Retrogressive politics and resource based conflict in Kenya in the wake of climate change

The international media is now awash with reports of massive killings in the South Eastern region of Kenya following clashes between the Pokomo and Orma communities.  Earlier yesterday the Kenyan media reported that about 30 people including 8 security personnel had been killed and scores wounded in the conflict that is now threatening the stability of the country’s Tana River County. Some media reports put the death toll since last month at about 100.

Just to put the current conflict into perspective, Kenya is not new to conflicts let alone ones of this nature. There are instances of conflicts that occurred in Kenya before 1992; however for the purposes of writing this article I have restricted myself to conflicts that have taken place between 1992 and now. And I have purposefully picked on the election years to highlight the role of retrogressive politics in resource based conflicts in the developing world, specifically Kenya.  

In 1992 Kenya witnessed country wide bloody conflict popularly referred to as “1992 tribal clashes” which is widely believed to have been politically instigated and revolved around access to and ownership of land. It was widely witnessed in the Provinces of Nyanza, Rift Valley, Western and Coastal. Thousands of lives were lost. 

In 1997 and 2002 there was more less a resurgence of the same kind of conflict with pockets of it scattered across the country. For some reason the intensity was not anywhere near the 1992, probably a few lessons had been learnt. However, the coastal region was hit badly one more time in 1997. 

2007 was probably the mother of them all since 1992. Following an election that was believed to have been widely rigged, Kenya was plunged into what has now been widely referred to as post election violence (PEV). This was the first time such a conflict had taken on a national outlook. What has continued to miss most eyes is the fact that all these conflicts revolve around access to natural resources and predominantly land which stems from the fact that Kenya is by and large an agricultural economy. Another key thing that keeps missing most eyes is the role played by retrogressive politics in either instigating or exacerbating such conflicts. In 2007 for example instead of the conflict staying on the course of its primary cause – stolen elections – it  quickly degenerated into a resource based conflict with various communities fighting each other over access to land. In Kenya, like most parts of the developing world, access to land is equivalent to livelihood for a majority of the populace. The following examples will show how the politically instigated conflict degenerated into a resource conflict: One, the case in 2007 PEV where the Kalenjin community in the modern day Uasin Gishu County drove their Kikuyu neighbours away from what they perceived to have been their land that was taken away from them by the Kikuyu during the periods when one of their own, President Kenyatta, was at the helm. Two, still in the 2007 PEV, the Kikuyu drove away the Kalenjin, Luo and Luhya communities from what is now Nakuru County primarily based on the perception that the region belonged to them and had been infiltrated by these communities during President Moi’s tenure and to a lesser extent President Kibaki’s tenure. These examples are important because they emphasize the fact that tribal conflicts are not only a preserve of poor small tribes in Kenya, but is also alive and kicking among the larger less poor tribes of Kenya namely the Kikuyu, Luhya and Luo. 

Back to the Pokomo and Orma conflict, it will do us a lot of justice if we first look at their way of life and geographical location in Kenya. And also what makes them more susceptible to conflict with each other. The Pokomo are predominantly agriculturalist and fishermen living along River Tana in Tana River District, Tana River County of Kenya. They are divided into two groups based on their geographical location with respect to River Tana’s geomorphology i.e. Upper and Lower Pokomo. As agriculturalists they are sedentary and have over the years cultivated the land along the banks of River Tana and fished its waters as their primary source of livelihood. 

The Orma on the other hand are nomadic pastoralists who live on the lower banks of River Tana. Being nomadic pastoralists they are given to moving from one place to another as nature dictates usually in search of pasture and water for their livestock which is their primary source of livelihood. But living in the Tana River region it goes without saying that River Tana acts as the primary source of water for their livestock. 

In the wake of rampant environmental change and changes in both global and local climatic conditions, most agricultural economies are faced with hard times as phenomena such as El Nino and La Nina are not only becoming more common place but the resultant droughts and/or floods are lasting longer whenever they come around with very devastating effects.   The effect of the foregoing scenario to South Eastern Kenya’s economy where the Pokomo and Orma live is twofold: One, in light of rampant droughts and flooding the Pokomo, over the years, have suffered enormous losses in terms of their crop harvests and are being forced to cushion such effects through maximization of the utility of their land through increased production during better days and also diversification into other sources of livelihood like entrepreneurial ventures. This has led to among other things their gradual spread into areas that they originally didn’t occupy. Two, increased drought leads to scarcity of vital resources such as pasture and water for the Orma community. In their quest to cope with such impacts they have over the years moved close to the banks of river Tana where they usually find lush growth of pasture and water and then return when conditions are favorable in the regions they moved out of.

However, considering the negative effect that global climate change is having on the Pokomo’s way of life, more than once the Orma do find themselves in a tight fix; faced with a situation where most land that they previously grazed during dry seasons in the years gone by have now been turned into cultivated farmlands by the Pokomo farmers. The Orma blind to the fact that the Pokomo may have acquired legal custody of the land, drive their animals into Pokomo farmlands destroying crops which is the single most important source of livelihood to the Pokomo. In response, the Pokomo find means of getting redress which in most cases involve police interventions. With porous borders and the situation in Somali, the Orma have found it easy to acquire fire arms and when confronted by police in most cases they retreat only to retaliate later, leading to a bloody conflict and unnecessary loss of lives and properties like is now witnessed in the region. 

From the foregoing, the conflict between the Pokomo and Orma communities seems to be such a simple thing that only requires a dose of land laws and regulations and voila the problem is fixed. Nay! It is actually a very complex problem and in my view its solution lies largely in changing people’s way of life. Not a small feat I reckon. To find a lasting solution, either the Orma have to be somehow converted to agriculturalists or the Pokomo made to adopt modern agricultural techniques like green house farming which require high capital, less space but guarantees high yields. Turning the Orma into agriculturalist will make them sedentary and as such there will be less interaction between them and the Pokomo. But in case such interactions occur it will be a positive one mostly involving exchange of goods and services between the two communities. On the other hand, having the Pokomo adopt modern farming methods like the green house farming will mean that they use less land to produce more. This has a net effect of providing the Orma with the much needed land to graze on during dry seasons like they have done since time immemorial. 

These are practical solutions that are very radical but at the same time achievable. They guarantee lasting solution to the conflict only if one last key component is brought on board. The missing component is progressive leadership which Kenya so much needs.

Lake Victoria: Water weeds my best friends. Humans my worst enemy.

On a recent vacation trip to my rural home in Awasi, I took sometime off and traveled to the lake side city of Kisumu to link up with a long lost friend of mine - Mr. Omiti.

Omiti and I have been great buddies since our days as undergrad students at Maseno University where we both studied Environment Science. Having not set eyes on one another for close to four years since our graduation, this meeting was one of a kind and had to be treated as that.

So we met and I suggested we go have some fish delicacy at Lwang'ni beach, but my friend being a resident of Kisumu hinted to me that Lwang'ni is no longer what it used to be and that if we were still to go that way we'd rather pick on Tilapia beach (a lake shore bar cum restaurant not far away from Lwang'ni).

In no minute we had a deal. And with all the excitement, we jumped into a tuk tuk(Auto Rickshaw) and headed straight to Tilapia beach. Life was beaming at the beach. My friend had brought along two of his girl friends. We had great time. The fish was as delicious as ever.

However, in the midst of all the joy and entertainment, something struck my heart. The sight of a Lake covered under a mat of Water hyacinth (Eichornia crassipes) and hippo grass (Vossia cuspidata). A sight foreigners or first time visitors would not find appalling. But because I did my undergrad around the Lake and we used to come for fish delicacies along Lwang'ni beach, I knew what the Lake shore used to be like. And seeing the same shore, about four years down the line, in the state we found it on this very day was really something perplexing, at least for me.

I found it hard to believe that I went to the Lake but never set my eyes on its water. Not that the Lake is dry, but because the section of the shore where we were was all covered in thick mat of water hyacinth spreading to about 800 meters into the Lake. Of this, about 200 meters from the shore into the Lake was covered by a mixture of hippo grass and Water hyacinth (that seemed to whither).

Water hyacinth floats on water but hippo grass doesn't. Hippo grass grows on soil and depends on its roots to take up nutrients from the soil, usually on the shallow bed of a wetland, for its survival. This in my opinion may explain why the hippo grass flourished only up to about 200 meters into the shore and also why the Water hyacinth seemed to whither as they approached the shore covered in hippo grass.  

About eight years ago, and my friend as well as local residents can confirm this, there were lots of recreational activities around Lwang'ni beach. These included boat rides for kids who usually came with their families to appreciate the beauty and serenity that the Lake environment offered. One can no longer find such services around Lwang'ni beach because it is all hippo grass and Water hyacinth. One would mistake it for a large sugarcane plantation.


As an Environmentalist with knowledge of freshwater ecology, when I saw the acreage of hippo grass and Water hyacinth that had covered the Lake, two things became apparent to me. One was that the Lake has become disturbingly shallow. And two, that the Lake is excessively fertile (read high nitrogen and phosphorus levels).

Lake Victoria is the largest fresh water Lake in Africa and the second largest in the World after Lake Superior in Northern United States of America. It is also the largest tropical Lake in the World.


The Lake is fed by several major rivers across the east African region. Some of which are River Kagera, River Yala, River Nzoia, River Sondu-Miriu and River Nyando.

All these Rivers originate from East Africa's highland regions which are beaming with agricultural activities. The fertilizer used in these agricultural plantations find its way into the streams as leachate and are eventually deposited in the Lake. It is this fertilizer that enriches the Lake and makes it conducive for the survival of the Water hyacinth.


Other sources of Lake fertilization may include faulty sewage treatment plant(s) which empty raw or semi-treated sewage into the Lake, and small time pollution by the restaurants/fish kiosks dotting the Lake's shore among others.

Lake Victoria Environmental Management Project (LVEMP) I, a World Bank funded project aimed at achieving sustainable management of Lake Victoria's ecosystem and implemented by the three East African states of Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania was initiated in 1992. Tackling the Water hyacinth menace was top on the agenda. Methods employed included both biological and mechanical interventions.


By the time LVEMP I was wrapping up in 2005, the total acreage of Water hyacinth mat covering the Lake had been substantially reduced. Uganda  and Tanzania had achieved the greatest reduction, while Kenya had the least achievement. This may partly explain why Water hyacinth is still a great threat to fishing and transportation in Kenya's Lake Victoria and by extension a threat to the livelihood of the Lake's riparian communities.

In a discussion with my friend, who is at the moment pursuing a Master degree in Environmental Science at our alma mater, he informed me that LVEMP phase II is underway. We all hope there'll be something to show for it once it goes full cycle and that it wont be riddled with embezzlement of funds like its predecessor, at least in the Kenyan case.


Other than LVEMP, several other interventions have been brought forth in an attempt to solve the puzzle that is Water hyacinth. These have ranged from manual removal of the weed from the lake shores by riparian communities to exploitation for other economic purposes like basketry and making of furniture.


Despite all these attempts the water hyacinth menace has remained persistent over the years.


It is my considered opinion that the situation has remained the same all this while because of several reasons but most importantly because of wrong approach taken in tackling the problem. All intervention measures taken so far have tended to tackle the symptoms of the problem while completely giving leap service to the real culprit i.e. the cause(s).


The main reason why the Water hyacinth and hippo grass are flourishing at the levels they are now, is because the Lake water is highly fertile and immensely sedimented.


Therefore, any attempt to address the Water hyacinth/hippo grass menace, if it is to be successful, should aim at first tackling the phenomenon that is Lake fertility and sedimentation. It is only when these two are properly addressed that the menace will be put under full control.


It is worth pointing out that Water hyacinth and hippo grass are not a "curse" to the Lake. As a matter of fact, the two weeds are a blessing in disguise which we need to embrace while tackling the real problems that include deforestation, unsustainable agriculture and pollution.


On that warm Sunday afternoon, when I set my eyes on the Lake choking in large acreage of Water hyacinth mats and hippo grass, for a  moment there my heartbeat rate slowed down. The Lake seemed to converse with me. It seemed to be telling me that "hey there...they (water hyacinth and hippo grass) are not my problem. In fact, they are my best friends as they are removing the toxins that your kind (humans) has forced down my throat. Your kind is my greatest enemy."
  

Dustbins alone are not enough

Last week Kenya's environmental watchdog - National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) - embarked on a campaign aimed at curbing waste menace emanating from the public transport industry known locally as matatu industry.

NEMA's move though noble and coming just at the right time, it is my considered opinion that it will achieve very little if the citizens are not educated on the essence of being eco-conscious.

With or without dustbins our matatus can still be clean only if we the wananchi became aware of the negativities of littering our surrounding. Imagine a situation where every person stopped to think of the would be impact(s) of their every little action before committing such acts.

To bring my point home, I wish to share a brief  personal story about my experience with our public transport industry.

Sometime back I set out to go to Kisumu travelling in one of the main coaches (that I would not mention here) plying the Nairobi-Kisumu route. These specific coaches are considerably environment friendly relative to most of the other players in the industry and "Kenyan standards"; that's why I do prefer them. Among other measures, they have a dustbin strategically placed next to the passengers' entrance/exit door.
In the course of the journey somewhere around Naivasha area, a fellow traveler (a man probably in his late 30s or early 40s) seated close to the window about two seats ahead of me stood up from his seat and was trying to open the window so that...and hear this...he could throw a packet of yoghurt (which I assumed he had just finished drinking) outside.
Before he could do it  I called out for him. I said "Hey! please don't throw it out through the window. There's a dustbin there in front where you need to dump it or better still give it to me I will take it for you."
I expected the guy to be challenged in a positive way, but I was wrong. Instead of taking it to the dustbin or giving it to me like I had suggested, he in protest opened the window and threw the packet out closed the window then sat down.
For a moment I heard the other travelers mumble then into the thin air their mumbles slowly dissipated. I didn't say anything to the guy thereafter. But we engaged in some discussion with my seat mate about what had just happened. He loathed the guy's action just like I did. I believe the guy learnt a lesson but was just to proud to admit it. Probably he had his family in the bus and felt embarrassed and just wanted to show he is still in charge. Who knows? But one thing is certain, next time he will think twice before pulling off such a stunt.

From the foregoing you will realize that lack of dustbin is not really the problem, but the problem is the mindset of the individual citizen(s) who - unfortunately - in most instances fail to contemplate the impact(s) of their actions to the environment.

 Plate 1: Polythene bags and milk packets thrown by the roadside.

Our constitution gives every citizen the right to a clean and healthy environment as well as a collective duty to ensure such a right is respected and upheld at all times. Every Kenyan citizen should be made aware of this as matter of public interest.

Therefore, while I support NEMA's move to have dustbins installed in all matatus I wish to also root for a comprehensive and extensive civic education program aimed at inculcating eco-consciouness among the Kenyan people. This way I believe we will have a more responsible citizenry that is keen on caring about the environment.

Kosgey's gesture a welcome move.

The late legendary American football coach - Paul William "Bear" Bryant - once said, "when you make a mistake, there are only three things you should ever do about it: admit it, learn from it and do not repeat it."

Hon. Henry Kosgey's gesture, in my opinion, is a most welcome move.

Public officers should not only learn the art of owning up whenever they have tripped, but they should also get it in their head that corruption, disregard of the law (whether outright or ignorantly), favoratism, cronism and tribalism/nepotism are the greatest enemies of progress and merit in any given society.

How "green" are you? Here are some of the things I do to make myself "green"...

Ensuring that we minimize our negative impact on the environment is a key element in tackling such concerns as pollution, solid waste, deforestation, global warming and climate change among a myriad of other existing and emerging ecological concerns.

A big chunk of the environmental concerns/problems we are experiencing is as a result of anthropogenic activities. Meaning our own actions (either as individuals or groups) have had a chain of reactions with feedbacks exhibited in various forms one of which is degraded environment.

It is worthy of note that, a degraded environment or an unstable ecosystem can barely support life. Therefore, there is a need to always ensure our environment is protected and at the least conserved if we are to have a  guarantee of healthy living. Our lives primarily depend on the natural environment around us and any degradation of it has a direct negative effect on life on Earth.

Each and everyone of us should thus strive to achieve an equilibrium on his/her interaction with the environment. Though our environment does act as a sink for nearly all our waste and those waste of the non-talking partners, we-the intelligent partner- should ensure that we don't serve the sink with more than it can take up at any particular time. In essence, am trying to say that we should minimizing on our waste as much as possible.

In my quest to achieve the highest level of eco-consciousness possible, I have taken to embracing several practices that minimize greatly my ecological footprint. The practices are ordinary and simple yet most of the time   majority of people take them for granted either for simple reason of ignorance or just because of misguided notion that an individual's action can have no substantial effect on a larger scale, say national or global.

The first thing I did was to change my attitude. As a little boy I used to believe that nature provides for us ad libitum and that it was inexhaustible and could take care of itself.  This was not until my dad introduced me to watching Sir David Attenborough's BBC nature documentaries and taking me and my other siblings on a tour of the local museum and agricultural shows, that I began to appreciate the fact that nature is wonderful, exhaustible and deserves to be conserved. I have since evolved in terms of attitude towards the natural environment and now I know better. I know my life is dependent on the quality and sustainability of my environment. I know the environment must be conserved and protected at all cost.

I live in the suburbs of Nairobi City and work within the city. On average, the distance to and from my work station is equivalent to a three hours drive on the minimum, with delays due to traffic jam taken into account. I don't own a personal car so am left with only one option - public transport. A majority use public transport in Nairobi. In fact, it is common place.

However, I have adopted a hybrid option of the public transport (matatus). Ordinarily, I should be boarding two vehicles to work in the morning and the same in the evening. But I do board two vehicles in the morning and only one in the evening. I have supplemented the dropped vehicle with a walk. When I realized the distance between my work station and the city center is a 15 - 20 minutes walk, I   immediately stopped boarding matatus and resorted to walking which not only goes along way in reducing my carbon footprint but also acting as a well deserved daily physical exercise. Am glad to say most of my colleagues at work have taken to walking too.

Still on the same point of public transport, I am always very keen on the kind of matatus I travel in. As a matter of principle, I don't do matatus that play loud music, those with loud exhausts and those that are poorly maintained which I usually judge by the amount of smoke emitted i.e. if a matatu emits huge smoke I don't board it.

Most of the matatus I travel in employ a receipt system. Passengers are issued with a receipt on payment of the bus fare. The receipts are however not reusable a fact that has resulted in an influx of litter(discarded receipts) at bus stops. As part of my going green goal, I have developed a habit of carrying my receipt(s) till the next dust bin where I offload them in there. Overtime I realized most people don't mind throwing litter anyhow and now I have taken to talking people out of the littering habit. I do it in a small scale but overtime am confident the result will be large scale.

In the house, I have taken to wise use (conservation) of everything. In terms of energy use, I am always keen to avoid any wastage. Whenever am leaving the house I do ensure my sockets are switched off. As a matter of principle I use only energy saving bulbs in the house. I strictly do clean energy in my houses, unless otherwise (blackout; when I may resort to candles). Whereas a paraffin stove may be cheap and an electric cooker efficient, I opted for a gas cooker for the simple reason of its eco-friendliness, hygiene and economy.

Taking clothes to the laundry may be stylish in this part of the world, but I have refrained from getting carried away. In fact, I only take my jackets to the laundry because I can't wash them in the house. Generally, I do my laundry in the house using cold water and ordinary washing soaps which have very minimal impacts to the environment as compared to the liquid detergents used at laundry outlets. I do dry my clothes out in the natural heat of the sun which is so abundant here in Nairobi.

Plastic is one commodity I have come to realize that one can't avoid using despite all the information about its negativity. Polythene bag - a member of the plastic family - is a cause of solid waste menace in most of our urban centers today. In fact, on average close to 75% of waste in any dumping site in Kenya is polythene. They're cheap, versatile and very readily available that it is almost impossible to avoid them. In my quest to be green, I have resorted not to demonise plastic/polythene but to use them wisely by embracing their versatility. I have taken to reuse of polythene bags as much as possible. Sometime if the number of polythene bags in my possession increase for one reason or another, I usually resort to using them as dustbins. Once a bag has had enough trash, usually on a weekly basis, I dispose it and all its content in the collection bin outside the house.

I live by two simple principles. One, "trash is not trash till it is trash." Simply put, my trash may be another persons raw material.  Two, "dustbins are only as useful as you want them to be" Don't litter your path with receipts and sweet wraps when you got dustbins all over. Also make sure you dump your trash right into the dustbin. Dropping the trash next to the dustbin helps with nothing but only causes more pollution.

I believe you too are doing something to reduce your ecological footprint. But if you have not started doing something then this is the time to start.

Now is the time for eco-consciousness. Let us mind the impacts of our actions to the environment. Let us all do something for nature. You can plant, switch off that unneeded light bulb, drop those receipts in the dustbin or better still initiate a going green campaign with your friends to create public awareness.

Mine is a call to action by each and everyone of us. Did you know that every trillion starts at one? The cumulative effect of all our little actions is great.

Human life; Is the preciousness and high value accorded to it slowly "unhemming" from our social fabric?

A story is carried in the media of a man who has killed his wife and children somewhere in a shanty dwelling in one of the country's major cities.

A few days pass and another bizarre story is carried in the major dailies. This time a man has hacked his wife to death.

Separately, a man and his fiancée are reported to have been accosted by unknown people on the eve of their wedding day and shot; the man fatally while the lady (who is pregnant) escapes with serious injuries and is rushed to hospital for treatment.

Almost during the same period it is reported that two brothers have been gruesomely hacked to death by unknown people in their rural home under what local residents term "very unclear circumstances."

In another part of the country, floods raise havoc destroying properties, displacing and killing people. But despite the affected people seeking assistance from the government and aid agencies operating in the region, none cares to offer the much needed assistance leaving the community with no option but to contend with their own already highly compromised capacity to cope.

These are just but a few instances where human life and dignity have been accorded, what I consider, the highest level of disregard possible by fellow human beings in our country.

Human life has for the longest time and through out ages been accorded utmost respect and dignity.

In fact, in most societies a person is respected irrespective of his/her social status both in life and death sometimes even more in death. For instance, in my community elaborate burial ceremonies are usually held for departed ones. The sole aim of such a ceremony is to accord the dead person a decent send off. The essence of the decent send off being basically to underscore the fact that every person has dignity and deserves respect.

But the unfolding trend in the contemporary society is a big cause of worry to any human being who believes in the dignity of a person.

Just yesterday there were media reports to the effect that two people, one supposedly an attendant at a leading morgue in Nairobi and the other a hearse driver, had been caught by police in possession of a male private part believed to have been chopped off from one of the dead bodies lying at the morgue. Quite disturbing!

One may wonder what makes a person lose his/her head to the extent of imagining that human body part(s) hold solution(s) to life's problems.

I think something is really wrong somewhere with our perception of life and how we interact and relate, not only amongst ourselves, but also with the other non-talking partners with whom we share this planet.

I believe it is time we looked deep into our relationship(s) and interaction(s) with each other and nature. And reaffirmed our commitment to the spirit of brotherhood and good stewardship with regards to our non-talking partners.

We are losing it. And losing it at a very fast pace.

But all is not lost. We still have a chance of redeeming our kind. I believe one way through which we can achieve this is by changing our mindset and adopting a positive approach to life while discarding the overly superstitious and self centered approach to life that a majority of folks ascribe to today. We also need to be very vigilant in ensuring that the dignity of every person is upheld at all times.

Any attempts to demean human dignity should be repulsed and condemned with the contempt it deserves at all times.

Police may be there to protect us but so long as the rot is deeply rooted in us all their attempts at bringing sanity will be in vain.

It is all up to us. We either change our perception and attitude towards each other and live purposeful lives; or we sit there, watch and do absolutely nothing and get consumed by the ills of a rotten society which we have propagated ourselves.

Let us not be blinded by the allure of Gold

"Kenya strikes gold" reads the title of a story in one of the major dailies in Kenya.

Gold without a doubt is one of the world's most precious and sought after metals trading at about $1246 an ounce. Lucrative, isn't it?

In actual sense, in almost all societies, Gold has been since time immemorial synonymous with wealth and class.

The royal families of the great kingdom of the Asante people in west Africa and the pharaoh dynasty of northern Africa are just but a few examples of ancient societies that used Gold to signify wealth and societal stature.

In the contemporary world, the perception accorded to this metal is not any different. Gold is a preserve of the "who is who" in society. The high and mighty. The rich and wealthy.

Gold is associated with success or great achievements in life. In sports, for instance, the best sports wo/men in any sporting field are usually awarded the gold medal - highest achievement possible.

Back to the newspaper story. What the headline of the story in that daily is trying to pass across is that Kenya has gotten wealth or richness if you may like. As Chinua Achebe would put "Kenya has met Eru the magnificent." That, without a doubt, is a plus for her economy, but it comes at a cost. An environmental cost for that matter and which is the main reason why I have written this article.

Reading the "Kenya strikes gold" story, I am disappointed by the obsession of both the authors with the allure of gold and their total disregard of the environmental and health effects associated with gold mining.

Whereas I am in agreement that gold is good for our economy and once we find substantial deposits of the same we should go ahead and mine it, I disagree with an approach that puts a blind eye to the potential effects of such a venture to our environment.

According to the US based Environmental Literacy Council (ELC), the greatest environmental concern associated with gold mining is the disposal of the overburden that is removed from the mines.

Considering the deposits found in Kenya so far lie deep below the ground, there's no doubt open-cast method will be employed to mine out the ore.

This has a two fold effect to the natural environment. One being the disposal of the overburden and the other being the creation of deep open pits (quarry) that may be very difficult to restore once the ore is exhausted and mining stopped.

The use and disposal of Cyanide solutions to dissolve and extract gold is another environmental concern. Cyanide is a well known poison.

In fact Hydrogen cyanide is acutely toxic to humans and in its gaseous state can be fatal at exposure levels of between 100-300 parts per million. It is also harmful to wildlife such as mammals, birds and fish which have acute toxicity reactions to even low cyanide exposure according to the ELC.

The most significant risk of cyanide use in gold mining is leaching into soil and underground water. As a matter of fact in every gold mine, there exists the grave risk of cyanide spill that could destabilize an ecosystem with exposure to toxic levels of cyanide.

With the foregoing, it is apparent that we as a nation can't just celebrate a gold find without looking seriously into the ramifications of gold mining both to our health and the environment.

It is worth noting that the newspaper story mentions briefly a mining bill and policy that are in the pipeline. These should be fast tracked to bring sanity to the mining industry which has been going on haphazardly, albeit in small scale, for ages.

However, there are existing environmental legislations which MUST be adhered to before ventures such as gold mining can be given a green light.

Article 42 of our newly promulgated constitution accords every citizen the right to a clean and healthy environment which includes the right to have the environment protected for the benefit of the current and future generations.

According to the Environmental (Impact Assessment and Audit) regulations of 2002 which is a subsidiary legislation to the Environmental Management and Coordination Act of 1999, proposed projects - mining projects included - should be subjected to an objective Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) to ascertain and/or identify their potential environmental and socio-economic impacts and suggest mitigation measures for the same by developing an Environmental Management Plan.

The law further provides for annual Environmental Audit which is aimed at ensuring compliance with the Environmental Management Plan developed during the EIA process.

In this way, proposed projects get implemented with environmental concerns taken into consideration thereby substantially minimizing adverse impacts to the environment.

Environmental quality and sustainability is key to sustainable economic prosperity of any nation. As a matter of fact, the United Nation member states did recognize when it outlined the infamous Millennium Development Goals; the seventh of which touches on environmental quality and sustainability.

Therefore, though we have every reason as country to celebrate the striking of substantial gold deposits within our territory, we also have every reason to worry about the impacts of gold mining to the quality and sustainability of ecosystems in our environment.

Let us not be blinded by the allure of gold, but we should be vigilant to ensure we reap the benefits of the find at the lowest environmental and health cost possible.