The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : Tatas land in eco row in Tanzania

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Dec 26, 2007
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

Tatas land in eco row in Tanzania

K. Venkateshwarlu

Conservationists from 23 African nations oppose the plant

Its soda ash plant at Lake Natron threatens survival of Africa’s Lesser Flamingo
It is estimated to pump 530 cubic metres of brine per hour

HYDERABAD: An Indian company, Tata Chemicals, is at the centre of a controversy over the location of its soda ash plant at Lake Natron in Tanzania, home to three quarters of the world’s Lesser Flamingo and often hailed as offering the “greatest ornithological spectacle in the world.”

Death-knell

Conservationists from 23 African nations have been opposing the chemical plant, a joint venture of the Tatas and the Tanzanian government, saying it would ring the death-knell for one of Africa’s most enigmatic birds, the lake being the only “reliable breeding site for the species’ East African population.”

The bird species is already on the brink of making it to the IUCN’s (The World Conservation Union) Red List of Threatened Species.

A news alert of the BirdLife International, the world’s largest alliance of conservation organisations, e-mailed to this correspondent, speaks of how the lake, an internationally recognised Ramsar wetland site, supported huge concentrations of more than half a million pairs of Lesser Flamingos, that feed and roost on it and other lakes up and down the Rift Valley.

Lake Natron’s isolation and vast salt flats provided the safety from predators, while its alkaline waters, rich in cyanobacteria, and lakeside springs supplied food and fresh water for parents and chicks, it added.

The spectacular sight of birds on the lake in the backdrop of a valley had been a huge attraction for birdwatchers and tourists.

The proposed salt ash plant is estimated to pump 530 cubic metres of brine per hour and produce 0.5 million tonnes of sodium carbonate a year. The large-scale development also included a sizable residential complex.

Threat to flamingos

Conservationists attending a meeting of the BirdLife Council for the Africa Partnership held at Nairobi recently feared that the entire flamingo population could be lost if the chemical plant is given the go-ahead.

The meeting cited a number of reasons, including likely changes in the chemical composition of the water (affecting the cyanobacteria on which the flamingos depend), and disruption of nest sites.

“This is a clear opportunity for the Tanzanian government to continue showing moral and environmental responsibility in Africa by taking a decision not to proceed with the soda ash development,” said Hazell Shokellu Thompson, Head of BirdLife’s Africa Division, in a note forming part of the news alert.

Fear of revival

A concerted “Think pink, save Africa’s flamingos” campaign by them has now forced the Tanzanian government to put the proposal on hold temporarily but conservationists fear that it could be revived after revising the Environmental and Social Impact Assessment. “If we can’t work to protect habitat for one of Africa’s most charismatic ‘postcard’ species, what hope is there for other species,” Mengistu Wondafrash, Chairman of the Council of the African Partnership, said.

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