Conserving environment the responsibility of all Kenyans

When Prof Wangari Maathai said that you cannot protect the environment unless you empower the people and help them understand that these resources are their own, the late 2004 Nobel Peace laureate was in sync with this year’s theme for World Environment Day – ‘Connecting People to Nature’ – which we are celebrating tomorrow.

Around the world today, we are being called upon to get outdoors and into nature, to appreciate its beauty and its importance, and to take forward the call to protect the earth that we share.

CLIMATE CHANGE
The World Environment Day is observed worldwide to promote awareness on the importance of sustainable management of our environment and its resources with a view to ensuring a balanced and equitable use of such resources for the benefit of present and future generations.

The day has been used in the past to highlight environmental issues of concern to the world.

Climate change is one such threat facing the world and by extension, having specific impact on businesses, including the Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC).

ENERGY

It is in that vein that the KPC, one of the largest commercial public companies in Kenya, joins the rest of the world in marking this day.

The KPC is fully aware that we cannot fulfil our mission of transforming lives through safe and efficient delivery of quality oil and gas from source to customer if we do not attach a high premium on matters environment.

Research shows that changes in climate will affect infrastructure throughout the major stages of the energy supply chain, increasing the risk of disruptions.

This means that critical infrastructure such as energy and water systems are exposed.

DROUGHT
This will have a negative impact on KPC’s operations, both on a short and long-term scale, manifested in extreme weather events such as floods, frequent washouts of pipeline and pump station equipment, and sea/water level rise of Indian Ocean and Lake Victoria that could wash away jetty infrastructure, affecting vital equipment such as fire pumps at Kipevu Oil Storage Facility in Mombasa.

This will render the oil gateway to East Africa unprotected, with a significant effect on the region’s economies.

Due to frequent droughts, access to critical resources such as water for industrial processes like oil refineries will be in acute supply, affecting business operations.

GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS

Corporates — public and private — must seize this moment to conserve the environment.

There is no other way of laying a foundation for a new era!

The KPC appreciates its role in helping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions as a member of the global business community, whose goal is to ensure that earth warming is within the UN projected safe and sustainable 1.5°C.

We will continue to back Kenya’s Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDC), which is part of the National Climate Change Response Strategy (2010) and the National Climate Change Action Plan (2013-2017).

This is in line with plans for a 30 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.

TREE PLANTING
Today, millions of people, the majority of whom are in Africa, are facing environmental issues that adversely affect their lives.

In light of this, what small activity have you done or are going to do today to protect the environment?

Have you mobilised your family, school, or neighbourhood to plant a tree today or clean up your environment?

By doing this, you will be acting in tandem with Article 42 of the Constitution that provides that every person has a right to a clean and healthy environment?

CONSERVATION

As individuals and corporates, we have a duty to protect the environment and ensure ecologically sustainable development and prudent use of natural resources.

It is the little things that we do that will make a difference.

Play your part by conserving your immediate environment from today.

Mr Sang is the managing director Kenya Pipeline Company