THE IRONY OF CONSERVATION AT THE NGONG HILLS

NEMA? Did you know that the National Environment Management Authority is mandated to oversee virtually all the environmental conservation and efforts and approve every development project for environmental suitability? Now, my recent visit to the famous Ngong Hills revealed an irony that stinks of the highest degree of preaching water and taking wine.

For many of you who have gone and had fun out there at the said hills, it actually has scenic picnic sites courtesy of wanton destruction of trees in the past that has led to the fabulous playgrounds. Sic!

Following this, President Mwai  Kibaki  in the run up to the referendum in 2005 approved an agreement signed by Kenya's second president Daniel Arap Moi to entrust 3,000 hectares of land to the Maasai pastoralist community living on the edge of the reserve.     

 

A cross check with the pastoralists grazing their livestock on the plain revealed irony of conservation number one. One herder explained how the rains have been so sporadic these days. Though not very familiar with the scientific explanation on climate change and its effects, he decried the unusually long spells of little or no rainfall which in his understanding could be attributed to deforestation that has created the grassland on the slopes of the once forested hill.

During these dry seasons, Mr Simon Ting'a intimated that they move deeper into the existing evergreen forest.

As opposed to their neighbors in Kitengela who recently have been attacked twice by lions, the buffaloes in the forests rarely get to conflict with the humans, instead they are left to graze with their distant cousins-cows without provocation till evening when they part ways. Although the herders appreciate the importance of trees to their livelihood and their stock, the thousands of the young seedlings of trees have undergone destruction  by the livestock oblivious of their herders.

The biggest conservation irony, however, of which one of the Kenya Forest guard who sought anonyminity spoke  so passionately about, is that of the respectable staff of NEMA who planted the young seedlings less than a month ago but at the  time of this  reporting there was nothing to show for, only empty holes. The guard laid the blame squarely on the said conservationists who despite being strongly advised to cover appropriately the young and week seedlings, they simply placed them in the hole and left them for the gods to take care of them and at the mercy of the grazing animals. Best practices laid to them of fencing off the area and putting up local guards who live on the fringes of the forest went unheaded too as opposed to two tree planting drives undertaken by Kenya Commercial Bank and Kenya Power as well as other government ministries about two years back.

This is truly a sign of negligence and wastage of national resources by a body charged with the mandate of caring for our trees.

 

 A Thought!
 How about a placement of a requirement by Kenya Forest Service for all the hikers and holidaymakers  to plant a tree as the fast activity before having fun in a bid to conserve the gem that Ngong Hills are? Eco-tourism?