Tanzanian Villagers Spared Eviction Caused By Eco Energy Plant
In a rare victory for landless villagers in Africa, more than 1,500 people have been spared eviction to make way for an energy plant after the Tanzanian government halted the project citing concern for wildlife in a nearby sanctuary.
The bioelectricity plant was to be built in Saadani National Park in northern Tanzania and would have siphoned huge amounts of water from a major river, affecting the elephants, hippos and giraffes that roam the 1,100 square km sanctuary.
Construction of the $569 million plant, which was to produce ethanol from locally grown sugar and generate enough power for 100,000 rural households, would also have forced the eviction of thousands of smallholder farmers who work lands surrounding the park.
Megan Coughlin