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Tag: Kenya Marine and Fisheries Institute (KMFRI)

  • Mikindani Constructed Wetland to tackle wastewater, restore Tudor Creek

    Mikindani Constructed Wetland to tackle wastewater, restore Tudor Creek

    The UN Environment Programme (UNEP), in partnership with the Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute (KMFRI) and local community groups, has constructed the Mikindani Constructed Wetland in Mombasa, a nature-based solution designed to tackle long-standing wastewater challenges in the area.

    Officially launched on Friday, the project is part of the EU-funded Go Blue programme and aims to restore Tudor Creek, improve water quality, and enhance community health and livelihoods through sustainable wastewater management.

    The French Ambassador to Kenya Arnaud Suquet with Mining Cabinet Secretary Hassan Joho and other leaders during the launch of the Mikindani Constructed Wetland project

    Go Blue Environment focuses on connecting people, cities, and the ocean through integrated, ecosystem-based land-sea planning and management, and is jointly implemented by UNEP and UN-Habitat.

    Mikindani, a low-income residential area in Mombasa, has suffered persistent wastewater problems, with untreated effluent draining into Tudor Creek, a vital ecosystem that supports mangroves, marine life, and local farming.

    The new wetland uses locally available vegetation, including Typha grass, Cattail, and Vetiver grass, to filter and clean wastewater, effectively improving water quality and restoring coastal and marine ecosystems by reducing harmful pollution of Tudor creek.

    “A project of this magnitude does not happen in isolation. It takes vision, collaboration, and commitment. I would like to extend my deepest appreciation to the European Union for their critical financial support through the Go Blue Project, and to UNEP for providing technical expertise and ensuring that the project meets global environmental standards,” said H.E. Hassan Ali Joho, Cabinet Secretary for Mining, Blue Economy, and Maritime Affairs.

    “This collaboration demonstrates what we can achieve when governments, research institutions, development partners, and communities come together to drive transformative change.”

    This project builds on the success of a similar initiative by UNEP completed in 2023, the Shimo la Tewa Constructed Wetland, and is designed to be accessible to the Mikindani community, ensuring long-term environmental and social benefits.

    “At UNEP, we are fully committed to addressing the triple planetary crisis of climate change, nature and biodiversity loss, and pollution, and waste,” said Sinikinesh Beyene, acting Head of the Marine and Freshwater Branch, UNEP Ecosystems Division.

    “Projects like the Mikindani Constructed Wetland exemplify how innovative nature-based solutions can mitigate environmental challenges and restore vital ecosystems.” “Partnerships with national institutions such as KMFRI and local community groups are crucial in building capacity, ensuring the long-term success and sustainability of these initiatives, and empowering communities to lead in the fight against environmental degradation,” she added.

    Henriette Geiger, EU Ambassador to Kenya, emphasized the European Union’s commitment to advancing Kenya’s blue economy: “Through the Go Blue programme, the European Union has invested significantly in concrete projects along Kenya’s coast, addressing both land and sea challenges. We believe there is no green without blue and no blue without green. By combining policy development with practical implementation and bringing in the expertise of UNEP and UN-Habitat, we have been able to achieve results that would not have been possible otherwise. These partnerships are key to advancing Kenya’s blue economy and ensuring sustainable growth.”

    The Mikindani Constructed Wetland supports several key Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-Being) by improving water quality and reducing waterborne diseases, SDG 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation) through sustainable wastewater treatment, SDG 13 (Climate Action) by enhancing ecosystem resilience with nature-based solutions, and SDG 14 (Life Below Water) by promoting the protection of marine ecosystems.

  • Government to rehabilitate abandoned mining sites 

    Government to rehabilitate abandoned mining sites 

    The government has announced plans to rehabilitate abandoned mining sites across the country, transforming them into valuable resources for productive use.

    State Department for Mining Principal Secretary (PS) Elijah Mwangi said most of the sites which have been left open posed danger to the environment and members of the public.

    The State Department, he added, has embarked on a mapping exercise to establish the locations and status of the sites across the country ahead of the rehabilitation exercise.

    The PS said through partnership with other government agencies, the mines would be converted into aquaculture hubs or refilled and repurposed for agricultural use. The move was expected to breathe new life into areas affected by mining activities, offering a sustainable solution to environmental degradation and creating new economic opportunities for local communities, he added.

    “We are working with the Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute (KMFRI) to carry out studies on how some of these sites can be used for aquaculture,” said the PS.

    This, he added, targets large abandoned mining sites which are now filled with water while other sites would be refilled and the land used for agriculture, reforestation and tourism.

    Speaking at the sidelines of the Nyanza International Investment Conference in Kisumu, the PS said the government was committed to restoring the sites to their former productive potential, contributing to food security, job creation, and environmental sustainability.

    “The rehabilitation of the mining sites will create new aquaculture ventures, which are expected to boost local fish production, while refilled sites will provide fertile ground for agricultural activities, supporting farmers with additional productive land,” he said.

    Mwangi said artisanal miners were being organised into cooperatives to ensure that they access big markets for their minerals and also credit to procure equipment.

    The goal, he said, was to ensure that they have the right equipment and gear to curb deaths in the mines.

    “In this region alone, we have established 52 marketing cooperatives. We are now capacity- building them and linking them to financial institutions to access credit,” he said.

    The government has employed additional mining engineers and geologists to support the artisanal miners in the regions said the PS.

    Speaking during the same occasion, Kenya Commercial Bank Director of Cooperative Banking John Okulo said the bank has established a facility to support artisanal miner to acquire modern equipment.

    “Once they are organised into groups, they can access loans of up to Sh. 250 million from KCB to purchase equipment and expand their ventures,” he said.

  • KMFRI develops new technology to fight food insecurity

    KMFRI develops new technology to fight food insecurity

    The Kenya Marine and Fisheries Institute (KMFRI) is piloting a saline water purification technology that could revolutionize agriculture in arid and semi-areas of Kenya.

    The technology also aims at producing lithium, a natural element used in the manufacture of lithium metal and lithium-ion batteries, heat resistant glass and ceramics, and lithium grease lubricants among others.

    Known as the Seawater Greenhouse Technology and Lithium Mining from Saltworks Project, the technology is being piloted at Kadzuhoni area of Magarini Sub County, Kilifi County and is one of two such projects in Africa, the other one being piloted in Somalia.

    Dr. Joseph Nyingi Kamau, a research scientist at KMFRI, says that the technology is feasible in areas that have huge amounts of saline water, strong winds and high temperatures, such as Turkana County and Bamba in Kilifi County.

    He explains that the saline water from the sea or aquifers is sprinkled on an evaporator setup erected on a greenhouse that is constructed using paper local materials to form two radiator-like structures – the evaporator on the windward side and a condenser on the opposite side – while the roof and the other sides are covered by polythene materials.

    He says that the windy environment provides a gust of wind flow into the greenhouse, which evaporates the water from the evaporator into the greenhouse and flows to the other end where it passes through a heat exchanger to warm the humid air.

    The research scientist adds that the humid air then passes through a condenser where it is condenses and is collected in a reservoir, ready to be used to water crops and for domestic purposes.

    Dr. Kamau says that there are only two seawater greenhouse pilot projects in Africa, at Kadzuhoni in Kenya and Hargeisa in Somalia. However, the technology has been heavily employed in Australia and Oman.

    The researcher explains that the technology thrives in hot windy regions such as Bamba in Kilifi County and Turkana, which he says have vast water aquifers but whose water has very high salt content and is not useful for drinking or for agricultural purposes.

    He notes that the seawater greenhouse intervention is being implemented under a global project called SALT-MINE, which consists of a consortium of scientists from Kenya, Norway, Tanzania, Somalia and South Africa.

    “The project has two key deliverables – to pilot a seawater greenhouse and to develop a cost-effective technology to enable lithium extraction from salt brine,” he says adding, “There is a high demand for the element lithium, fueled by the exponential demand from the lithium-ion battery industry.”

    According to him, about four billion people currently live in conditions of severe water scarcity for at least one month per year, a situation exacerbated by the impact of climate change, more so in arid areas where food production is severely limited by lack of affordable irrigation water.

    He says the system provides an oasis effect that allows for the establishment of an orchard at the area next to the seawater greenhouse where the humid air exhausts.

    He notes that the residue left after the evaporation process is used to develop a cost-effective technology to enable lithium extraction from salt brine.

    “There is a high demand for the element lithium, fueled by the exponential demand from the lithium-ion battery industry,” he says.

    Kadzuhoni residents welcomed pilot project, saying it had created job opportunities to locals and that many more employment opportunities would be created once the project is fully operational.

    William Kombe Fikiri on whose shamba the project is being implemented is upbeat that his economic prospects were high as he would take advantage of the project to carry out irrigation.