Kenyans fear Dakatcha Woodlands biofuel growth
23 March 2011
By Will Ross
BBC News, Dakatcha
Sitting in the shade of a tree beside his thatched mud hut in in Kenya's Dakatcha Woodlands, Joshua Kahindi Pekeshe is defiant.
"We are not going to let this land go even if it indicates shedding blood," he informed the BBC.
"Land is extremely important to us. We farm and get our income from it. On this land we bury our dead."
He is one of the numerous people opposed to the production of a large biofuel plantation in the area, about an hour's drive inland from the coastal town of Malindi.
It is an arid location and home to some 20,000 individuals as well as worldwide threatened animal and bird types.
Ambitious goals
An Italian business has actually asked the authorities for permission to rent 50,000 hectares there to grow jatropha, whose seeds are abundant in oil that can be turned into bio-diesel.
This plant, initially from South America, has long been grown in Africa as a hedge to keep out animals - goats remain well away as it is poisonous. The location affected is neighborhood land which is being held in trust by the regional council.
Kenya jatropha curcas Energy Ltd is 100%-owned by the Milan-based Nuove Iniziative Industriali SRL.
It has leased almost a million hectares in Africa
1
Kenyans Fear Dakatcha Woodlands Biofuel Expansion
Charlotte Utter edited this page 3 months ago