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<br>Kenyans fear Dakatcha Woodlands biofuel growth<br> |
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<br>23 March 2011<br> |
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<br>By Will Ross<br> |
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<br>BBC News, Dakatcha<br> |
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<br>Sitting in the shade of a tree next to his thatched mud hut in in Kenya's Dakatcha Woodlands, Joshua Kahindi Pekeshe is bold.<br> |
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<br>"We are not going to let this land go even if it suggests shedding blood," he informed the BBC.<br> |
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<br>"Land is extremely important to us. We farm and get our income from it. On this land we bury our dead."<br> |
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<br>He is one of the [numerous individuals](https://www.intelligentinvestor.com.au/shares/asx-mbt/mission-newenergy-limited/share-price) opposed to the development of a large [biofuel](https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/159346/mission-newenergy-delivers-maiden-biodiesel-production-to-global-oil-major-24476.html) plantation in the area, about an hour's drive inland from the seaside town of Malindi.<br> |
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<br>It is an arid location and home to some 20,000 individuals along with globally threatened animal and bird types.<br> |
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<br>Ambitious objectives<br> |
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<br>An Italian company has asked the authorities for authorization to lease 50,000 hectares there to grow [jatropha](https://www.zonebourse.com/cours/action/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-8557641/), whose seeds are abundant in oil that can be developed into bio-diesel.<br> |
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<br>This plant, initially from South America, has actually long been grown in Africa as a hedge to stay out animals - goats remain well away as it is toxic. The location impacted is community land which is being kept in trust by the regional council.<br> |
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<br>Kenya [Jatropha](https://www.zoominfo.com/c/mission-newenergy/346542889) Energy Ltd is 100%-owned by the Milan-based Nuove Iniziative Industriali SRL.<br> |
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<br>It has leased practically a million hectares in Africa |
