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dam-l Epupa meeting delayed/LS
>From The Namibian:
Decision delay on Epupa dam
CHRISTOF MALETSKY
A FINAL decision on whether to proceed with the Epupa hydropower
scheme has been further delayed after Namibia and Angola postponed a
planned meeting which was to discuss reports submitted by the consultants
working on the feasibility of the project.
The October 29-30 Namibia-Angola Permanent Joint Technical Commission
(PJTC) meeting expected to take place in Windhoek did not materialise
because of the busy schedules of officials from both governments.
A new date has yet to be set for the meeting which was expected to make
recommendations to the two governments and choose a final site for the
scheme.
When the PJTC met in Windhoek the last time, it pinpointed some
shortcomings in the report by the consortium of consultants comprising of
Namibian, Angolan, Swedish and Norwegian (Namang) companies and said
there was need for the verification of some facts before the project
could
finally be concluded.
"With due consideration of the problems indicated above, the PJTC was not
in a position to discuss the matter of the selection of the single
site (Epupa or
Baynes) for implementation as envisaged. Instead, this topic has been
postponed for discussion and formulation of the final recommendation
to the
two governments at the next PJTC meeting," the joint chairmen of the
PJTC,
Siseho Simasiku (Namibia) and Armindo Gomes Da Silva (Angola) said
earlier this year in a statement.
The major shortcomings related to the incomplete consideration of
mitigation measures, the lack of a complete proposal for an environmental
management and post-construction monitoring plan, inconclusive work
performed on the bilateral agreement and the non-inclusion of the
terms of
reference for the phase three work," the statement said.
The study contained comments on the project by Supervision Committee for
the Feasibility Study (SCFS), and other organisations such as the World
Conservation Union (IUCN) and the Norwegian Water and Energy
Administration Directorate (NVE) which were specifically requested by the
PJTC to review the draft report.
In spite of the statement, sources claimed that the two governments were
locked in a war of words over whether the controversial scheme should be
constructed at the Epupa or Baynes site.
Inside sources claimed that while Namibia wanted Epupa, their Angolan
counterparts were keen on the Baynes site and that everything had to
do with
"international politics".
"Both sides have very strong arguments and claim that the project
might as
well be abandoned if neither of them can get the desired results," a
source
told The Namibian.
The Angolans are believed to be keen on the Baynes site because it
will mean
they will be able to renovate the Gove dam inside Angola which was
damaged during the civil war and has not been repaired since 1975.
"It will also mean that development will come to the Huambo area - a kind
of battle field - but everything will depend on the peace process in
Angola,"
according to a source.
It is also a well known fact that Namibia is not keen on the Baynes
site. The
Government sees it as too small, despite its environmental and social
advantages compared to the other sites considered. In sharp contrast the
Epupa site is regarded as a prestige site by Namibia.
Namibia also cites the uncertain peace situation in southern Angola,
and the
millions of dollars needed to repair the Gove dam as factors in
favour of the
larger Epupa site.
The Epupa site is seven kilometres downstream from the falls and is
likely to
displace some 700 Himba people. The area flooded at the Baynes site, some
40 kilometres downstream from the Epupa falls, would be 94 sq kms while
Epupa would cover more than 250 sq kms.
November 3, 1998
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Lori Pottinger, Director, Southern Africa Program,
and Editor, World Rivers Review
International Rivers Network
1847 Berkeley Way, Berkeley, California 94703, USA
Tel. (510) 848 1155 Fax (510) 848 1008
http://www.irn.org
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