GAZETTE NOTICE NO. 13500

PURSUANT to regulation 21 of Environmental (Impact Assessment and Audit) Regulations, the National Environmental Management Authority (NEMA) has received an Environmental Impact Assessment Study Report for the implementation of the proposed Edible Oil Refinery and Fraction Packing Shortening and Soap Plant on LR No 12648/8 in Athi River, Mavoko Municipality. The Proponent (Golden Africa Kenya Limited) is proposing to carry on construction of an Edible Oil Refining, fraction packing, shortening, and Soap manufacturing plant on LR No. 12648/8 in Athi River, Mavoko Municipality. The proponent is proposing to import edible oils from abroad and process them systematically. The processed oils will be fraction packed at the facility, part of which will be used in the manufacturing of soap products. The following are the anticipated impacts and proposed mitigation measures: Possible Impact Mitigation measures Loss of vegetation cover  Introduction of vegetation (trees, shrubs and grass) on open spaces and around the project site and their maintenance.  Design and implement an appropriate landscaping programme to help in re- vegetation of part of the project area after construction.  Limiting vehicular transport to defined roads as to prevent unnecessary injury, habitat destruction and complying with safe driving procedures;  Ensure proper demarcation and delineation of the project area to be affected by construction works; Disturbance and related impacts to Wild life  Design with a view to incorporating nature conservation into the 28th September, 2012 THE KENYA GAZETTE development including appropriate friendly boundary fencing  Retain existing habitats where possible and aim to keep natural site features in context rather than in isolated fragments.  Preserve wildlife corridors and habitat links  Integrating ecological features, for example climbing plants and bird nest boxes within any buildings or structures.  Game hunting and killing is not permitted;  Compliance with the ecological requirements and any other legal requirements with regard to waste management, environmental pollution and discharge to waters among others;  Replacement of lost habitat where possible  Ensure that landscape design reflects local ecology and uses locally sourced plants wherever possible; Emissions of air pollutants  Using environmentally friendly equipment with higher fuel efficiency or equipped with air pollution control devices to minimize exhaust emissions  Avoiding equipment and vehicles running unnecessarily  Watering-down dusty work areas  Establishing and enforcing appropriate speed limits over all unpaved surfaces  All personnel working on the project will be trained prior to starting construction on methods for minimizing air quality impacts during construction  Ensure construction machinery and equipment are well maintained to reduce exhaust gas emissions Pollution from Hazardous waste  Handling of the materials in line with the material safety data provided by the manufacturers  Appoint a safety officer to ensure that proper disposal guidelines are observed  Ensuring that maintenance and/or piece of work carried out on any piece of equipment or construction work is undertaken by qualified personnel  In case of spillage emergency spillage control measures to be instituted  Containerization of any wastes and disposal through a licensed waste handler Increased Noise and vibrations  Use of equipment designed with noise control elements will be adopted where necessary.  Trucks used at construction site shall be routed away from noise sensitive areas where feasible.  Idling time for pick-up trucks and other small equipment will be minimized.  All workers operating in noisy areas or operating noisy equipment will be provided with earpieces to protect against noise. Pollution of surface and ground water  Utilise sustainable waste management facilities including a packaged waste water treatment plant with the capacity to recycle all of the water utilised on site;  Identify high risk spill areas- e.g. generators and fuel tanks – and have impervious surfaces and capture facilities in place;  Clean up spills if any with an absorbent material. Chemicals spilled near wells can move directly and rapidly into groundwater. Chemicals spilled near ditches or streams can move rapidly into surface water;  Develop a spill response and emergency response plan covering aspects of water management and conservation;  Selecting properly the location of mixing areas and loading of chemicals and other construction materials;  Ensure an appropriate storage of equipment. Energy loss, wastage and resultant pollution  Efficient work scheduling and methods that minimise equipment idle time and double handling of material;  Throttling down and switching off construction equipment when not in use;  Switching off truck engines while they are waiting to access the site and while they are waiting to be loaded and unloaded;  Switching off site office equipment and lights and using optimum lighting intensity for security and safety purposes;  Careful design of temporary roads and traffic routing to reduce transportation distances; and  Regular maintenance of equipment to ensure optimum operations and fuel efficiency. Traffic nuisance  In consultation with neighbouring road users and the appropriate authorities identify an acceptable access to and from site into the highway;  Maintain the access service road to the standard required to carry the load and volume of traffic;  Enforce strict restrictions on the speed at which the trucks are allowed to travel and the hours of operations;  Where necessary implement stop/go zones which will allow a single truck to pass at a time;  Clear signage on the roads;  Education of staff and building contractors;  Take advantage of off-peak hours; and  Well trained and experienced drivers with documented evidence if training and refresher courses. Health and safety concerns  Undertake Job Risk Assessment and Review of each task;  Put in place an Emergency Response Plan;  A comprehensive contingency plan will be prepared before construction begins, on accident response;  Develop and Traffic Management Plan prior to commencement of construction.  All employees will be required to wear protective gear when handling hazardous wastes;  All workers will be adequately insured against unforeseen accidents. THE KENYA GAZETTE 28th September, 2012 3744 3744 Generation of solid waste  Wastes to be collected regularly to control air pollution and vermin infestation;  Receptacles will be provided for waste storage prior to collection;  Resource recovery will be encouraged once the project takes off so as to shrink waste stream and recover non - recyclables;  Refuse collection vehicles will be covered to prevent scatter of wastes by wind;  Wastes will be collected by a licensed operator to avoid illegal final dumping at unauthorized sites;  All persons involved in refuse collection shall be in full protective attire; and  As provided for by the Building Code, a temporary latrine will be provided on site to be used by construction workers Waste water generation and effluents discharge  Recycle the wastewater for flushing (where practical);  Reuse the wastewater (generally after treatment) for a beneficial purpose (either onsite or on a neighbouring property) such as dust control;  Treat and discharge wastewater to soakage or lined evaporation pit (where practical);  Treat and discharge to drains or watercourses,;  Implement seasonal water use limitations; and  Pursue options of recycling, and water harvesting. Extraction materials and depletion  Source building materials from local suppliers who use environmentally friendly processes in their operations and are certified;  Ensure accurate budgeting and estimation of actual construction material requirements to ensure that the least amount of material necessary is ordered; and  Ensure that damage or loss of materials at the construction site is kept minimal through proper storage. Social impacts, welfare and increase in STI infections  Sensitization staff working on the project on dangers of free lifestyle  HIV/AIDS awareness training for all employees and subcontractors.  Provide facilities including condoms and checkups for staff The full report of the proposed project is available for inspection during working hours at: (a) Director-General, NEMA, Popo Road, off Mombasa Road, P.O. Box 67839–00200, Nairobi. (b) Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Environment and Mineral Resources, NHIF Building, Community, P.O. Box 30521, Nairobi. (c) County Director of Environment, Machakos County. The National Environment Management Authority invites members of the public to submit oral or written comments within thirty (30) days from the date of publication of this notice to the Director-General, NEMA, to assist the Authority in the decision making process of the plan. Z. O. OUMA, for Director-General, MR/0462388 National Environment Management Authority.