GAZETTE NOTICE NO. 152

by virtue of the authority vested in me as the Governor of Makueni County by the Constitution of Kenya 2010 and the County Governments Act I hereby state as hereunder: THAT the harvesting of sand for commercial purposes within Makueni County is hereby suspended indefinitely and Pursuant to the Provisions of Section 69(1) of the Constitution as read with the Schedule 4 of the Constitution and Sections 30 and 31 of the County Governments Act, until a substantive legislation is passed to regulate the process. THAT there is imposed a penalty of Kshs. 100,000.00 on any person found to be harvesting and transporting sand for commercial purposes during the suspension period. THAT the process of formulating has already begun and after a series of meetings have constituted a task force to investigate the issue and come up with recommendations on the way forward. THAT this executive order is informed by the following grounds: 1. That wanton and unregulated harvesting of sand has resulted in gross environmental degradation resulting in severe water shortage and reduced agricultural productivity; 2. That lack of regulation within the sand industry has led to grave social ills such as family break-ups, child labour, school drop-outs and spread of sexually transmitted diseases among others; 3. That local communities have been exploited by being paid negligible compensation for their labour, road access and resources. Issued under my Hand Dated the 1st December, 2014. KIVUTHA KIBWANA, Governor, Makueni County.