Review scoping ESIA coastal protection - Mozambique

27 December 2021

The Coastal Protection Project aims to create a high level of long-term security against coastal flooding, including increased climate resilience for the City of Beira. The proposed activities consist of interventions for four contiguous coastal stretches, for which an ESIA will be carried out. Invest International, a Dutch government facility funding the feasibility and environmental studies, requested us to review the scoping report for the ESIA.

To enhance sound decision making on the project, we advise to provide in the ESIA more information on amongst others the following issues:

• The responsibilities and mandate of the Beira Municipality;
• Off-site activities such as sand dredging, rock quarrying and clay mining and their impacts;
• Longshore currents, sediment transport rates along the coast and patterns of coastal erosion/accretion;
• The community involvement component which is required for a sustainable project;
• Impacts of and on other projects under development and impacts on the fisheries sector.