have to be provided so as to ensure conservation of ecological a nd recreational assets of the coastal areas. On the other hand e nvironmental awa reness is growing throug hout the world a nd more and more tourists are attracted to destinations that take care of their environment. One of the ways to make Ma uritius a Green Destination is to start with the c onservation and p rotection of the environment within the hotel premises.

3.0

Design Sheet

 The Design Sheet provides for the specific planning criteria or typical de sign req uirement tha t must be c omplied by the propo nent. In determining ap plica tions for wastewa ter treatment plants, the permit authority should have regard to the following c riteria:

DESIGN SHEET Wa ste w a te r Trea tm e nt Plan t Ministry of Housing and Lands, August 2012

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Mauritius 3.1

Siting of Wastewater treatment Plant

As far as possible, wastewater treatment plants shall be located downwind of all reside ntial premises. Conventiona l wa stewa ter trea tment plant of significa nt nature with op en b asins (not enc losed ) should not be located less than 50 metres from the residential area . For wa stewa ter trea tment plant such as RBC , SBR and mode rn pa ckage types which are fully enc losed and equipped with od our control equipment, the loc ation of the wa stewa ter trea tment plant should not be less than 15 metres from the boundary line of the hotel premises. Notwithstanding same, the location and design of wastewater treatment plant should be to the satisfaction of the Ministry of Environment and Sustainab le Development, the Ministry of Hea lth and Q uality of Life, the Water Resources Unit and the Wastewater Ma nagement Authority. A thick green belt must be provided between the trea tment plant and the residential premises.  Treatment plants must not be loca ted in ecologica lly signific a nt features such as a re flora a nd fauna, enda ngered spec ies, strea ms, wetla nds or any other defined ESAs.

Features

Acceptable Distance in Metres (M) for Wastewater Treatment Plant

HWM line

40m

Wetlands

30m

Rivers, Lakes, Na tural wa ter c ourses Boreholes (public) (private) Residential areas

Other considerations

(Co nsultation be c arried o ut with WMA )

30m 200m 50m (setback may va ry with plant)

Plot boundary

15m

Pumping Station

30m

(to be agreed with relevant authorities at EIA Stage) (to be agreed with releva nt authorities at EIA Stage)

Table 1: Indicative Setbacks for Wa stewater Treatment Plant

DESIG N SHEET Wa ste w a te r Trea tm e nt Plan t Ministry of Housing and Lands, August 2012

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Mauritius 3.2

Topography

It is preferable that the topography of the site be used to fac ilitate flow through the network without pumping. Some of the c ompo nents of the plant may also be buried de pending on the site c ha ra c teristics.

3.3

Ac cessibility

It is preferable that the trea tment plant be rea dily ac cessible through a de dicate d service roa d so that its related activities do not interfere with other traffic within the hotel.

3.4

Visual appearance

Visual impacts of the wastewater plant need to be minimized with appropriate vegetation and landscaping features.

3.5 Noise In case the applica nt has to install a n electric moto r on site, he must comply with section 40 of the Building Ac t and public ise his intention in two (2) da ilies and serve a lega l notice through C ourt Usher up on contiguous neighbours. Mo reo ver, the noise level ge nerated by the elec tric motor must be within the prescribe d noise level as pe r the Environme nt Protec tion (Environment Standa rds for Noise) Regula tions 1997 promulga ted under the Environment Protection Act.

3.6

Plot spac e requirements treatment plant

for the setting

up of a

Wastewater

In view of the many type of treatment technologies and each one having its respe ctive requirement in terms of surfac e area , the plot spa c e requirements for setting up a wa stewa ter trea tment plant would vary.

4.0

Effec tive Date

 This Design Sheet on Wastewater Treatment Plant is effective as from the 13th August 2012.

DESIGN SHEET Wa ste w a te r Trea tm e nt Plan t Ministry of Housing and Lands, August 2012

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