Mazingira yetu 1

[Fundi Mchundo]

Case Study 2: EIA in National Parks
In their recent study of the EIA practice in Tanzania, Mwalyosi and Hughes (199 have underscored the ad hoc, unplanned and shoddy manner in which EIA has been undertaken in Tanzania. They reveal, for instance, that of the 50 documents "described or purporting to be environmental assessments" which they examined, only 26 were genuine. They argue that EIA has been undertaken not as an intrinsic part of the projects concerned but appear as an afterthought relevant only for purposes of public relations and as a result their contribution to project design and implementation appear to be marginal. The study carried by the two researchers covered, among other areas, the construction of tourist facilities such as hotels and lodges in the Serengeti National Park and Ngorongoro Conservation Area in Northern Tanzania. We present herein some of their findings on the EIA as practiced in these areas.

Mwalyosi and Hughes write that the EIA studies for construction of the Serengeti Serena Lodge National Park and the Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCAA) were commissioned on very short notice when "detailed project designs had already been prepared … and severe time constraints were imposed on the EIA team in order to minimise delays in the implementation of the project" (Mwalyosi and Hughes, 1998:59). As a result "the recommendations for (modest) design modifications … were not considered acceptable by the lodge company on the grounds that the project design had already been completed..." Consequently, "one of the key recommendations of the EIS - the integration of adequate liquid waste treatment facilities into project design - had clearly not been implemented, and the lodge was facing a considerable problem in dealing with the disposal of such wastes. At the time of the evaluation visit, waste water overflowing from inadequate waste pits had created a new wetland microhabitat" (ibid., 61). Similar findings were also recorded in respect of the Grumeti Serena Tented Camp in the Serengeti National Park (ibid., 63-64).

As in Serengeti National Park, the construction of huge tourist facilities has been going on apace in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area which adjoins the Serengeti to the southeast. This is part of the government strategy to cash in on the tourism industry as one of the engines for economic growth in Tanzania as part of the larger economic liberalization package. One result of this policy is that in the four years leading up to 1997, four big tourist hotels had already been commissioned and a fifth was under construction. The four - Ngorongoro Serena Lodge, Ngorongoro Crater Lodge and Sopa Lodge - are dotted around, an in fact stand on the rim of, the Ngorongoro Crater.

This expansion in tourist facilities has not come without a cost. The facilities are huge steel and concrete structures which are potentially more harmful to the ecological integrity of the fragile Ngorongoro ecosystem as they require huge and continuous supply of water and waste treatment or storage facilities. But in what appears to be typical practice whenever powerful foreign investors are involved, these lodges were built against the wishes of the Ngorongoro Conservation Area Authority (NCAA) which has legal mandate to authorize construction of such facilities; and no environmental impact assessment was conducted prior to their construction.

As a result, serious environmental problems are already emerging in relation to them. Sopa Lodge has, for instance, been accused of diverting for its use the Oljoronyuki Stream which is used by both Maasai pastoralists for their cattle and by wildlife as well as of dumping solid waste from the hotel into the Crater (Lissu, 199. This Lodge also caught the eye of the Warioba Commission which observed that the construction site for it was shifted twice due to "pressure" from the top leadership in the Ministry of Tourism after to NCAA had refused to issue construction permit on the sites chosen by the owners of the Lodge (Tanzania, 1996, Vol. 2:431).

In reviewing the evidence on the processes leading up to the construction of the tourist facilities in the National Parks and other protected areas such as public beaches, the Warioba Commission further observed that "often the investors have been insisting to be permitted to build (hotels) inside protected areas hence endangering the environment. Pressure to facilitate such requests sometimes has been originating from the top leadership in the Department (of Tourism)" (ibid., Vol. 2:431). The Commission gave a long list of the hotels and lodges which have been built within National Parks and other protected areas as a result of these "pressures" (See Appendix D, ibid., Vol. 2:439).

That convergence of interests - the "closeness between leaders and corrupt businessmen" - between high state officials on the one hand and powerful corporate interests on the other can be seen by looking at the corporate interests which are behind the development of the tourist facilities in the protected areas. Serena Lodge is part of H.H. the Aga Khan's business empire, and President Mkapa himself cut the tape to officially open the hotel in 1996. The Ngorongoro Crater Lodge is a subsidiary of the Conservation Corporation (Africa) Ltd., a South African conglomerate with business interests in a number of African countries; while Sopa Lodge is also owned by wealthy business interests of Asian origin with foreign connections.

Hii ripoti ni ya zamani kidogo lakini nadhani bado ina umuhimu hasa ukizingatia kuwa tuko mbioni kuongeza mahoteli na kujenga uwanja wa ndege katika sehemu hii nyeti. Pingamizi za wana mazingira zimetupwa mbali, tukisisitiza uongezaji wa mapato! Hivi tutafika kweli?

 

[Fundi Mchundo]

Wildebeest migration at risk from Serengeti airport plan
By Steve Bloomfield, Africa Correspondent
Published: 27 August 2007

Stewart Edward White had walked for hundreds of miles, trekking south from Nairobi. An American hunter in 1913, exploring parts of Africa where no outsider had ever ventured. White had seen only "burnt out country".

"Then," he recorded in his diary, "I saw green trees of the river, walked two miles more and found myself in paradise."

White had discovered the Serengeti, a vast savannah, home to wildebeest and zebras, lions and buffalos. To the Masai who lived there it was known as the 'endless plain' or 'the place where the land moves on forever'. It is a land that has barely changed in more than a million years.

Soon though, it could all look very different. The Tanzanian government has approved plans to build new roads, an airport and a handful of hotels in an attempt to drastically increase the number of tourists visiting the Serengeti National Park.

Environmental groups, including the country's national parks authority, have expressed their concerns over the plans, arguing that the new infrastructure could do lasting damage to one of the world's most stunning reserves. It could also disrupt the one of nature's greatest wonders - the wildebeest migration.

Both sides cite the Masai Mara, just over the northern border with Kenya, to back their arguments. The government points to the huge amount of tourism revenue it brings Kenya, while environmentalists argue the Mara has been damaged by mass tourism and insist the Serengeti should not go the same way.

The Mara has nearly 5,000 hotel beds - compared to fewer than 1,000 in the Serengeti. Helped by strong transport links - Nairobi has one of the busiest airports in Africa, with daily flights to London, Paris and Amsterdam - Kenya has managed to turn the Mara into one of the country's biggest earners.

Earlier this year viewers of an American morning television show voted the Masai Mara one of the new seven wonders of the world. Kenya's tourism chiefs have capitalised on the publicity and it is impossible to book a room less than three months in advance.

But Sam Munye of Tourism Concern Kenya said the tourist boom has come at a price. Soaring visitor numbers to the Mara have severely damaged the park's infrastructure, with roads crumbling, forcing drivers to go off-road, damaging the grassland.

"In the Masai Mara we have airstrips and lodges and it has become very congested," said Mr Munye. "Mass tourism has been affecting our wildlife.

"If they want hotels they should build them outside the park so the animals have freedom of movement. The Masai Mara is terrible right now. They should not repeat what we in Kenya have done." Currently the Serengeti is served by two airstrips, one in the national park itself, the other on the outskirts. But both are small and the majority of tourists have to drive eight hours from Arusha airport through the Rift Valley and Ngorongoro Crater to reach the park, which has just nine permanent lodges as opposed to 25 in the Mara.

Tanzania's prime minister, Edward Lowassa, told parliament that plans to build new hotels, roads and an international airport would go ahead, despite the opposition.

He told parliament: "Our hotels in these areas have only 940 rooms, while the area on the Kenyan side, which is six times smaller, has 4,700 rooms. And when we want to invest, we are told we shouldn't build any hotels."

One of the luxury lodges already under construction is likely to be bought by the Kempisnki hotel group. "There is a very, very strong interest," said Puneet Singh, a spokesman for Kempinski. Mr Singh insisted Kempinski would not be involved in a project that damaged the environment. "The Serengeti is one of a kind. We always use practices that are very environmentally friendly. It is part and parcel of the way we do business."

Opposition to the projects has been led by the director general of the Tanzania National Parks Authority, Gerald Bigurube. He warned government officials the developments could hamper the movement of animals from the Masai Mara into the Serengeti.

He said: "To maintain biodiversity and ecosystem functions in both the short and long-term it is necessary to maintain habitat connectivity so that individual animals can move freely across the landscape."

If animals could not move freely it would severely affect migration. More than a million wildebeest and 200,000 zebras make the journey south through the Masai Mara into Serengeti National Park every year, following the rains.

Mr Bugurube's views were echoed by the Franfurt Zoological Society, closely involved in protecting the Serengeti for more than 50 years. Its spokeswoman, Dagmar Andres, said a rise in tourists would severely damage the Serengeti's ecosystem. She said: "They will have all the problems you have in the Masai Mara with all these hotels and all this traffic."

Ms Andres said Tanzania had focused on high-class tourism, which has a far lower environmental impact and provides twice the Kenyan revenue per person.

Zoologists met Tanzanian ministers last week to ask the government to reconsider. Ms Andres said: "We hope there is a reasonable solution. We hope the Serengeti will remain as it is."

Hii ni ni ya hivi karibuni! Bado tunabisha! Tutafika kweli?

 

[Fundi Mchundo]

Govt Stops 120-Room Hotel Project in Serengeti
Posted: Wednesday May 10, 2006 8:25 PM BT
By Mike Mande - Nairobi

Construction of a 120-room hotel at Bilia in the Serengeti National Park in Northern Tanzania has been stopped until a dispute with both local and international conservationists is resolved.

The dispute was triggered by a damning environmental impact assessment (EIA) compiled by the Institute of Resource Assessment at the University of Dar es Salaam that indicated that the construction of the hotel in the park would have a damaging effect on the ecological system of the Serengeti and interfere with the animal migratory patterns.

The Serengeti National Park, which on the Kenyan side of the border forms part of the Masaai Mara wildlife migratory route, is one of the most famous tourist attractions in the world and along with Mount Kilimanjaro forms the main attraction on Tanzania's northern tourism circuit.

Tourism is the second largest contributor to Tanzania's gross domestic product after agriculture.

According to an annual report by the Bank of Tanzania, the sub-sector in 2004 fetched $58.9 million, compared with $39.4 million registered in 2003, in response to an increase in tourism-oriented investments.

Investigations have established that some international wildlife management organisations and NGOs are planning to take the matter to the International Court of Justice if the government goes ahead with the project. Serengeti is listed by Unesco as a World Heritage Site.

However, Saleh Pamba, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism, told The EastAfrican that the government was waiting for a recommendation from the Board of Trustees of Tanapa (Tanzania National Parks Authority), which is set to meet later in the month, before it makes its final decision.

Reports say the Board is divided over the matter, with some members supporting the EAI report and others, such as the Ministry for Tourism and Natural Resources, arguing that Serengeti is large enough to absorb the impact of a "mere" 120-room hotel.

Among the international organisation opposed to the construction of the hotel are Unesco World Heritage Centre in Paris, the Frankfurt Zoological Society of Germany, the Conservation Development Centre of Ireland and the Lawyers' Environmental Action Team of Tanzania.

The project was to be undertaken by a Dubai-based investment firm, Albawardy Investments. The company owns one of Tanzania's biggest hotels, the Kilimanjaro Hotel Kempinski in Dar es Salaam, as well as the Zamani Kempinski Resort in Zanzibar. The 180-room Kilimanjaro Hotel Kempinski, or The Kili, was reopened in August, 2005 after a $40 million renovation while the 111-room Zamani Kempinski Resort was opened late last year.

Sources among the conservationists revealed that the stopage followed an agreement between Albawardy Investments, the Tanzania government and international environmental organisations. Tanapa has been advised on the environmental consequences of constructing the hotel.

Joe ole Kuwai, projects director of the Frankfurt Zoological Society's regional office in the Serengeti, said that Tanapa has resolved not to continue with the project due to its ecological impact, and that all stakeholders including the investor have agreed not to construct the hotel in the park.

Serengeti is among the World Heritage Sites and Biosphere Reserves in which over a million wildebeest, half a million Thomson's gazelle and a quarter of a million zebra are concentrated. It covers an area of 14,763 square kilometres and is one of the largest wildlife sanctuaries in the world.

Tanapa received a letter of interest from a Dubai investor for the construction of the 120-bed room hotel at the Bilia site in September 2005.

In January 2006, Tanapa reviewed its Development Leasing Programme to allow construction of permanent tented camps with a total of 120 tents in the wildlife area, provoking strong opposition from environmentalists and the general public.

The camps would have been constructed in four earmarked areas of Wogakurya 1, 2 and 3 and Musabi Hills, with each area having one tented camp with 30 tents each.

Tanapa public relations officer Catherine Mbena told The East African from Arusha that an investor with a reputable firm would be given one site in which they would be required to construct only a 30-bedroom camp.

Ms Mbena said the camps would be constructed following a review of Tanapa's Development Action Lease Procedures.

Dr Markus Borner, director of Africa for the Frankfurt Zoological Society, said the new management plan for the Serengeti is ecologically and environmentally friendly as it prohibits any further construction of hotels. He maintained that the new plan has not agreed on anything about granting permission for the hotelier to construct an hotel in Serengeti Wildlife Sanctuary.

It is a good plan with checks and balances in place, because the discussion involved all stakeholders in tourism, as well as environment and wildlife experts, he said, adding the plan would be made public after some minor changes.

Environmentalists are opposed to the project because it will block wildlife migrating seasonally between Serengeti and the Maasai Mara Game Reserve in Kenya.

Serengeti has a number of lodges and camps, but they are mostly built outside the national park. They including the Seronera Wildlife Lodge, Lobo Wildlife Lodge, Ndutu Safari Lodge (near Olduvai Gorge) Serengeti Serena Lodge, and Serengeti Sopa Lodge.

The Kijesereshi Tented Lodge is just outside the camp south of Nsabaaka Gate and the Migration Camp is around the Lobo area.

Na wengine walisema haya mwaka jana, tukapuuzia.

 

[Agao Kichore]

Normally the Government top leaders do not listen to anything that will detriment their interest especially after they made a promise to investors to influence investment decision.

I dont't think if environmists will conquer the JK to turn down decision to invest in Serengeti.

We have witnessed him taking step on the issue by meeting US tycoon whom believed to be one of the investors in one of this precious area in the World.

The solution is to insist to our opposition leaders to take the facts from researchers to become a base of making the matter a political saga and make it to general public to unite our against the project. Dr Slaa and other leaders bring the issue to Jangwani. We have seen it working on Buzwagi, BOT.

 

[Fundi Mchundo]

Normally the Government top leaders do not listen to anything that will detriment their interest especially after they made a promise to investors to influence investment decision.

I dont't think if environmists will conquer the JK to turn down decision to invest in Serengeti.

We have witnessed him taking step on the issue by meeting US tycoon whom believed to be one of the investors in one of this precious area in the World.

The solution is to insist to our opposition leaders to take the facts from researchers to become a base of making the matter a political saga and make it to general public to unite our against the project. Dr Slaa and other leaders bring the issue to Jangwani. We have seen it working on Buzwagi, BOT.

I agree with you but I feel that the problem lies with us, the members of public, for whom the issue of the environment is not seen as one to merit our attention. I opened this thread here just to see whether those fellow members who are so vocal and concerned about national issues would deign to visit it. None have, except for you. We are too concerned with politics, petty or otherwise, that we don't see the fire burning around us. No wonder the foremost profession, if one could call it that, is politics. We are all politician wanna-bes. Unfortunately, the politicians also are really not interested in environmental issue. Dr Slaa together with the PM supported the soda ash processing plant on Lake Natron despite all protestations from environments pointing out the long term adverse effects on its flamingos (see: http://allafrica.com/stories/200711060801.html)
I thank the administrators who have shown their concern by keeping this post alive despite its sell-by having long passed! Thanks whoever you are.

 

[Fundi Mchundo]

Factory Could Disrupt Flamingo Breeding on East African Lake

NAIROBI, Kenya, July 18, 2007 (ENS) - Conservation groups are outraged over a proposed soda ash factory near Tanzania's border with Kenya that threatens the survival of the entire East African population of lesser flamingos. The light pink birds that flock by the hundreds of thousands to the lake each summer to breed attract visitors from around the world.

The plant would be constructed by Lake Natron Resources, a subsidiary of the giant Indian conglomerate Tata Chemicals, to mine 500,000 tons of soda ash, or sodium carbonate, each year. Soda ash is used to produce glass, cosmetics, detergent, paper pulp and other industrial goods.

Lake Natron, in the Great Rift Valley, is known as a soda lake because of its high concentration of sodium carbonate. It is attracts largest number of flamingoes of of the world's five breeding sites - 75 percent of the species. If it is damaged, conservationists say there is no evidence that the birds will breed successfully elsewhere.

The only East African site in which lesser flamingo, Phoenicopterus minor, has bred in the past 45 years, Lake Natron is recognized as a Ramsar Wetland of International Importance, and as an Important Bird Area by BirdLife International.

A draft environmental impact assessment of the project, released July 12 at a workshop in in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, says the proposed factory would pose a significant degree of environmental risk to the 500,000 lesser flamingos that breed there each year.

Conservationists fear the soda ash plant could upset the delicate natural ecology of the lake. Even minute changes in habitat can disrupt breeding by lesser flamingos, which IUCN-World Conservation Union has classed as a near-threatened species.

An ecologist with the Nairobi-based African Conservation Center, Ken Mwathe, says the environment impact assessment confirms what environmentalists have been warning for months.

The report acknowledges that building the plant could result in Lake Natron losing its wetland status and create high levels of light and noise pollution. It says that extracting soda ash would have a significant impact on the chemical composition of the water.

The proposed development will pump 530 cubic meters of brine per hour and produce and export half a million tons of sodium carbonate annually. There may also be a 11.5 megawatt coal-fired power plant and a residential complex to house 152 permanent and 1,225 construction workers expected on the site.

"Flamingos are going to be disturbed during breeding, and therefore, because they are very sensitive to disturbance during breeding, then it is likely that 75 percent of the world's population of flamingos are going to be affected," Mwathe explained, "because Lake Natron is host to the breeding of 75 percent of the flamingos in the world. But then they do not say what are they going to do to deal with that."

The report concludes there are no environmental impacts that would definitely rule out construction. Mwathe says that ignores one of his main worries about the plant - its heavy use of water.

"One of the things that we are concerned about is this plant is going to use 106,000 liters of water per hour," he said. "That is a lot of water in a very dry environment with very few rivers."

"The consultants and the proponents, that is Tata Chemicals, have not done hydrological surveys," Mwathe said. "There is no hydrological data in this report."

Lake Natron is listed as a wetland of international importance because it provides the unique habitat that allows the flamingos to survive. It is full of the bacteria that is their primary diet and is shallow enough for them to build the mud nests where they lay their eggs. Predators like baboons and hyenas are deterred by the lake's high salinity.

Lake Natron Resources wants to bring in heavy machinery to pump water from the lake and build a coal-fired power station and housing for workers on the site.


The lesser flamingo is the smallest of the four members of the flamingo family. (Photo by Adrian Pingstone)
"The chances of lesser flamingos continuing to breed at Lake Natron in the face of such mayhem are next to zero," said Dr. Chris Magin, international officer for Africa with the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.

"This development will leave lesser flamingos in East Africa facing extinction and should be stopped in its tracks and sunk in water so deep it can never be revived," he said.

Conservationists in Africa and the UK are determined to influence the environmental report before it goes to the Tanzanian government but many were barred from the workshop, including the Lake Natron Consultative Group, which represents several environmental organizations.

Lota Melamari, CEO of the Wildlife Conservation Society of Tanzania, the BirdLife partner in Tanzania, attended the workshop. He said, “It is important that whatever decisions are made do not jeopardize the survival of the lesser flamingo, a key component of the tourist experience in East African national parks."

Tata Chemicals and the consultants who did the survey did not respond to reporters' requests for comment, and it is unclear what effect the environmental assessment will have on any decision to build a plant at Lake Natron.

On its website, Tata calls itself the company that cares and says it is recognized as one of the most environmentally responsible in India.

But conservationists are not reassured. Dr. Magin said, "This could be the beginning of the end for the lesser flamingo. Millions of people have enjoyed the spectacle of flocks of flamingos in Tanzania and Kenya and all of that is now in jeopardy."

Copyright Environment News Service (ENS) 2007. All rights reserv ed.

For the lates on this issue see http://allafrica.com/stories/200711060801.html

Nilianzisha thread kama hii upande wa hoja muhimu lakini naona wengi wetu hawatembelei huko. Suala la mazingira ni muhimu sana kwa sababu ni rasilimali ambayo ni vigumu sana kuirudisha pale utakapoipoteza. Katika huu wakati ambapo tunafukuzia maendeleo kwa udi na uvumba ni muhimu sana kuwa ni lazima tuangalie gharama halisi kwetu sisi na vizazi vijayo ambavyo sisi ni custodian wao. Wawekezezaji hawana uchungu na mazingira yetu maana wao ni watafutaji tuu. Haya tuna jenga mahoteli, kiwanja cha ndege Serengeti( angalia thread Mazingira 1 kwenye Hoja Nzito) bila kujali kwamba kwa kufanya hivyo hao wanyama tunawaharibia mazingira yanayowawezesha kuwepo. Tunajenga kiwanda kwenye L. Natron bila kujali athari yake kwa hao ndege ambao ni kivutio kikubwa si kwa watalii tuu hata na sisi wenyewe. Tuliwashangaa wenzetu kwa juhudi kubwa waliochukua kunusuru uhai wa vyura wa Kihansi. Hapo tutakapoanza kuwapeleka watoto na wajukuu wetu Botswana, Afrika Kusini(Leo tunaletewa vifaru kutoka Afrika Kusini) na, naam, hata ulaya kuangalia viumbe ambavyo kwa kiburi na uroho wetu tumeviangamiza hapa kwetu ndipo pengine tutaamka. Na tutawaambia nini watakapotuuliza tulivipeleka wapi viumbe vyetu?

 

[Kibunango]

Factory Could Disrupt Flamingo Breeding on East African Lake

For the lates on this issue see http://allafrica.com/stories/200711060801.html

Nilianzisha thread kama hii upande wa hoja muhimu lakini naona wengi wetu hawatembelei huko. Suala la mazingira ni muhimu sana kwa sababu ni rasilimali ambayo ni vigumu sana kuirudisha pale utakapoipoteza. Katika huu wakati ambapo tunafukuzia maendeleo kwa udi na uvumba ni muhimu sana kuwa ni lazima tuangalie gharama halisi kwetu sisi na vizazi vijayo ambavyo sisi ni custodian wao. Wawekezezaji hawana uchungu na mazingira yetu maana wao ni watafutaji tuu. Haya tuna jenga mahoteli, kiwanja cha ndege Serengeti( angalia thread Mazingira 1 kwenye Hoja Nzito) bila kujali kwamba kwa kufanya hivyo hao wanyama tunawaharibia mazingira yanayowawezesha kuwepo. Tunajenga kiwanda kwenye L. Natron bila kujali athari yake kwa hao ndege ambao ni kivutio kikubwa si kwa watalii tuu hata na sisi wenyewe. Tuliwashangaa wenzetu kwa juhudi kubwa waliochukua kunusuru uhai wa vyura wa Kihansi. Hapo tutakapoanza kuwapeleka watoto na wajukuu wetu Botswana, Afrika Kusini(Leo tunaletewa vifaru kutoka Afrika Kusini) na, naam, hata ulaya kuangalia viumbe ambavyo kwa kiburi na uroho wetu tumeviangamiza hapa kwetu ndipo pengine tutaamka. Na tutawaambia nini watakapotuuliza tulivipeleka wapi viumbe vyetu?

Tatizo la Mazingira yetu halipo kwa viongozi pekee, hata wananchi wa kawaida suala la utunzaji wa mazingira lipo mbali sana nao. Hii inapelekea kuwepo na ugumu fulani katika kufikisha ujumbe wa kimazingira. Wananchi wengi bado wanategemea kuhalibu mazingira ili waweze kupata nishati(utumiaji wa mkaa).
Hivyo kuna kazi kubwa ya kufahamisha wananchi umuhimu wa utunzaji wa mazingira na athari za uhalibufu wa mazingira.

 

[Fundi Mchundo]

Ndiyo, Ndugu Kibunango. Apathy iko hata kwetu sisi tunaojiona kuwa ni wasomi. Wote tumejazana kwenye jukwaa la siasa! Hao wananchi siwalaumu. Ni sis ambao tunapandisha bei za nishati mbadala bila kuangalia uwezo wa jamii zetu. Tukiambiwa, tunakuja juu. Halafu tunashangaa wananchi wanapo haribu vyanzo vya mito za kupelekea upungufu wa maji katika mabwawa yetu! Leo sijui kama kuna maandalizi yeyote ya siku ambapo ile theruji ilito kwenye mlima Kilimanjaro itapoondoka katika miaka ya hivi karibuni. Huo mlima ambao tunajivunia kwa sasa tutaendelea kujivunia utakapokuwa kipara!! Tatizo letu tunapenda vya haraka haraka bila kutoka jasho. Lakini kwa vile sisi wasomi tuko mguu moja ndani na mwingine nje sidhani kama hii inatusumbua maana pa kukimbilia tunapo!

 

[Kibunango]

Usomi unaweza kuwa ni moja ya sababu, Nianavyo mimi ni mfumo mzima wa utawala ambao umechangia na utaendelea kuchangia kuwepo na uharibifu wa mazingira.

Hebu angalia tatizo la ujenzi holela, hili limetokana na sera mbovu za ugawaji wa ardhi, urasimu, rushwa na ongezeko la kasi ya majitaji ya ardhi kutokana na ongezeko la watu. Vyombo husika vimeshindwa kukidhi mahitaji ya wananchi, hivyo wananchi wameamua kuvamia ardhi na kujenga pasipo kuafuata taratibu za mipango ya miji na ujenzi. Hii ni mojawapo ya njia za uhalibifu wa mazingira. Lakini nani wa kulaumiwa hapa?

Nishati mbadala ambazo zimekuwa zikitangazwa na watalaamu wetu, zimekuwa ni za gharama kubwa kulinganisha na uwezo wa wananchi wengi, hivyo kuondoa hata hiyo maana ya kuitwa nishati mbadala. Iwapo tunataka kupunguza tatizo la kukata miti ovyo kwa ajili ya nishati, hatuna budi kuja na nishati mbadala ambayo wananchi wote watakuwa na uwezo wa kuitumia.

Pamoja na yote hayo suala la mazingira lipo ndani ya wananchi wenyewe. Inapotokea athari zikaenda mojakwa moja kwao ndio wakati wao wa kutambua umuhimu wa mazingira. Matatizo mara nyingi husababisha jamii kutafuta uvumbuzi wake. Mfano ni matatizo ya ujenzi holela katika kitongoji cha Hanana sif, Dar es salaam. Baada ya wananchi kusumbuliwa kwa muda mrefu na mafuriko na magonjwa yatokanayo na mafuriko wao wenyewe waliamua kutengeneza miundo mbinu katika kitongoji chao.

 

[Mulama]

I agree with you but I feel that the problem lies with us, the members of public, for whom the issue of the environment is not seen as one to merit our attention. I opened this thread here just to see whether those fellow members who are so vocal and concerned about national issues would deign to visit it. None have, except for you. We are too concerned with politics, petty or otherwise, that we don't see the fire burning around us. No wonder the foremost profession, if one could call it that, is politics. We are all politician wanna-bes. Unfortunately, the politicians also are really not interested in environmental issue. Dr Slaa together with the PM supported the soda ash processing plant on Lake Natron despite all protestations from environments pointing out the long term adverse effects on its flamingos (see: http://allafrica.com/stories/200711060801.html)
I thank the administrators who have shown their concern by keeping this post alive despite its sell-by having long passed! Thanks whoever you are.

I saw your Article while reading similar article posted by Lumange recently. In my response to that article I highlighted the gape among ourselves being source of all malfunctioning of environmental protections, for instance how many environmental professionals in this forum? who have at any time contributed to post let alone bringing a post in regard to environmental issues? the answer is no except you Mchundo and may be few other!

I normally wonder why blaming investors for polluting our environment instead of blaming regulatory organs such as Ministry for Environment under the Vice President's Office and its Council NEMC! these are the ones sabotaging all efforts of ensuring no vandalism for our environment, they are mandated not only with laws and policy of our country but also with international conventions, treaty and protocols! Unfortunately they are custodian of these authorities for their personal gains. What we should understand here is that, no any single investor will be concerned with degradation of our environment, I say no one, these people are here to make money once they have done they will go back to their piece of haven countries. It is our duty to find/ formulate pressurizing tool/organ that will stand and protest vehemently against ruining our heritages our environment, we should not relay on politicians who proved to be "wachumia tumbo" already they can't help any more.

We understand that there is major conflict between economic growth v/s environmental protections, but let us weigh which should outweigh other, to me being in clean safe and free from pollution environment is of paramount important than economic growth seen through politician speeches.