Preliminary Assessment of Ecological Impacts of Transportation Infrastructure Development: A Reconnaissance Study of the Standard Gauge Railway in Kenya

Abstract

Transportation infrastructure play key role in movement of goods and services within and between countries, contributing to economic and social growth. Kenya, with support from the Chinese government, is currently constructing a standard gauge railway (SGR) to support the country’s Vision 2030 development agenda. Although the actual land area affected by the SGR cover only a small proportion along the corridor, a significant proportion of the area supports ecologically fragile and important ecosystems in the country. The aim of this paper was to broadly identify the actual ecological impacts of the SGR vis à vis the perceptions of stakeholders and to support ecologically sensitive design of linear infrastructure. Qualitative data was collected through 24 group interviews and meetings comprising over 40 key informants in 14 sites along the Mombasa to Narok sector of the SGR. Qualitative content analysis methods using the Qualitative Data Analysis Miner Lite (QDA) software were applied to code and categorize qualitative data. ArcGIS 10.4 was used to spatially map the SGR, key ecosystems and protected areas. Four dominant themes emerged: 1) ecosystem degradation; 2) ecosystem fragmentation; 3) ecosystem destruction; and 4) impacts of climate change. Ecosystem degradation was the most commonly cited impact while ecosystem destruction was of the least concern. Climate change issues mainly related to current shifts in climatic conditions, loss of forest cover and drying up of rivers and streams and concerns about their future changes. Our results show that the SGR affected key ecosystems in the country and noted the asynchrony between impact mitigation, construction and operations, and stakeholder views. The paper presents a conceptual model that highlights how ecologically sensitive project design and implementation can be better undertaken for mega linear infrastructure. Therefore, we recommend that project proponents develop sustainable and ecologically sensitive measures to mitigate the impacts.