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<br>Kenyans fear Dakatcha Woodlands [biofuel](https://www.investing.com/equities/mission-newenergy-ltd-company-profile) expansion<br> |
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<br>23 March 2011<br> |
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<br>By Will Ross<br> |
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<br>BBC News, Dakatcha<br> |
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<br>Being in the shade of a tree beside his thatched mud hut in in Kenya's Dakatcha Woodlands, Joshua Kahindi Pekeshe is bold.<br> |
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<br>"We are not going to let this land go even if it means shedding blood," he told the BBC.<br> |
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<br>"Land is extremely crucial to us. We farm and get our livelihood from it. On this land we bury our dead."<br> |
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<br>He is among the numerous people opposed to the production of a big biofuel plantation in the area, about an hour's drive inland from the seaside town of Malindi.<br> |
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<br>It is an arid location and home to some 20,000 individuals in addition to globally threatened animal and bird types.<br> |
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<br>Ambitious goals<br> |
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<br>An Italian business has actually asked the authorities for [consent](https://biodieselmagazine.com/articles/felda-global-buys-missions-kuantan-port-plant-for-11-5-million-9053) to lease 50,000 [hectares](https://www.abnnewswire.net/companies/en/31347/%E0%B8%9A%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B4%E0%B8%A9%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%97-Mission-NewEnergy-%E0%B8%88%E0%B8%B3%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%94.html/4) there to grow [jatropha curcas](https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-178469/company/), whose seeds are rich in oil that can be become bio-diesel.<br> |
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<br>This plant, [originally](https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/company/MNELF:US) from South America, has long been grown in Africa as a hedge to stay out animals - goats stay well away as it is dangerous. The area affected is neighborhood land which is being held in trust by the local council.<br> |
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<br>Kenya [jatropha curcas](https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-178469/company/) Energy Ltd is 100%-owned by the Milan-based Nuove Iniziative Industriali SRL.<br> |
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<br>It has leased almost a million hectares in Africa |
