Sustainability

In 2020, the world woke up to the ravages of climate change, the power of nature, and the impacts of a pandemic. These challenges are not new to the people of the Tana River Delta but bring radical changes to the future management of land use decisions and the global economy. In the past, traditional accounting frameworks failed to consider natural resource depletion or the value of services provided by land, water, air, plants and animals towards human development. Investors and financial markets are now increasingly emphasizing on environmental risk management and sustainable development. These are not just the views held by committed environmentalists but by some of the world’s most influential financial leaders like USB Global and Credit Suisse.

Achieving sustainable development of the Tana River Delta remains a priority for the Government of Kenya and the Tana River County Government. Investors in the Delta will therefore be encouraged to embrace many principles advancing the objectives of the Global Biodiversity Framework. In particular, investments will be aligned towards meeting the following targets:

Target 1

Ensure that all land and sea areas globally are under integrated biodiversity-inclusive spatial planning addressing land- and sea-use change, retaining existing intact and wilderness areas.

Target 7

Reduce pollution from all sources to levels that are not harmful to biodiversity, ecosystem functions and human health, including reducing nutrients lost to the environment by at least half, pesticide use by at least two-thirds and eliminating the discharge of plastic waste.

Target 8

Minimize the impact of climate change on biodiversity, contribute to mitigation and adaptation through ecosystem-based approaches, contribute at least 10 GtCO2e per year to global mitigation efforts, and ensure that all mitigation and adaptation efforts avoid negative impacts on biodiversity.

Target 9

Ensure benefits, including nutrition, food security, medicines, and livelihoods for people, especially the most vulnerable, through sustainable management of wild terrestrial, freshwater and marine species and protecting customary sustainable use by indigenous peoples and local communities.

Target 10

Ensure all areas under agriculture, aquaculture and forestry are managed sustainably, particularly through the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity, increasing the productivity and resilience of these production systems.

Target 11

Maintain and enhance nature’s contributions to regulating air quality, quality and quantity of water, and protecting all people from hazards and extreme events.

Target 14

Fully integrate biodiversity values into policies, regulations, planning, development processes, poverty reduction strategies, accounts, and assessments of environmental impacts at all levels of government and across all sectors of the economy, ensuring that all activities and financial flows are aligned with biodiversity values.

Target 15

All businesses (public and private, large, medium and small) assess and report on their dependencies and impacts on biodiversity, from local to global, and progressively reduce negative impacts, by at least half and increase positive impacts, reducing biodiversity-related risks to businesses and moving towards the full sustainability of extraction and production practices, sourcing and supply chains, and use and disposal.

Upholding these principles is essential in ensuring that investments allowed in the Delta will boost community resilience, reduce risks and vulnerabilities to natural and human-made hazards, environmental degradation, climate change, violence, conflict, political and social instability or economic volatility. Further, they will result in compliance with legal norms and standards and promote active engagement of the local communities.