Kenyans fear Dakatcha Woodlands biofuel expansion

23 March 2011

By Will Ross

BBC News, Dakatcha

Sitting in the shade of a tree next to his thatched mud hut in in Kenya's Dakatcha Woodlands, Joshua Kahindi Pekeshe is bold.

"We are not going to let this land go even if it indicates shedding blood," he informed 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 many individuals opposed to the development of a big biofuel plantation in the area, about an hour's drive inland from the seaside town of Malindi.

It is a dry area and home to some 20,000 individuals along with internationally threatened animal and bird species.

Ambitious objectives

An Italian company has actually asked the authorities for consent to rent 50,000 hectares there to grow jatropha curcas, whose seeds are abundant 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 location impacted is community land which is being held in trust by the regional council.

Kenya Jatropha Energy Ltd is 100%-owned by the Milan-based Nuove Iniziative Industriali SRL.

It has actually leased nearly a million hectares in Africa