NAIROBI, Kenya, Sep 30 – Environment Cabinet Secretary, Aden Duale, is proposing an eco tax on imported finished products.
In a notice, Duale says that the revenue will be used to mitigate the financial burden posed by environmental pollution and a lack of sustainable waste management systems.
If the bill passes, every person that introduces goods, products, or packaging materials into the country will be needed to pay a fee that will cater for all the post-consumption aspects of waste management, such as recycling and
incineration processes, which Duale says still “leave some residual waste behind which needs to be disposed of properly and sustainably.’
“Currently, every person that introduces goods, products or packaging materials into the country have Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) obligations for the purposes of reducing pollution and the negative environmental impacts of the products they introduce in the country. However, EPR does not cater for all the post-consumption aspects of waste management,” he stated.
The CS noted that the revenue shall be paid directly to the National Environment Restoration Fund.
He is assertive that the additional budgetary allocation will further be fundamental in combating biodiversity loss and climate change.
“The additional budgetary allocation is to be derived from revenue generated from imported finished products as may be specied in legislation, and shall be paid directly into the National Environment Restoration Fund established by section 25 of the Environmental Management and Co-ordination Act (Cap. 387),” he stated.
The funds, he says, will be used to elect effective waste management infrastructure, implementation of ecosystem restoration programs, and support for innovation and enhanced research.
“The additional revenue is meant to be a strategic tool designed to be applied to products that contribute significantly to the waste burden. It is meant to encourage environmentally sustainable practices, fund waste management programs, and promote environmental stewardship across the country,” he stated.
The CS has thus invited members of the public and other stakeholders to submit views or memoranda on the proposed additional revenue.
