“It is perfect!” exclaims Anthony Kingi, a member of the Kenyan nonprofit Center for Justice Governance and Environmental Action (CJGEA). “Kenya doesn’t need it. However, if they must build it, I’m glad it’s not in my backyard.” The “it” Kingi is referring to is a 1,000-megawatt nuclear power plant that Kenya plans to build. The government has shortlisted three potential locations for the $3.8 billion project. “Kenya is currently in the second phase of nuclear power programme development, with a clear target of connecting nuclear power to the national grid by 2034,” Kenya’s Nuclear Power and Energy Agency (NuPEA) said in a statement to Mongabay. Initial consultations about the project centered on Uyombo, a fishing village in Kilifi county on Kenya’s southeastern coast. The decision sparked significant opposition from both local residents and environmental experts. Over the years, as protests amplified, demonstrators were assaulted by the police, and some were arrested. On June 27 this year, with very little fanfare, the Ministry of Energy and Petroleum announced at the Nuclear Power Conference at Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University of Science and Technology (JOOUST) that it’s considering building the plant in Luanda Kotieno, in the Bondo area of Siaya county, on the other side of the country. Paul Otiende Amollo, member of parliament for Rarieda, one of six constituencies in Siaya, said during that conference: “Acceptance is important. In Kilifi, they have issues because of nonacceptance. In our case, I understand from NuPEA that they have identified a site around Luanda Kotieno.…This article was originally published on Mongabay

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