Nema told to prevent Kiambu miner from destroying land
Major Samuel Kanagara of Salvation Army Church on February 7, 2018 on the church's land in Thika East that it leased to a miner. It has accused the company of failing to adhere to Nema regulations, leading to massive environmental degradation. PHOTO | ERIC WAINAINA | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- The Salvation Army Church accused the mining firm of breaching a lease agreement by exceeding the set acreage and causing massive environmental degradation.
- In a report dated October 5 last year, Nema found the miner guilty of failing to adhere to the required regulations.
- It ordered the company to adhere to regulations or its licence would be revoked.
- But five months down the line, nothing has changed and efforts by the church management to follow up on the matter with the authority have yielded nothing.
The National Environment Management Authority (Nema) is on the spot for failing to act on a quarry miner it indicted for defying the law leading to massive degradation on land belonging to a church in Thika East, Kiambu County.
The Salvation Army Church in 2013 leased 37 acres of its land to Mungaru Enterprise, to mine building materials.
WARNING
However, since last year, the church has accused the firm of breaching the lease agreement by exceeding the set acreage and causing massive environmental degradation.
Nema, after a series of correspondence with the church and inspection of the site by its officers, gave a notice to the miner, asking the firm to adhere to the conditions it had blatantly disregarded, failing which its operating licence would be revoked.
In a report dated October 5 last year and signed by a Ms Salome Machua on behalf of the Nema director-general, the miner was found guilty of failing to adhere to the required regulations.
The report was copied to Murang’a County Commissioner, County Commander and County Director of Environment who were to ensure compliance.
CONDITIONS
The conditions were that the firm would adhere to the environmental management plan, establish a quarry pit rehabilitation and an after use plan, observe riparian reserve, ensure the quarry cliffs are securely fenced and end undercutting or tunnelling.
Nema also instructed the firm to assess buildings surrounding the quarry to ascertain their vulnerability to blasting effects.
The report also directed the miner to take measures to prevent pollution and ecological deterioration such as controlled blasting, soil erosion, rehabilitation of excavated areas, dust control as well as ensuring that all roads to and from the quarry are accessible and watered.
But five months down the line, nothing has changed and efforts by the church management to follow up on the matter with the authority have yielded nothing.
The effects on the mining had led to the drying up of a Sh5 million borehole belonging the church’s theological college after the excavation activities interfered with the water table.
