Nairobi missing vital maps leading to drainage mess, say officials

Motorists drive through flooded Ganjoni road in Mombasa on May 5, 2016. In Nairobi County, frequent flooding has called attention to development in areas that should be left undeveloped to allow for the free passage of water during rainfall. PHOTO | KEVIN ODIT | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • In the absence of a master plan, staff are forced to decide on drainage way leaves when individual developments are evaluated for approval.
  • According to Nairobi County’s planning director, Mr John Barreh, the storm water master plan is expected to be prepared after the master plan is approved.

Nairobi County does not currently have a storm water drainage master plan which is supposed to ensure that development in the city does not interfere with drainage.

In the absence of a master plan, staff are forced to decide on drainage way leaves when individual developments are evaluated for approval.

Building safety in Nairobi has fallen under severe scrutiny after a residential complex collapsed in Huruma.

So far the death toll stands at 36, while more than 60 people are missing. And on April 29, four people were killed when a wall collapsed on Lenana Road after heavy rain.

Frequent flooding in Nairobi has called attention to development in areas that should be left undeveloped to allow for the free passage of water during rainfall.

According to Nairobi County’s planning director, Mr John Barreh, the storm water master plan is expected to be prepared after the master plan is approved.

Staff who spoke to the Nation said because there was no drainage master plan, planning staff had to determine how much land should be left for drainage based on information submitted by applicants.

Huruma is in Zone 7, which allows for high density flats and informal settlements.

Although there is no explicit limit on the number of storeys that a building in Huruma can have, the zone has a plot ratio of 75 per cent, meaning that the total floor area of the building, including all floors, cannot exceed 75 per cent of area of the land parcel on which the building stands. Nairobi has a total 20 zones.

Nairobi is still without a master plan because the county’s master plan, which was tabled on April 28 as Sessional Paper 2 of 2016, is yet to be adopted by the assembly.

“Policy documents are not laws. But if they have an implementation component that includes bills, these can be tabled after the policy paper is adopted,” Mr Jacob Ngwele, the assembly’s clerk said.

ENSURING COMPLIANCE
Asked where maps of the wetlands in Nairobi could be found, Mr Barreh said such maps were available, but have to be obtained from the Survey of Kenya. “Only they can publish government maps.”

An official who wished to remain anonymous because the official was not authorised to speak on behalf of the county government told the Nation that only one vehicle was available to enforce compliance with construction regulations around the whole of Nairobi city.

However, it was impossible to confirm the claim independently. The lack of maps is not only felt in the Nairobi county government.

According to Section 9 of the Environmental Management and Coordination Act of 1999, the National Environment Management Authority is mandated to establish and review land use guidelines in consultation with lead agencies and examine land use patterns to determine their impact on the quality and quantity of natural resources.

Mr Anthony Ngare, the agency’s spokesman, said they had maps of wetlands in Nairobi. “...but I would not say we have one consolidated document called the wetlands of Nairobi,” he said.