It’s one of the most memorable moments of my childhood; drinking water from the river or directly from the tap; it was never treated with chemicals. I don’t recall anyone hospitalized. I don’t recall my dad buying fertilizer during the planting season. We made organic fertilizer from animal droppings and other organic wastes. And crops flourished even reclaiming barren land.Rain came as predicted, the rivers were crystal clear, and cancer was rare. Climatic change or global warming were intellectual discussions, not mainstream. Not anymore.From former US Vice President Al Gore to the counties, environmental issues are now mainstream. Remember the movie –Inconvenient truth? Never mind pushback by President elect Donald Trump and some conspiracy theorists.
The 2010 constitution gave counties a key environment role, implementing national government policies on natural resources and environmental conservation. This docket has become a problem child like health. This was a good decision; environmental issues are closer to counties than national government. However there are challenges. A Kenya Devolution CSO Working Group (KDCWG) Study on Devolution @ 10 notes that while County Governments have taken some actions in environmental conservation and natural resource management, including tree planting and policy enactment and resource protection measures, scaling up these efforts is hindered by resource limitations, ineffective governance, political interference, public apathy, and inadequate expertise. The study also noted that while many county governments have demonstrated proactive efforts by establishing legislative and policy frameworks, allocating resources, infrastructure improvements, and community engagement for climate change and pandemic mitigation and adaptation, their effectiveness varies widely, with most respondents perceiving these efforts as suboptimal and indicating a need for improved implementation, transparency, and community engagement.
Thus counties have not had the expected impact. Not so surprising. A confluence of issues have made policy shifts on environmental matters sticky. One is private property laws that are very strong in Kenya. Environmental issues touch on land, emotive. How do you we stop deforestation on private land? How do you stop us from polluting the air and water when public property is free for all! It’s not just about the tragedy of the commons, but feeling that the earth has infinite ability to absorb pollution.
The cause and effect in pollution or environmental degradation is not well articulated. We rarely articulate the effect of pollution on our health, wildlife and plants. Do counties communicate in layman’s language on the causes and effect without “kizingu mingi,” English language and without scaremongery?Science is not popular among high school students hence the need to use a language majority can understand. We must remember most citizens live from hand to mouth, environmental issues are not their priority.Environmental issues suffer from misinformation. Remember Covid-19? Add religion and most citizens are reluctant to take any corrective measures to mitigate the climatic change and other environmental issues. Our policies and language have alienated the common man, yet the most affected by environment degradation.
Population growth puts more pressure on the environment and counties are helpless against push back by religions and traditions. How do you stop population growth with Genesis 1: 28? “And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.”
Environmental degradation is about human activities from use of chemicals in the farms to deforestation, air and noise pollution,Needless today, combatting environmental issues needs money. You need money to build incinerators, capture carbon, and clean the water and air. Counties have other priorities like paying salaries. Daily Nation (11 December, 2024) elaborated how counties have become employment bureaus.
The fact that environment issues have no borders complicated matters. Who should be held responsible for pollution of Athi River or Ewaso Nyiro which crosses several counties? How can the Nairobi Rivers Commission work differently to achieve sustainable gains, given what the rollback after Minister Michuki’s efforts during Kibaki’s era? Any water rights like in USA for such rivers? Does National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) have the manpower and technology to monitor pollution across counties- both water and air. Add other pollutions as mandated by 2010 constitution. What if pollution cuts across borders and generations, affecting the children?
One could easily feel helpless against environmental matters, some which are global.
Way forward?
One easy option is to analyze supply chains and get the intervention nodes. Examples; where does most environmental damage take place in steel making, farms, factories, in packaging meat? Power generation? Having well mapped out supply or value chins can help monitor and reduce damage on our environment. Are incentives and penalties aligned to taking care of the environment?
We need to start early, right from childhood, we need to know our place and role on this planet. And it’s limits. We must demonstrate cause and effect. Use both carrot and stick to change our behavior. Let polluters pay, just as we pay taxes. It’s easy because every negative spillover has a source. What do we give to those who don’t pollute?
It’s in environmental matters that counties should work together. Environmental matters have no borders. It should be a key agenda for Regional economic blocks.
We can also borrow from our traditions and religion. They maintained heathy balance between planet, people and profit. . We cannot have the benefits of our blue economy if we continue polluting our waters. Counties may not have the money but they have the people, their beliefs and aspirations. We may not now drink directly from the river or eat wild fruits from the forests but we can in the future as we did in the past. Civil society organizations have a huge roled to play in advocacy and sensitizing the masses on the need to preserve the environment for both livelihoods and posterity. In our small ways guided by the visible hand of the county government and invisible hand of the market, we can improve the environment, making planet earth more homely before exoplanets and space becomes habitable
References
XN Iraki is a Professor, Faculty of Business and Management Sciences, University of Nairobi.
@Kenya Devolution Program, Act Change Transform 2024
