West Pokot County launches a Sand Harvesting Policy to protect the environment and generate income

Kapenguria, Tuesday June 6, 2023

KNA by Anthony Melly / Maurice Osore

West Pokot County has launched a Sand Harvesting Policy for the purpose of regulating and providing guidelines for sand harvesting in Kipkomo Sub-county within the region.

The aim of the Policy is to promote communities' involvement in protecting and conserving the environment and ensuring ecologically sustainable development and use of natural resources.

Speaking during the launch, Kipkomo Sub-county Deputy County Commissioner (DCC), Ms. Teresia Muguro, noted that unregulated sand harvesting businesses have been costing West Pokot County in terms of lost revenue, environmental damage, and the exploitation of vulnerable men, youth, and underage children.

DCC Muguro discloses that the region has experienced the effects of environmental impacts, including conflicts, biodiversity loss, environmental degradation, sedimentation of seasonal rivers, pollution, lowering of the water table, turbidity of water, drying up of tributaries, erosion of river banks, and diversion of waterways, among other challenges.

"Sand harvesting cartels have been taking advantage to harvest and sell sand with no benefit to the local community," she added

"The environmental impacts prompted government representatives, businesses, scientists, landowners, and local users of natural resources to come-up with a policy that regulates and provides guidelines for sand harvesting within Kipkomo Sub-county," DCC Muguro emphasized.

She said the Kipkomo Community's Sustainable Sand Harvesting Policy, seeks to improve provisions for socio-economic benefits to the county and country at large.

Muguro further said the sand harvesting policy is geared towards the facilitation of transparent and accountable management of the county's and country’s natural resources in accordance with the law and within international best practices.

The DCC said the environment in Chepareria is degraded because cartels have been exploiting sand resources for free with little focus on community development.

"There was no proper regulation on how the sand could be harvested, while the community benefited," she explained.

She said illegal sand harvesting will not be allowed again once the policy is enacted into law by the county assembly.

DCC urged the Members of the County Assembly (MCAs), to enact the policy into law, for it will ensure the sand trade benefits the people of West Pokot.

However, she urged the local community to diversify their resources and livelihoods, to avoid overdependence on sand harvesting as a way to reduce poverty.

She warned against illegal sand harvesting, noting that the government and National Environment Management Authority (NEMA), officials should control the activities in the area in order to protect the environment in coordination with other government officials and stakeholders in the environment.

Muguro explained that the Policy was subjected to public participation, and relevant stakeholders in Kipkomo Sub-county were involved during its drafting.

She pointed out that the Kipkomo Sustainable Sand Harvesting Policy was ratified during a public meeting, where it was launched.

Ms. Muguro thanked the drafters of the Policy for including a Committee comprised of one representative from each catchment soil and water conservation group, chiefs from various locations within the Ward, the Ward Administrator, and the University of Eldoret, among other stakeholders, for finding a need to come-up with a policy, that will guide the harvesting and usage of sand within and outside the county.

According to West Pokot County Executive Committee Member for Water, Environment, Natural Resources, and Climate Change (CECM), Ms. Lucky Litole, the Sand Harvesting Policy, is well drafted with a clear outline on how the community will benefit from the sand harvesting activities as well as the government.

The county CEC has been experiencing land degradation caused by unsustainable sand harvesting and sand mining activities, and with regulations in place, soil conservation and land degradation measures will be enhanced.

Ms. Litole reiterated that during the rainy season, the running water washes the top soil, making the area crisscrossed with large gullies and creating bad terrain.

"Land degradation has affected agricultural activities in the region; the loss of soil nutrients and soil erosion effects have led to a reduction in crop yields," she reiterated.

He disclosed that those who have been purchasing sand in the region have been paying the community as little as Sh500 instead of Sh50,000, considering the tons of sand they are collecting.

She said the County Government will enact the Policy into law because the policy is good and will help curb the exploitation of vulnerable men, youth, and women by illegal sand dealers.

The Policy will undergo due process before it can be enacted into law.

University of Eldoret lecturer, Dr. Ruth Njoroge, a Researcher who was among the team that supported and drafted the Policy, said the region had undesired social and environmental impacts such as conflicts, biodiversity loss, environmental degradation, sedimentation of seasonal rivers, pollution, lowering of the water table, turbidity of water, drying up of tributaries, erosion of river banks, and diversion of waterways, among other changes due to the effects of sand harvesting.

"The Chepareria area has been degraded because of sand harvesting activities that were not regulated," she said.

She said the Policy regulates how the local community can do their sand harvesting activities, as a source of income while protecting the environment.

Dr. Njoroge reiterated that the land degradation experienced in the region has led to a reduction in crop yields and that there is a need to assist the farmers in reclaiming the fertility of their land.

The West Pokot Director of the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA), Mr. Cliff Barkatch, noted that policy is very good for the region in terms of conservation of water and soil.

He said the policy is good because it promotes the establishment and management of tree nurseries.

Barkatch also noted that the Policy outlines how the sand revenue will be shared with and benefit the local community.

"The policy outline states that sand harvesting time should be during the daytime," He went on.

"Sand harvesting at night will not be there," he clarified.

He reiterated that the Policy is good because it brings more responsible and sustainable sand harvesting as a means of income to the local community and the county government.

Barkatch further said the Policy further outlined that 30 percent of the revenue collected will be for environmental conservation, 40 percent will be for community development projects, and 15 percent will be geared towards social support, including school fees among other social challenges the community faces.

Courtesy ; K. N. A