Kenyans fear Dakatcha Woodlands biofuel expansion
23 March 2011
By Will Ross
BBC News, Dakatcha
Being 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 told the BBC.
"Land is extremely crucial to us. We farm and get our livelihood from it. On this land we bury our dead."
He is one of the lots of individuals 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 area and home to some 20,000 individuals in addition to globally threatened animal and bird species.
Ambitious objectives
An Italian business has asked the authorities for consent to rent 50,000 hectares there to grow jatropha, whose seeds are rich in oil that can be developed into bio-diesel.
This plant, originally from South America, has long been grown in Africa as a hedge to keep out animals - goats stay well away as it is harmful. The area affected is neighborhood land which is being held in trust by the local council.
Kenya jatropha curcas Energy Ltd is 100%-owned by the Milan-based Nuove Iniziative Industriali SRL.
It has actually leased nearly a million hectares in Africa
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Kenyans Fear Dakatcha Woodlands Biofuel Expansion
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