Four days ago, I linked to an article reporting that Gold is being prospected on the Kenya side of the Mara River Basin. The Standard has now picked up the story and it is being labeled a threat to tourism.
A few choice excerpts:
Conservationists have said gold mining in the Mara-Serengeti ecosystem would kill the multi-billion-tourism industry.
Maasai Mara Group Ranches consortium spokesperson Sammy Nkoitoi said on Tuesday mineral prospecting in the Mara would be an alternative for the majority who have not benefited from tourism and asked the government to intervene.
"Any alternative sources of income in the region will spell doom to conservation prospects. It is time short term benefits are weighed against long term ones," he said.
He said for years, illegal gold prospecting and trade had been going on in the reserve and asked the government to halt the development because it would kill the tourism industry, which was a major employer.
Get the full story at The Standard.
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