Development of an Inventory of Ecosystem Services in Namibia

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Development of an Inventory of Ecosystem Services in Namibia Development of an Inventory of Ecosystem Services in Namibia Final Report Namibia Nature Foundation In collaboration with: SAIEA, Sustainable Solutions Trust, Research and Information Services of Namibia and eftec 2016 Development of an Inventory of Ecosystem Services in Namibia Acknowledgements The authors would in particular like to thank Dr. Konrad Uebelhoer and Dr. Martin Nowack of GIZ, Ms. Ece Ozdemiroglu of eftec, Gillian Maggs-Kölling, Theo Wassenaar, John Irish (Gobabeb Training and Research Centre) and Mutjinde Katjiua (Namibia University of Science and Technology NUST) who reviewed and provided detailed comments to support the finalisation of the report. Ben Nathanael designed and compiled the maps of each ecosystem zone. This study was financed by the Resource Mobilisation Project of the Ministry of Environment and Tourism and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für international Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. The Resource Mobilisation Project is part of the International Climate Initiative (IKI) of the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMUB). The BMUB supports this initiative on the basis of a decision adopted by the German Bundestag. Contributing Authors Lawrie Harper-Simmonds, Dr John Mendelsohn, Dr Jean-Paul Roux, John Pallet, Dr Chris Brown, Angus Middleton and Johannes Kruse Edited: Catherine Birch Updates This inventory of ecosystem services is a first step, and should lead to debate, research, and further iteration. As more knowledge and data are gathered and our understanding of ecosystem services is improved, this inventory can potentially be updated. To this purpose, contributions can be submitted to the email address below. Please note that only well-developed submissions backed up by data/evidence/qualified opinion will be considered. Enquiries Namibia Nature Foundation 76 – 78 Frans Indongo Street Windhoek, Namibia Tel: + 264 61 248345 Fax: +264 61 248344 Email: [email protected] Development of an Inventory of Ecosystem Services in Namibia Acronyms CBD Convention on Biological Diversity CICES Common International Classification of Ecosystem Services FEGS-CS Final Ecosystem Goods and Services Classification System GDP Gross Domestic Product GIZ Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit MA Millennium Ecosystem Assessment MET Ministry of Environment and Tourism MFMR Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources NBSAP2 Namibia’s Second National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan NDC Namibia Development Corporation NE Rivers North-East Rivers NHIES National Household Income and Expenditure Survey ResMob Resource Mobilisation for the Conservation of Biodiversity SANUMARC Sam Nujoma Marine and Coastal Resources Research Centre SEEA-EEA System of Environmental-Economic Accounts: Experimental Ecosystem Accounting SNA System of National Accounts TEEB The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity UKNEA United Kingdom National Ecosystem Assessment UNAM University of Namibia USEPA United States Environmental Protection Agency Development of an Inventory of Ecosystem Services in Namibia Table of Contents EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ..................................................................................................................................... II 1 INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................................................... 4 1.1 BACKGROUND ........................................................................................................................................... 4 1.2 OBJECTIVES ............................................................................................................................................... 4 1.3 STRUCTURE ............................................................................................................................................... 5 2 THE ECOSYSTEM SERVICES APPROACH .................................................................................................... 6 2.1 ECOSYSTEM SERVICES .................................................................................................................................. 6 2.2 ECOSYSTEMS, ECOSYSTEM SERVICES AND WELL-BEING: A CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK ............................................... 7 3 METHODOLOGY .................................................................................................................................... 10 3.1 IDENTIFICATION AND DELINEATION OF ECOSYSTEM ZONES ................................................................................ 10 3.2 ASSESSMENT OF ECOSYSTEM ZONES ............................................................................................................. 11 3.3 IDENTIFICATION OF ECOSYSTEM SERVICES ...................................................................................................... 15 3.4 DEVELOPMENT OF AN INVENTORY OF ECOSYSTEM SERVICES .............................................................................. 19 3.5 PRIORITISATION OF ECOSYSTEM SERVICES ...................................................................................................... 22 3.6 REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................................ 23 4 KEY ECOSYSTEM PROCESSES .................................................................................................................. 25 4.1 CLIMATE CHANGE ..................................................................................................................................... 25 4.2 FIRE ....................................................................................................................................................... 25 4.3 BUSH ENCROACHMENT .............................................................................................................................. 26 4.4 CHANGES FROM LIVESTOCK TO WILDLIFE FARMING .......................................................................................... 27 4.5 CATTLE OWNERSHIP IN COMMUNAL LAND ..................................................................................................... 27 4.6 RURAL EMIGRATION AND URBAN GROWTH .................................................................................................... 27 4.7 URBAN CHALLENGES ................................................................................................................................. 28 4.8 REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................................ 28 5 NAMIBIA’S ECOSYSTEM ZONES AND THEIR SERVICES ............................................................................ 32 5.1 NORTH-EASTERN RIVERS ........................................................................................................................... 32 5.2 NORTHERN KALAHARI WOODLANDS ............................................................................................................ 46 5.3 DRY KALAHARI WOODLANDS ...................................................................................................................... 61 5.4 HIGHLAND ACACIA SAVANNA ..................................................................................................................... 74 5.5 KARSTVELD ............................................................................................................................................. 87 5.6 ETOSHA PANS AND SHRUBLANDS ................................................................................................................ 99 5.7 CUVELAI DRAINAGE ................................................................................................................................ 110 5.8 WESTERN HIGHLANDS ............................................................................................................................ 122 5.9 NAMA KAROO SHRUBLANDS .................................................................................................................... 134 5.10 NORTHERN NAMIB ................................................................................................................................. 148 5.11 NAMIB SAND SEA................................................................................................................................... 161 5.12 SUCCULENT KAROO ................................................................................................................................ 173 5.13 COASTAL AND NEAR-SHORE ..................................................................................................................... 184 5.14 CONTINENTAL SHELF ............................................................................................................................... 197 5.15 SHELF-BREAK AND SLOPE ........................................................................................................................ 208 Development of an Inventory of Ecosystem Services in Namibia 5.16 DEEP SEA ............................................................................................................................................. 220 5.17 URBAN ................................................................................................................................................. 228 6 SYNTHESIS OF ECOSYSTEM SERVICES AT THE NATIONAL LEVEL ..........................................................
Recommended publications
  • GUIDE to CIVIL SOCIETY in NAMIBIA 3Rd Edition
    GUIDE TO CIVIL SOCIETY IN NAMIBIA GUIDE TO 3Rd Edition 3Rd Compiled by Rejoice PJ Marowa and Naita Hishoono and Naita Marowa PJ Rejoice Compiled by GUIDE TO CIVIL SOCIETY IN NAMIBIA 3rd Edition AN OVERVIEW OF THE MANDATE AND ACTIVITIES OF CIVIL SOCIETY ORGANISATIONS IN NAMIBIA Compiled by Rejoice PJ Marowa and Naita Hishoono GUIDE TO CIVIL SOCIETY IN NAMIBIA COMPILED BY: Rejoice PJ Marowa and Naita Hishoono PUBLISHED BY: Namibia Institute for Democracy FUNDED BY: Hanns Seidel Foundation Namibia COPYRIGHT: 2018 Namibia Institute for Democracy. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any means electronical or mechanical including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the permission of the publisher. DESIGN AND LAYOUT: K22 Communications/Afterschool PRINTED BY : John Meinert Printing ISBN: 978-99916-865-5-4 PHYSICAL ADDRESS House of Democracy 70-72 Dr. Frans Indongo Street Windhoek West P.O. Box 11956, Klein Windhoek Windhoek, Namibia EMAIL: [email protected] WEBSITE: www.nid.org.na You may forward the completed questionnaire at the end of this guide to NID or contact NID for inclusion in possible future editions of this guide Foreword A vibrant civil society is the cornerstone of educated, safe, clean, involved and spiritually each community and of our Democracy. uplifted. Namibia’s constitution gives us, the citizens and inhabitants, the freedom and mandate CSOs spearheaded Namibia’s Independence to get involved in our governing process. process. As watchdogs we hold our elected The 3rd Edition of the Guide to Civil Society representatives accountable.
    [Show full text]
  • Angolan Giraffe (Giraffa Camelopardalis Ssp
    Angolan Giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis ssp. angolensis) Appendix 1: Historical and recent geographic range and population of Angolan Giraffe G. c. angolensis Geographic Range ANGOLA Historical range in Angola Giraffe formerly occurred in the mopane and acacia savannas of southern Angola (East 1999). According to Crawford-Cabral and Verissimo (2005), the historic distribution of the species presented a discontinuous range with two, reputedly separated, populations. The western-most population extended from the upper course of the Curoca River through Otchinjau to the banks of the Kunene (synonymous Cunene) River, and through Cuamato and the Mupa area further north (Crawford-Cabral and Verissimo 2005, Dagg 1962). The intention of protecting this western population of G. c. angolensis, led to the proclamation of Mupa National Park (Crawford-Cabral and Verissimo 2005, P. Vaz Pinto pers. comm.). The eastern population occurred between the Cuito and Cuando Rivers, with larger numbers of records from the southeast corner of the former Mucusso Game Reserve (Crawford-Cabral and Verissimo 2005, Dagg 1962). By the late 1990s Giraffe were assumed to be extinct in Angola (East 1999). According to Kuedikuenda and Xavier (2009), a small population of Angolan Giraffe may still occur in Mupa National Park; however, no census data exist to substantiate this claim. As the Park was ravaged by poachers and refugees, it was generally accepted that Giraffe were locally extinct until recent re-introductions into southern Angola from Namibia (Kissama Foundation 2015, East 1999, P. Vaz Pinto pers. comm.). BOTSWANA Current range in Botswana Recent genetic analyses have revealed that the population of Giraffe in the Central Kalahari and Khutse Game Reserves in central Botswana is from the subspecies G.
    [Show full text]
  • National Parks of Namibia.Pdf
    Namibia’s National Parks “Our national parks are one of Namibia’s most valuable assets. They are our national treasures and their tourism potential should be harnessed for the benefi t of all people.” His Excellency Hifi kepunye Pohamba Republic of Namibia President of the Republic of Namibia Ministry of Environment and Tourism Exploring Namibia’s natural treasures Sparsely populated and covering a vast area of 823 680 km2, roughly three times the size of the United King- dom, Namibia is unquestionably one of Africa’s premier nature tourism destinations. There is also no doubt that the Ministry of Environment and Tourism is custodian to some of the biggest, oldest and most spectacular parks on our planet. Despite being the most arid country in sub-Saharan Af- rica, the range of habitats is incredibly diverse. Visitors can expect to encounter coastal lagoons dense with flamingos, towering sand-dunes, and volcanic plains carpeted with spring flowers, thick forests teeming with seasonal elephant herds up to 1 000 strong and lush sub-tropical wetlands that are home to crocodile, hippopotami and buffalo. The national protected area network of the Ministry of Environment and Tourism covers 140 394 km2, 17 per cent of the country, and while the century-old Etosha National and Namib-Naukluft parks are deservedly re- garded as the flagships of Namibia’s conservation suc- cess, all the country’s protected areas have something unique to offer. The formidable Waterberg Plateau holds on its summit an ecological ‘lost world’ cut off by geology from its surrounding plains for millennia. The Fish River Canyon is Africa’s grandest, second in size only to the American Grand Canyon.
    [Show full text]
  • The Namibian Leopard: National Census and Sustainable Hunting Practices
    THE NAMIBIAN LEOPARD: NATIONAL CENSUS AND SUSTAINABLE HUNTING PRACTICES In Cooperation with The Ministry of Environment and Tourism Study Report Conducted by Dr. Louisa Richmond-Coggan, LRC Wildlife Conservation 31st March 2019 Acknowledgments This study was undertaken on behalf of the Namibian Professional Hunting Association (NAPHA) and the Ministry of Environment and Tourism (MET), both of which were committed to the need for an update on the status of Namibia’s leopard population. NAPHA President, Danene van der Westhuyzen, and CEO, Tanya Dahl, along with the EXCO, leopard committee and administration staff helped to facilitate the smooth running of the study. Thanks go to MET Deputy Director of Scientific Services, Kenneth Uiseb, along with Iifo Fillemon, Holger Kolberg and Oiva Akudhenga and the staff of the permit office for allowing access to key data and providing insights into complex Ministry processes. Many other people and organisations contributed to the successful completion of this study and we would like to thank you all; Additional specialised analysis was conducted by Dr. Vera De Cauwer (Namibia University of Science and Technology), Oliver Baines and Alice Jarvis (EIS). Dr. Chris Brown (Namibian Chamber of Environment), Dr. Morgan Hauptfleisch (Namibia University of Science and Technology) and Angus Middleton (Namibia Nature Foundation) provided invaluable guidance and support throughout. The Large Carnivore Management Association of Namibia members were instrumental in the collection of leopard presence and density data from across Namibia. The Namibia Agricultural Union and their local farmer associations, the Conservancy Association of Namibia, the Hospitality Association of Namibia and Wildlife Game Ranches for their assistance raising the study’s profile among their members and collecting questionnaire data on behalf of the study.
    [Show full text]
  • The Nexus Between Civil Registration and Social Protection Systems: Five Country Practices
    CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE LE CENTRE D’EXCELLENCE for CRVS Systems sur les systèmes ESEC The Nexus Between Civil Registration and Social Protection Systems: Five Country Practices SOUTH KOREA TUNISIA NAMIBIA CHILE ARGENTINA Published by the Centre of Excellence for Civil Registration and Vital Statistics Systems. PO Box 8500, Ottawa, ON, Canada K1G 3H9 [email protected] www.CRVSsystems.ca © International Development Research Centre 2020 The research presented in this publication was carried out with fnancial and technical assistance from the Centre of Excellence for CRVS Systems. Housed at the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), it is jointly funded by Global Afairs Canada and IDRC. The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent those of Global Afairs Canada, IDRC, or its Board of Governors. Suggested citation: Centre of Excellence for Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (CRVS) Systems. 2020. The Nexus Between Civil Registration and Social Protection Systems: Five Country Practices. International Development Research Centre, Ottawa, ON. An electronic version of this compendium is available at CRVSsystems.ca/SocialProtection Contents i Contents Acknowledgements .........................................................................ii Foreword ...................................................................................iii Introduction .................................................................................1 Argentina ..................................................................................13 Chile
    [Show full text]
  • MEFT Annual Progress Report 2019
    Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism ANNUAL PROGRESS REPORT 2019/2020 1 2 Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism ANNUAL PROGRESS REPORT 2019/2020 3 Contents 4 Acronyms 6 Message from the Minister 8 Executive Summary 10 1. About the Ministry 14 1.1 High Level Statements and Core Values 14 1.2 Strategic Themes of Operation and Objectives 14 1.3 Structure of the Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism 15 1.4 Key Functions 16 1.5 Budget for the 2019/20 Financial Year 17 1.6 Public Enterprises 17 1.7 Supporting Projects 17 1.8 Key Stakeholders 18 2. Organizational Performance and Service Delivery 20 Contents 2.1 Financial Overview 20 2.2 Operational Performance 22 2.3 Business Process Re-engineering 22 3. Maintenance and Development of Infrastructure in Protected Areas 24 3.1 Park Management Stations and Staff Housing 24 3.2 Fencing 27 3.3 Roads 27 3.4 Water Infrastructure 28 3.5 Waste Management 28 3.6 Park Management Plans and Tourism Development Plans 29 4. Wildlife Monitoring and Species Management 30 4.1 Wildlife surveys 30 4.2 Bird Counts 33 4.3 Management of Elephants 34 4.4 Management of the Wild Horses Population 35 4.5 Game capture and translocations 35 5. Generating benefits for communities 36 5.1 Support to communal conservancies to ensure good governance 36 5.2 Conservation hunting and Wildlife Utilization Quotas 36 5.3 Concessions 38 5.4 Wildlife Stock Breeding Scheme 38 6. Human Wildlife Conflict Prevention and Mitigation 40 6.1 Human Wildlife Conflict Statistics 40 6.2 Human Wildlife Conflict Mitigation and Prevention Measures 41 4 7.
    [Show full text]
  • SPAN Mid-Term Review FINAL Report Dec09.Pdf
    STRENGTHENING THE PROTECTED AREA NETWORK (SPAN) MID-TERM EVALUATION FINAL REPORT Prepared by: Oliver Chapeyama Wouter Schalken November 2009 TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF ACRONYMS ..................................................................................................... 3 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ................................................................................................ 7 1.0 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................ 11 1.1 Purpose of the Evaluation ........................................................................................... 11 1.2 Key issues addressed in the Evaluation ...................................................................... 12 1.3 Methodology of the Evaluation .................................................................................... 13 1.4 Structure of the Report ................................................................................................ 15 2.0 PROJECT CONCEPT AND DESIGN ................................................................. 16 2.1 The Project and its Development Context ................................................................... 16 2.1.1. Problems that the Project seeks to Address ........................................................... 17 2.2 Immediate and Development Objectives of the Project .............................................. 17 2.3 Project Design and Revision ......................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Reflection on Christianity and Traditional Religion in Western Kavango in Namibia
    Reflection on Christianity and Traditional Religion in Western Kavango in Namibia Eeva-Maria Muurman Master’s Thesis in General Church History September 2017 UNIVERSITY OF HELSINKI Faculty Department Faculty of Theology Department of Church History Writer Eeva-Maria Muurman Title of thesis Reflection on Christianity and Traditional Religion in Western Kavango in Namibia Discipline General Church History (Missiology) Type of thesis Month and year Number of pages Master’s Thesis September 2017 124 p. (text 114 p.) + 2 App. Abstract This thesis examines perspectives that Christians in Western Kavango in Namibia have about Christianity and their past religious traditions. The Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Mission (former Finnish Missionary Society) has been working there since 1926. The latest Finnish missionaries left the area in 2013. The Catholic mission was already active in Kavango when the Finns arrived, but Catholicism has been more influential in the eastern part of Kavango. Nowadays new, Pentecostal type churches are attracting a lot of people. The basic research method has been interviewing people in Kavango. First, I wanted to know why they are Christians and what Christianity means to them. Second, I interviewed them about what they know or remember about old cultural traditions and how they evaluate them. I also wished to get deeper into the process of conversion, but I was not able to do so, mainly because almost all the informants had been Christians since their childhood. It seems that people in Kavango have taken Christianity as their own. Christianity in Kavango also has longer and deeper roots than I expected. All the informants said that they are Christians and all consider Christianity as important for themselves.
    [Show full text]
  • Namibia's National Teeb Study
    1 The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) NAMIBIA’S NATIONAL TEEB STUDY VOLUME II IMPROVING STATE PROTECTED AREA FINANCING THROUGH PRICING AND INSTITUTIONAL CHANGES 2 3 Namibia’s National TEEB (The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity) Study The development of strategies to maintain and enhance the protection of ecosystem services in Namibia’s state, communal and freehold lands Volume II: Improving state protected area financing through pricing and institutional changes Authors G. Letley & J. Turpie Series Editor Ministry of Environment and Tourism Enquiries Ministry of Environment and Tourism Cnr Robert Mugabe and Dr Kenneth Kaunda Streets Private Bag 13306, Windhoek, Namibia Acknowledgements The Namibia TEEB Study: disclosing the value of protected areas, private conservation efforts was commissioned by the ResMob project and awarded to the Namibia Nature Foundation (NNF) as lead agent, working in partnership with Anchor Environmental Consultants (Anchor), as technical lead. Date of Publication December 2018 Cover Picture Ralf Bäcker www.resmob.org This study was initiated and financed by the Resource Mobilisation Project of the Ministry of Environment and Tourism and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für international Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. The Resource Mobilisation Project is part of the International Climate Initiative (IKI) of the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMUB). The BMUB supports this initiative on the basis of a decision adopted by the German Bundestag. 4 Table of Contents List of Acronyms vi Preface vii Executive Summary viii Introduction viii Namibia’s protected area system viii Regional comparison of fees and administration ix Review of park pricing literature x Optimal pricing for Namibia’s National Parks x Willingness to pay for Namibian conservation outside Protected Areas xi Conclusions and recommendations xii 1.
    [Show full text]
  • Protected Areas and Wildlife Management Bill
    PROTECTED AREAS AND WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT BILL (Bill No. # of 2017) (To be presented by the Minister of Environment and Tourism) Draft of 17 July 2017 1 PROTECTED AREAS AND WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT BILL, 2017 BILL To give effect to paragraph (l) of Article 95 of the Namibian Constitution by establishing a legal framework to provide for and promote the maintenance of ecosystems, essential ecological processes and the biological diversity of Namibia, and the utilization of living natural resources on a sustainable basis for the benefit of Namibians, both present and future, and to promote the mutually beneficial co- existence of humans with wildlife, to give effect to Namibia’s obligations under relevant international legal instruments; to repeal the Nature Conservation Ordinance 4 of 1975; and to provide for incidental matters. ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS PART I INTRODUCTORY PROVISIONS 1. Interpretation PART II PRINCIPLES OF CONSERVATION AND OBLIGATIONS TO CONSERVE INDIGENOUS BIODIVERSITY 2. Preamble 3. Application 4. Principles of conservation 5. Compliance by organs of State and other persons 2 PART III ADMINISTRATION 6. Powers of the Minister 7. Roles and functions of the Ministry 8. Designation of conservation officers 9. Powers of conservation officers 10. Honorary conservation officers 11. Powers of honorary conservation officers 12. Authorizations PART IV PROTECTED AREAS 13. Role of Protected Areas 14. Declaration of Protected Areas 15. Register of Protected Areas 16. Amendment to boundaries of Protected Areas 17. Withdrawal of declaration as a Protected Area 18. Acquisition of land and immovable property for the purposes of a State Protected Area 19. Existing Protected Areas 20. Powers and functions of the Minister within a Protected Area 21.
    [Show full text]
  • A Study of Vakwangali Traditional Clothing for Fashion
    A STUDY OF VAKWANGALI TRADITIONAL CLOTHING FOR FASHION CREATION IN NAMIBIA A THESIS SUBMITTED IN FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS (VISUAL ARTS) OF THE UNIVERSITY OF NAMIBIA BY MARIA A. N. CALEY 200012789 APRIL 2020 MAIN SUPERVISOR: Dr Kletus Muhena Likuwa, (UNAM) CO-SUPERVISOR: Dr Napandulwe Shiweda, (UNAM) ABSTRACT The need to explore the Vakwangali traditional clothing as an inspiration for designing fashion clothing arose from acquired knowledge and understanding that intersections exist between traditional clothing and fashion design. It also began from observations that while such intersections seem to have resulted in the development of fashion clothing from traditional clothing among, for example, Ovaherero and Aawambo of Namibia, it is puzzling as to why the same have not occurred among Vakwangali of Kavango West region. Traditional clothing of Vakwangali has a rich history that is embedded with value and meaning. However, this rich cultural heritage is not reflected in their everyday wear. The main objective of this study was to explore various Vakwangali traditional clothing and styles over time; in order to explain the lack of transformation of Vakwangali cultural clothing from traditional clothing styles to fashion clothing. In addition this study aimed to suggest initiatives to transform Vakwangali traditional clothing into fashion through an exhibition fashion collection. Data was collected through interviews with key informants to gain in-depth knowledge regarding Vakwangali traditional clothing and its influence through a narrative style. Additional archival documents, regarding early establishment of mission work and schools, showed the influence of Christianity and colonial rule on Vakwangali traditional clothing including its transformation.
    [Show full text]
  • 7. Institutions and Organizations Related to Environmental and Social Considerations
    7. Institutions and Organizations Related to Environmental and Social Considerations 7. Institutions and Organizations Related to Environmental and Social Considerations 7.1 Policy, laws and regulations relevant to an environmental assessment 7.1.1 Environmental assessment policy for sustainable development and environmental conservation (1994) The policy, approved by the cabinet in 1994, recognises that Environmental Assessments (EA’s) seek to ensure that the environmental consequences of development projects and policies are considered, understood and incorporated into the planning process, and that the term ENVIRONMENT is broadly interpreted to include biophysical, social, economic, cultural, historical and political components1. The policy defines policies, programmes and projects (PPP) requiring EA and EA procedure. Before the Environmental Management Act (EMA) came into force, environmental impact assessments were executed in accordance with this policy. In response to the policy, work on drafting necessary legislation had started. Then, 15 years later, the Environmental Management Act was finalized in 2007. 7.1.2 Environmental Management Act (No. 7 of 2007) The Environmental Management Act (EMA) was promulgated in 27 December 2007. Implementation of its operation was notified in the Government Gazette of 6 February 2012 when the following regulations were also notified. • List of activities that may not be undertaken without an environmental clearance certificate (Government Notice No. 29) • Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Regulations (Government Notice No. 30) The EMA aims to promote the sustainable management of the environment and the use of natural resources by preventing and mitigating the significant effects of various activities on the environment. The outline of EMA is shown in Table 7.1.
    [Show full text]