Gov't defends Karura Forest works amid uproar over alleged clearing

Government dismisses public outrage over activities at Karura Forest. [File,Standard]

The government has dismissed public outrage over activities at Karura Forest, saying the work involves renovation of an existing tree nursery on land already set aside for the purpose.

Government Spokesperson Isaac Mwaura, in a statement, said the exercise covers three acres within the Tree Biotechnology Programme Trust nursery, which had fallen into disrepair but was never repurposed.

"This exercise does not involve any new clearing, but is instead a renovation of facilities on land that had already been set aside for the above-mentioned tree nursery, which has not been maintained for some time," said Mwaura.

The clarification followed an alarm raised by Friends of Karura Forest (FKF), which co-manages the 1,041-hectare urban forest with the Kenya Forest Service (KFS).

FKF said men carrying chainsaws entered the forest around February 21, with a backhoe excavator deployed days later near the Rangers Village.

FKF noted the clearing began just two days after a Joint Management Committee meeting between the two bodies at which no such project was discussed.

The association has since filed a court case opposing the works.

Greenpeace Africa backed FKF's position, questioning the legal basis for clearing inside a protected area and noting that public participation is a constitutional requirement under the Forest Conservation and Management Act.

The three acres will be used to raise two million seedlings in support of the government's 15 Billion Tree Campaign.

Mwaura noted that a shortage of seedlings had been one of the biggest obstacles to meeting the national planting target.

However, the Environment Cabinet Secretary, Deborah Barasa, gave a different account the previous day, saying the government had cleared two to three acres to establish a nursery and build temporary accommodation for National Youth Service (NYS) personnel, contradicting Mwaura's assertion that no new clearing had taken place.

FKF also argued that the KFS headquarters along Kiambu Road spans 55 hectares, providing sufficient space for the barracks and nursery without disturbing forest land earmarked for restoration to an indigenous forest.