ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE IN KENYA: A CRITICAL ANALYSIS by MAUREEN K NDETHIU Submitted in partial fulfilment of the degree of MASTER OF LAWS at the UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH AFRICA SUPERVISOR: PROFESSOR M BEUKES FEBRUARY 2018 DECLARATION Student Number: 3508-052-3 I, MAUREEN K NDETHIU, declare that ‘ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE IN KENYA: A CRITICAL ANALYSIS’ is my own work and that all the sources I have used or quoted have been indicated and acknowledged by means of complete references. 2018-02-27 Signature……………………………… Date..................................... Ndethiu M K i ABSTRACT Title of Dissertation: ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE IN KENYA: A CRITICAL ANALYSIS Environmental justice, a new but rapidly developing concept in international environmental law, arose in the United States of America during the Environmental Justice Movement of the late 1970s and 1980s. It starkly highlighted injustices faced by people of colour and low-income communities as regards racially skewed environmental legal protection and allocation of environmental risks. The movement radically changed the meaning of ‘environment’ from its conventional green overtones to include issues of social justice at the core of environmental thinking. I critically examine the concept of environmental justice in the Kenyan context by highlighting the injustices, and the formulation and application of laws and policies that significantly impact on environmental regulation and equitable distribution of social services. ii KEY TERMS Modern environmentalism; international environmental law; environmental principles; anthropocentrism; sustainable development; environmental justice; United States of America (USA); vulnerable and marginalised persons; human rights. iii DEDICATION To Leon and Lynn, may the achievement in this work give you a headlight to see a world of possibilities in everything you set your hearts and minds to do and to the reformists, who place their lives and families on the line so that those on the margins of society can live in dignity, justice, and hope for brighter days. iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS For this work to be completed took a zeal and resilience that I did not draw entirely from myself. It is to these people that I give my heartfelt appreciation and recognition: Prof Margaret Beukes, my supervisor, for your kindness, insightful comments and timely feedback. Peter Mbae Njogu provided me with a conducive and inspirational space for writing this work. My parents, Starlings and Sophia Ndethiu, for providing me with unending encouragement and having faith in me. My siblings, Leon and Lynn, for being supportive and standing in for me while I wrote this work. Susan Morema, Collins Manyasi, and Bernard Njue of Kenyatta University Parklands Library and the staff of Nairobi University, for assisting me in my research. My deep appreciation also goes to the people not mentioned here who extended a deed of kindness and meaningful input in the writing of this work. …And to God, the Almighty, who makes everything possible. v LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS ACTS African Centre for Technological Studies AFREPREN African Energy Policy Research Network AMCOW African Ministers’ Council on Water ADRC Asian Disaster Reduction Center CBD Central Business District CBD Convention on Biological Diversity CEPL Centre for Environmental Policy and Law CISDL Centre for International Sustainable Development Law CIPEV Commission of Inquiry on Post-Election Violence COHRE Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions COP Conference of Parties EJIL European Journal of International Law EPA Environmental Protection Agency EDMCN Drought Monitoring Centre Nairobi DPMF Development Policy Management Forum ECHR European Courts of Human Rights FAO Food Agricultural Organisation FIAN Food First Information and Action Network FIDA Federation of Women Lawyers in Kenya GDP Gross Domestic Product GYIL German Year Book of International Law HSRC Human Sciences Research Council ICC International Criminal Court IDG International Data Group IELRC International Environmental Law Research Centre ILEG Institute for Law and Environmental Governance ILR Iowa Law Review vi IMF International Monetary Fund IPCC Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change IPCS International Programme on Chemical Safety IREC Independent Review Committee ISOCARP International Society of City and Regional Planners ITJEMAST International Transaction Journal of Engineering Management and Applied Sciences and Technologies IWA International Water Association JAP Journal of Applied Philosophy JRS Jesuit Refugee Service KIFCON Kenya Indigenous Forest Conservation Programme KLA Kenya National Land Alliance KLR Kenya Law Reports LLR Law Africa Law Reports MIT Massachusetts Institute of Technology NACCP National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People NBER National Bureau of Economic Research MDG Millennium Development Goals OECD Organisation for Economic Corporation and Development PAC Practical Action Consulting PISCES Policy Innovation Systems for Clean Energy Security PREMUA Poverty Reduction and Economic Management Unit Africa RECIEL Review of European Community and International Environmental Law SID Society for International Development SDG Sustainable Development Goals UNEP United Nations Environmental Programme UN-HABITAT United Nations Human Settlements Programme UNICEF United Nations Children’s Fund UNISDR United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction vii UNESCO United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation UNPF United Nations Population Fund UNYB United Nations Year Book WCED World Commission on Environment and Development WMO World Metrological Organisation YJIA Yale Journal of International Affairs viii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Declaration………………………………………………………………………………………………i Abstract………………………………………………………………………………………………….ii Key terms……………………………………………………………………………………………….iii Dedication ……………………………………………………………………………………………...iv Acknowledgments…………………….………………………………………………………………..v List of abbreviations and acronyms ……………………………………………………………..vi-viii Table of contents ……………………………………………………………………………………ix-xi CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION AND PROBLEM STATEMENT.............................................1 1.0 The ‘environmental justice’ principle ..................................................................................1 1.1 The concept of ‘vulnerable, disadvantaged and marginalised’ persons/groups in environmental justice................................................................................................................2 1.2 Broad reflection on the term ‘environment’: Environmental justice and ‘anthropocentrism’: Positioning the human being at the centre...............................................................................4 1.3 Environmental justice: A spreading concept ....................................................................5 1.4 Problem statement.............................................................................................................8 1.5 Demarcation of chapters .................................................................................................10 CHAPTER 2: THE GENESISOF ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE AND ITS PLACE IN INTERNATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL LAW........................................................................13 2.1 Introduction......................................................................................................................13 2.2 The impetus leading to the Environmental Justice Movement in the USA......................13 2.3 Environmental racism and the roots of injustice as historical justification for the genesis of environmental justice.........................................................................................................16 2.4 Ecology ‘meets’ civil liberties and human justice ............................................................17 2.5 ‘Environmental justice’ as human dignity for everyone....................................................18 2.6 Underpinning human wellbeing: ‘Principles of environmental justice'..............................19 2.7 The new environmental justice roadmap: The initiatives of Presidents Clinton and Obama...................................................................................................................................20 ix 2.8 After the Environmental Justice Movement: Lessons and relevance in the international environmental law discourse.................................................................................................22 2.9 International environmental law and the development of relevant principles and concepts: Finding the place of environmental justice............................................................................23 2.10 The emerging principles of international environmental law and environmental justice....................................................................................................................................26 2.11 Legal nature of international law principles in general and environmental law principles in particular...............................................................................................................................28 2.12 Conclusion....................................................................................................................30 CHAPTER 3: THE LINK BETWEEN SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT AND ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE..............................................................................................33 3.1 Introduction.....................................................................................................................33