• Proposed farm not in area zoned for agriculture but for livestock raising and wildlife. Vegetation has been cleared and 120 of 180 acres ploughed.
• Nema, which had issued a licence, now has given the investor 10 days to show cause why it should not be withdrawn, as project can damage fragile ecosystem.
Image: NDREW KASUKU
An investor has been ordered to stop work on a proposed 180-acre fenced farm in the fragile Amboseli ecosystem.
The investor has been given 10 days to show cause why a license issued by Nema should not be revoked.
The entire area has been cleared of natural vegetation and at least 120 acres ploughed, the Conservation Alliance of Kenya said.
Initially, Nema had issued a license to Harji Mavji and Suresh Kurji Kerai, representing KiliAvo Fresh Ltd, to put up a farm, raising objections from conservationists.
They argue the project will disrupt wildlife migration corridors and dispersal areas.
National Environment Management Authority director general Mamo Mamo in a letter dated September 18 said the proposed farm was within a zoned wildlife corridor.
He said Amboseli is a fragile ecosystem and the approved plan by the Amboseli Land Owners and Conservation Association has zoned areas for conservation and livestock grazing. It conforms to the Amboseli Ecosystem Management Plan.
The proposed farm, however, violates the plan endorsed by all stakeholders and gazetted under Wildlife Act, 2015.
Mamo said if the license is revoked, the investor must submit a fresh EIA study to facilitate in-depth evaluation of the potential impact of the project and consultations.
“In the meantime, you are directed to immediately stop any further activities at the proposed project site,” Mamo said.
He said the decision by the authority is aimed at ensuring sustainable environmental management.
The investor can appeal to the National Environment Tribunal.
Nema's Kajiado county director Joseph Kopejo in a letter dated September 9 had ordered the investor to stop all activities for 30 days while Nema considers the next course of action.
The area is to be irrigated by groundwater from two boreholes. The farm would grow avocadoes, tomatoes, onions, garlic and other vegetables.
The Conservation Alliance of Kenya objected to the project, saying it will block wildlife movement. The umbrella organisation promotes the preservation and management of wildlife and their habitats.
Section 64(1) (b) of Environmental Management and Coordination Act says Nema may at any time after the issuance of an Environmental Impact Assessment license direct the licence holder to submit a fresh study.
Nema may act whenever a project proposes an environmental threat that could not reasonably have been foreseen at the time of the original study.
Conservation Alliance board chair Lucy Waruinge told the Star on Friday the project violates zoning in the gazetted Amboseli Ecosystem Management Plan.
It also violates the government's Wildlife Migratory and Dispersal areas report developed under Vision 2030 and launched in 2015, she said.
Waruinge said the project will not only exacerbate human-wildlife conflict but also threaten critical wildlife assets, thus limiting jobs and other economic benefits from tourism and conservation.
Waruinge said the land to be cultivated falls within the Livestock Production Zone, not the Arable Agriculture Zone.
Speaking for his investor client, lawyer John Lampat said they met all the requirements.
"We did an EIA which went through. However, several stakeholders in the ecosystem raised complaints that Nema should not have licensed the project. Nema did its part," he told the Star on phone.
"It is complicated because Nema has been taken over by pressure from NGOs, every day there is new development," he said.
Waruinge said six community conservancies have been established in the Kimana Wildlife Corridor, which are collectively represented by the umbrella Amboseli Land Owners Conservancy Association.
“These conservancies protect land for use by livestock - the main economic activity and dominant land use - and wildlife,” she said.
Waruinge continued, "If this development proceeds, despite the obvious environmental impacts and objections from local communities and stakeholders, it will be a clear invitation to private developers to engage in land conversion and fragmentation that will eventually destroy the ecosystem and its natural resources."
Waruinge said there are a few other farms, none of which should have been allowed.
Agricultural developments rely heavily on groundwater abstraction with unknown impact on aquifers that feed community springs, she said. Competition for water will contribute to human-wildlife conflict, she said.
Waruinge said there are large alternative and suitable areas at higher elevations on the slopes of Mt Kilimanjaro. They receive higher rainfall and are in an area zoned for agriculture.
The Amboseli ecosystem is one of Africa’s most spectacular landscapes and most visited tourist destinations. It is home to endangered wildlife species, including more than 2,000 elephants.
Viewing elephants against the backdrop of Mt Kilimanjaro drew 191,700 visitors in 2019 to Amboseli National Park. From 2017 to 2018 the Amboseli ecosystem generated at least Sh1.36 billion.
Almost 1,200 people were employed full-time in wildlife and conservation work.
(Edited by V. Graham)