Funding for the construction of Kenya’s first wildlife overpass in Naivasha is being sought as preparations for the 29th edition of the annual Rhino Charge are underway. The proposed wildlife overpass above Moi North Lake Road will enable wildlife, including giraffes, to move freely from Lake Naivasha’s shore to the nearby forest.
This was announced during a pre-event briefing in Nairobi over the weekend. David Lowe, Clerk of the Course, highlighted the key issues pertaining to security and care for the environment as well as the registration process for all competitors.
Lowe said that several measures have been taken by the Rhino charge committee to minimize environmental impacts. “In the spirit of the recent Gazette Notice by the Cabinet Secretary for Environment and Natural resources on banning of plastic bags, the usage of single-use plastic containers at the Charge venue have been strongly discouraged,” said Mr. Lowe.
Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) Assistant Director in charge of Mountain Conservation Area Simon Gitau confirmed that no plastic bottles will be used by the KWS team participating in the Rhino Charge.
He also mentioned that KWS took the decision last year to ban the use of plastic bottles in Mt. Kenya and that the ban will be effective from July 1st, 2017, nearly one year to the tour and operators and porters are to prepare to comply with the ban. The Rhino Ark is committed to making the Rhino Charge climate neutral from this year onwards by offsetting all the CO2 emissions related to the running of the event. Since its inception, the Rhino Charge has been the main fund-raising event for the Rhino Ark Charitable Trust. Over 92% of the funds raised by the competitors support environmental conservation.