The rehabilitation of mined land by the Base Titanium mining company in Nguluku and Maumba has attracted the attention of the Ministry of the Environment which will now use the land restoration model to other areas in the country.
The national government says it has over 5300 wetlands areas in the country that will be restored using the Base Titanium land restoration model which has proved to be successful.
Speaking in Mivumoni after planting trees and touring the mining site environment PS engineer Festus Ngβeno said that the Base Titanium rehabilitation model is a good one to be emulated.
He said that after mining the areas, the company has gone ahead to restore the land and planted grass and trees.
βThis is a very good model we have seen here of land restoration. We have other areas where mining is being done and we want to ensure that such a model is used as well to restore and reclaim mined land,β he said.
Ngβeno said that planting trees at the restored land by Base Titanium is part of President William Rutosβ directive of the 15 billion trees ecological restoration program.
National Environmental and Management Authority director Mamo Baru said that Kenyans have to protect the environment by all means by planting trees to mitigate the effect of climate change.
He said that the community around Base Titanium and the company have done good work of environmental conservation and protection through tree planting.
βBefore Base Titanium started mining we did environmental and social impact assessment. This approach of rehabilitation should continue in other areas because it is good,β he said.
Regional mining officer Fredrick Wafula said that before there was a misconception that mining activities would destroy the environment but if it is well implemented it becomes the game changer for the economics of that particular community.
βDue to climate change and global warming it is good we do tree planting not only in these mining areas but also in our farms it will help a lot,β he advised.
Kinondo ward MCA Juma Maone said that the rehabilitated land is good even for settling, different from previous claims that there would be no life after mining
