Kenyans Raise Concerns Over 'Killer' Stench From Nairobi River Along Chiromo, Museum Hill Stretch

• The stink of River Nairobi at the Chiromo and Museum Hill landmarks has been decried by Kenyans frequenting those areas
• City dwellers working in the adjoining locales say they have difficulty enduring the adversity caused by the stench
• In late 2022, President William Ruto established the Nairobi Rivers Commission to oversee its protection and other water bodies within the city county

Nairobi - If you frequent the last bit of Waiyaki Highway, a small distance past the Westlands roundabout, toward Uhuru Highway, then the stench around is not new to you.

Those negotiating both the Museum Hill interchange and Harry Thuku Road also have a feel of the stink.

The smell believed to be emanating from River Nairobi has been filling the atmosphere for close to four months now.

Motorists and other users of the said roads have been decrying the Nairobi City County's lack of initiative to decontaminate the river.

"Some of us work around there so you can imagine what we go through daily," said George Karanja.

The Nairobi River Commission

Late last year, President William Ruto established the Nairobi Rivers Commission to oversee its protection and other water bodies within the city county.

Its work is apparently yet to be felt.

Via a gazette notice published on December 2, the president established a nine-member team stewarded by Pamela Olet to mainly oversee Nairobi's rehabilitation and protection of water bodies.

Ruto observed that previous interventions had not yet transformed the Nairobi River for the better; thus the need for robust measures to make the city's blue infrastructure viable in sustaining the aquatic life.

With the help of its secretariat, the commission would be, among other roles, charged with reclaiming the waters for a better urban environment and also examining previous reports and recommendations regarding the reclamation of the Nairobi River.

John Michuki's initiative

The efforts to decontaminate the Nairobi River date back to over a decade ago when then Environment Minister the late John Michuki sanctioned and sustained the exercise for a while.

On top of things was the Ministry and National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) which was charged with undertaking cleanup and maintenance of the river.

The exercise which gobbled up about KSh 16 billion taxpayer's money was undertaken between 2009 and 2012, during which about three million tones of solid waste were mined from the river.

The gains would later be reversed, the Nairobi River getting polluted afresh.

In June this year, Governor Johnson Sakaja was put to task over sewage spillage into the river.

A video showing dirty water spilling into the river parked outrage among Kenyans online.

In the video shared by a TikTok user, water was seen overflowing from the line as he walked over a trunk sewer-turned-bridge.

The filmer of the video explained that the sewage had been flowing into the river for at least a year, and nothing had been done to remedy the situation.

"Hii ni Nairobi, Hapa hii sewage si ati iko na siku kidogo. More than one year ikitembea hivyo ikiingia kwa Nairobi River. Hii pia huku imetoboka bado haijafika Ruai," he said.

His post sparked outrage among Kenyans online, with many calling out both the national and county government for not taking action.

Most were concerned with local inhabitants' dangerous path on the trunk, especially school children who reportedly use the crossing.

Sakaja clarifies on sewage into Nairobi River

The governor defended his administration in the face of the attacks for neglecting their sewage duty.

He clarified that the trunk sewer had been there for years before he took office and not a bridge, as most residents use it.

Sakaja added that engineers from the county had been deployed to deal with the sewage.

"It's actually not a bridge. It's a trunk sewer that's been there for decades. You can see the road on the side. Our Engineers at Nairobi Water are on-site sorting the spillage issues," he explained.