“Policy and Regulatory Framework for Waste Effluent Management in Kenya: Potential Effectiveness of Compliance

Alice A. KaudiaEnvironment Secretary

Ministry of Environment and Mineral ResourcesEnvironment

Presentation Outline

• Effluent Management Landscape• Policy and Regulatory Approaches in Sub-

Sahara Africa• Case Experience: Kenya

Regulations and practicesChallengesOpportunities

Conclusion

What is effluent

• Gaseous or liquid waste pre-treated to defined standards of chemical and particulate matter content that can be discharged to the environment without causing adverse change in the quality of and ecosystem or conveyance infrastructure

Effluent Management: What pictures say

Sewage spillage adjacent to settlements.

Effluent Management: What pictures say

Effluent released from the agrochemical industry in Kisumu district into river nyando.

Drivers and triggers of poor effluent management

• Urbanization• Weak and dysfunctional governance systems– Polices– Regulations– Institutional arrangements– Out-dated technology and infrastructure

Urbanization

• Urbanization pressures are most marked in the mainland states, where main urban centers such as Mombasa (Kenya), Dar es Salaam (Tanzania), Maputo (Mozambique) and Durban (South Africa) are supporting populations of 2 to 4 million each. Populations in these cities have increased dramatically without equivalent improvement in waste management infrastructures.

Unplanned settlement in Nairobi due to rapid urbanization without waste management structures put in place.

Urbanization..• The coastal region of the mainland states

between Somalia and Mozambique is home to 25 million people. This represents 20 percent of the combined population of the mainland states living on 12 percent of the land.

• Population trends indicate a doubling of population in about 25 years in the major coastal cities of Mombasa, Dar es Salaam and Maputo, which are presently experiencing growth of 5.0%, 6.7% and 7.2% per annum, respectively (Mohammed and Francis, 2002).

Policy and regulatory approaches

• Enforcement– Constitutional provisions ( Kenya)– Environment Impact assessment Conditions

• CompliancePublic EducationIncentive-systems

-Tax rebates of imported waste management technologies-Environmental awards

Clean up of Nairobi river and its adjacent environs

Waste water from the obuasi mine in Ghana

Section of Nairobi river passing through the slum of kibera in Nairobi.

Achievements

• Over the last decade, governments in Africa have begun to implement stricter regulations regarding effluents discharge standards.

• South Africa, Ghana, Mauritius

CHALLENGES: Policy and Regulations conflicts, Kenya

Effluent Management Perspective

Responsible Entity

Local Government Ministry

Ministry of Water and Irrigation

National Environment Management Authority

Ministry of Public Health

Accredited Laboratories

Infrastructure Development

x

Effluent Quality x x x x x

-Monitoring x x x x

Licensing/Permits

x x x

Enforcement x x x

Conclusion

• Africa-wide Effluent Management strategy is needed

• Develop and implement Compliance enhancing programs– Effective public education and awareness

References

• Public Health Act (Cap. 242)• The Environmental Management and Co-

ordination Act, 1999• UNEP/Nairobi Convention Secretariat and

WIOMSA, 2009. The Status of Municipal Wastewater Management in the Western Indian Ocean Region. UNEP, Nairobi, Kenya, 82 pp.

• Water 360 Volume 2, number 1, 2012