NEMA ANNOUNCES HEARINGS FOR SECOND JKIA RUNWAY
(Posted 17th December 2014)
Kenya’s National Environmental Management Authority has confirmed the receipt of the Environmental and Social Impact Study related to the construction of a second runway, adjoining taxiway and various entry and exit points from the new Greenfield Terminal at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, In a formal notice published in the Kenya Gazette, a government publication where legally required public notices are circulated, was a 30 day deadline set to submit to NEMA any objections, comments or observations from the public at large. It could not be established if a public hearing will take place or if submissions to the Director General will be considered sufficient to assist NEMA in making their final decision. The deadline expires on the 11th of January 2015 and submissions must be sent to the attention of the Director General of NEMA by either email, registered mail, ordinary mail, courier delivery or hand delivery.
Airport sources indicated that while they expect some level of opposition to the expansion plans for Kenya’s main aviation gateway to the world, they nevertheless anticipate an approval to be granted, albeit with a range of mitigative measures imposed by NEMA.
The second runway is a key element to allow more take offs and landings and serve as a crucial back up should the other runway need to be closed. Presently does a runway closure affect airport operations which have to shut down completely until any obstacles are removed which has in the past cost airlines hundreds of thousands of US Dollars in rerouted flights and passenger compensation.
The Project Greenfield under which the second runway falls will raise the passenger capacity of East Africa’s most important aviation hub by a further 20 million per annum and completion is expected around 2018.
