Ikidukikije

Muraho buri wese! Several months ago, I received an email from an old roommate and friend, Abby, asking me about “green” awareness in Rwanda. How does the country manage waste? What kind of energy and transportation are available? Is there a species that is the poster child for awareness about environmental destruction? I've finally gotten around to tackling those hard-hitting questions, so this one's for you, Abby.

First, I should say that the “green” movement and environmental awareness do not exist like they do in the United States or Europe. There remain enough problems just meeting basic needs for many people that most don't give much thought to the environment and what long-term effect their life may be having on it. Also, there is a marked difference between environmental awareness in Kigali and outside of it. The one thing that is a constant all over the country is a respect and desire for cleanliness: you will rarely see waste and uncleanliness, and you'll have to look pretty hard to find it.

Waste is, of course, present. This is a modern world we're living in, with modern food packaging and modern electronics (that die far too quickly). The problem, especially in the rural areas of Rwanda, is that there are no modern methods for dealing with this waste. Organic waste presents no problem, as it is thrown on the ground wherever one happens to be at the moment. If it's not snatched up and eaten by a goat or a pig, it's swept away into the nearest brush and left to peacefully decompose in a reasonably short period of time. Paper, cardboard boxes, and paper bags fall into the category of waste that is most often burned. These materials are quite useful for starting fires for cooking. The problem materials are the metals (tomato cans, bottle caps), big plastics (thermoses, jerry cans), and electronics (batteries, cell phones, radios). Some of these can be reused in some capacity, like old cell phone and radio parts being used to repair broken ones, but most of them end up being thrown out into some corner of each home's yard to sit and slowly leach into the soil. At my house, they are strewn about haphazardly, and one can look out from the back door onto a landscape littered with old tomato paste cans and batteries. It's not a pretty sight.

The one place in the country that has a clearly-developed waste management system to prevent these modern art pieces from sprouting up all over the place is Kigali. First of all, there is a real effort to prevent an accumulation of litter in the city, and any visitor there will tell you that it's working. There are trash receptacles located all over the city, including out front of many stores, workers go around collecting trash and sweeping the streets each morning, and littering is punishable by up to six months in jail or a fine of 10,000 RWF (about $17). In addition, plastic bags are illegal, so you won't find them blowing about like tumbleweeds on the set of an old Western. Recently, the city's waster management efforts have increased to include a recycling system. The only place I've actually seen the sorted collection bins is at the Peace Corps office, but you can separate everything from hazardous waste to food scraps and plastics. Who knows if everything is actually recycled or ultimately just thrown into the landfill together, but at the very least the tools are in place and waste does end up in the city's landfill as opposed to being thrown about anywhere and everywhere.

If Kigali, at least, seems to have a handle on solid waste, vehicle emissions are another thing. The paved roads in Kigali and the rest of the country are narrow and with small shoulders. Traffic is dense, especially in the city, so bicycling is reserved only for the bravest of souls, and most people drive, ride minibuses or motorcycles, or walk to get around. There are no emissions standards enforced in Rwanda, so these transportation forms routinely emit plumes of black diesel exhaust as they rumble about the country. If pollution levels are lower in Kigali than in cities of a similar size in the United States or Europe, it's likely due to the fact that there are fewer vehicles on the road and not because anything is being done to promote cleaner transportation. In the rural areas, there are more people who walk and ride bicycles to get where they're going, but this is not necessarily by choice: it's what they have. Given the choice, it's just easier to get places on a motorcycle or in a car, especially given the topography of the country.

While vehicle emissions may be a problem waiting to happen, Rwanda appears to be on the right track when it comes to electricity production. Many places in the country now have electricity, and most of this comes from hydroelectric power (more than 90%), as opposed to coal- or gas-powered plants. For those places still without electricity, government offices, schools, and health centers use solar power to charge their computers and light their offices. Electricity is generally only used for these low-energy needs, however, and other means are used for higher-energy needs like cooking. If you remember my post on food in Rwanda, you'll recall that most people use wood or charcoal to cook, which is leading to problems like deforestation and soil erosion.

These and other environmental issues are often cited as contributing factors to habitat destruction and the endangerment of species, and Rwanda is certainly no stranger to such problems. With such a high population density, there are bound to be some problems with humans encroaching on, and destroying, animal habitat. In fact, visitors to Akagera National Park in eastern Rwanda will see first hand the effects humans have had on Rwanda's animal species. There, most of the current animals have been reintroduced from neighboring countries after being wiped out in Rwanda as humans moved into the area. I wrote about the few giraffes who were brought in and which eventually reproduced enough to form a healthy herd in the park (see the post on National Parks), and they are getting ready to reintroduce lions after they were all killed because they would leave the park boundary and eat cattle.

The poster child for Rwanda's conservation efforts, however, is clearly the endangered mountain gorilla. This mammal, which is only found in a small area encompassing parts of Rwanda, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, is threatened by habitat destruction as people cut down the forest for firewood and to make charcoal and by poachers who hunt it for its fur and big, ornamental hands and feet. Just like the polar bear in the West is shown on receding ice to show the effects of increasing temperatures on its habitat, cute baby mountain gorillas are shown with a thinning forest in the background. Fortunately (perhaps because of this type of promotion), the mountain gorilla is not left to fight on its own. Former poachers are hired as porters for those who visit Virunga National Park where the gorillas live (the idea being that it gives them an alternative way to make money), and a portion of the now $750 (for foreigners) permit to see the gorillas goes toward habitat conservation and restoration, research, and education.

Rwanda's efforts to promote environmental conservation where it concerns animals like the mountain gorilla are promising. Combined with the government's dedication to reforestation through tree-planting programs and electricity production through mostly Eco-friendly means, it's clear leaders have some environmental awareness. While there's still room for improvement in areas such as vehicle emissions and waste management, Rwanda has some “green” credentials. What remains to be seen is if it will learn from mistakes made elsewhere and become more fully environmentally conscious sooner or if it will follow the same learning curve as the United States and European countries and, more recently, China.

Happy birthday this month: Aunt Maggie, Joseph

Next month's post: Technology in Rwanda and its effect on society