By Flavia Ajok
East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) Ltd has Thursday signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Ministry of Water and Environment (MWE) to cooperate on various conservation initiatives in the 10 Districts traversed by the Pipeline. As part of this cooperation, EACOP is also joining the Running Out of Trees (ROOTS) campaign.
In joining this campaign, EACOP will work with an implementing partner to plant trees on land belonging to schools, churches, the Bunyoro and Buganda Kingdoms and other institutional landowners with a focus on indigenous and fruit trees across the 10 EACOP host districts. This is in line with its commitments under the EACOP Uganda Environmental & Social Impact Assessment (ESIA).
Speaking at the signing ceremony Martin Tiffen, Managing Director, EACOP, stated that EACOP is very pleased to be joining the ROOTS campaign, which is fully in line with our commitments to environmental and biodiversity protection & off-setting, as well as positively engaging with institutions and communities in the vicinity of our activities,
In his remarks, Alfred Okot Okidi, Permanent Secretary (PS), MWE stated that, “The Ministry through its directorates has been engaged in the Environment and Social Impact Assessments and will be instrumental in completing the cycle of mitigating the predicted impacts and will provide the necessary support for the successful implementation of conservation initiatives in the Project‘s area of influence.”
The signing, which marked the commencement of the ROOTS campaign, was concluded by a tree planting ceremony at the Ministry.
