SNV recruits 01 Environmental Specialist
Environmental Specialist
Nairobi, Kenya
Contract
Contract type: Consultancy contract
Company Description
SNV is a not-for-profit international development organization, working in Agriculture, Renewable Energy, and Water, Sanitation & Hygiene. Founded in the Netherlands in 1965, we have built a long-term, local presence in more than 28 countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America. Our global team of local and international advisors works with local partners to equip communities, businesses and organizations with the tools, knowledge and connections they need to increase their incomes and gain access to basic services – empowering them to break the cycle of poverty and guide their own development.
For more information on our operations in Kenya and SNV, visit our website: www.snv.org
Programme Overview
Driven by the imperative to provide equal opportunities across the entire Kenyan territory as key to achieving Kenya’s Vision 2030, and the national target of achieving universal access to electricity by 2020, the Government of Kenya (GoK) seeks to close the access gap by providing electricity services to remote, low density, and traditionally underserved areas of the country. GoK intends to use US$150 million of financing from the World Bank to deliver an Off-Grid Solar Access Project for Underserved Counties Project (KOSAP). The proposed KOSAP promotes these objectives by supporting the use of solar technology to drive electrification of households, enterprises, community facilities, and water pumps.
Geographic Scope
The Project will target 14 of the 47 counties in Kenya that have been defined as “marginalized areas” by the Commission on Revenue Allocation (CRA). The 14 underserved counties collectively represent 72% of the country’s total land area and 20% of the country’s population. Their population is highly dispersed, at a density 4 times lower than the national average. Kenya’s underserved counties present profound infrastructure deficits, including lack of access to roads, electricity, water, and social services. Many cultures in these localities were historically nomadic, based on pastoralist lifestyles, and overwhelmingly poor. Roughly 1.2 million households are un-electrified in these fourteen counties, of which approximately 600,000 could be serviced by solar home systems (SHS). Market analysis and precedents show that the major bottlenecks to uptake of SHS in these geographies are availability and affordability of the service.
Project Component 2a: Household electrification via standalone solar systems
The component will support electrification of households using solar home systems (SHS) in areas where sufficient load clusters do not exist and SHS provide the best technical and financial solution. The component design draws upon international best practice and leverages experience to date from the Lighting Africa program, which has been present in Kenya since 2009. Two main instruments will be financed by the project, which seek to catalyze a private sector led, market-based approach to delivering off-grid access in the underserved counties:
i. Competitively awarded incentives, (US$12 million) to compensate SHS operators for initial, ongoing incremental, and opportunity costs associated with an expansion of operations in Underserved Counties
ii. Debt financing to solar companies, (US$30 million) to support ongoing growth in the Underserved Counties, specifically targeting working capital constraints associated with getting hardware inventory into the market and with providing consumer financing to end-customers
Kenya’s off-grid solar market
Globally, the off-grid solar energy sector is undergoing rapid change, enabling the potential for off-grid solar technologies to contribute substantively to achieving global objectives for universal energy access. In the past five years, the costs of solar home systems have declined by over 60 percent and the industry has grown rapidly, with sales of quality-verified products topping 8.3 million in Africa by mid- 2015.
With increased demand of Solar Home Systems comes the increased level of WEEE posing a daunting challenge of managing a steadily growing stream of E-waste disposal. The International Renewable Energy Agency (Irena) estimates that there will be a surge in solar panel disposal in the early 2030s, and that by 2050, there will be 60 to 78 million cumulative tonnes of photovoltaic panels and spent rechargeable batteries from solar PV Systems waste globally posing a great health risk to the populations.
Rechargeble batteries for storing solar energy may run on Nickel-Cadmium (Ni-Cad), Nickel metal hydride (NiMH), Lithium-ion),lead-acid (Pb-A) or lead gel (PB-gel).These batteries should not be disposed in standard landfills because they can create long lasting environmental and human health impacts (for example, headaches, abdominal discomfort, seizures and comas, cancers, irritation of skin and respiratory system, burns and damage to skin and eyes and corrosion) due largely to the heavy metals such as ;mercury, lead cadmium and nickel and acids.
The growth in WEEE has brought a number of challenges including introducing effective management practices that are environmentally sound to reduce its negative impact on human health and the environment as a result of pollution. Management of WEEE in most developing countries including Kenya is done through the informal sector and this poses a great challenge.
Hazardous wastes generated from K-OSAP project will be collected by the contractors/companies that will be subcontracted to operate the mini grid facilities, Standalone Solar Systems, Cook stoves and solar water pumps for community facilities, and solar companies doing installation and providing after sale services for the standalone solar system (Component 2) and be transported to Nairobi by NEMA licensed transporters to the East African Compliant Recycling Company facility that recycles E-waste, also people and institutions that will acquire and operate solar standalone systems will be sensitized on the e-waste and be linked to hazardous waste Collection Points (CPs) established across the country and that feed into the East African Compliant Recycling Company. Hence the responsibility in collection, transport and disposal of photovoltaic panel waste rests entirely of the solar companies and should be factored in their contracts and agreements with the facility manager to ensure compliance.
Job Description
Objective of the Assignment
To provide technical assistance to the facility manager and provide support services for environmental and social safeguard issues. The consultant will be expected to ensure that all documents mainstream environmental and social safeguards issues so that the project under component 2 does not detrimentally influence the environment and social well-being of the populations
The K-OSAP project has triggered the following Environmental and Social Safeguards policies of the World Bank (a) Safeguard OP 4.01.Environmental Assessment ; (b) OP 4.10,Indigeneous People ,(c) OP 4.04 Natural Habitats, and (d) OP 4.12, involuntary Resettlement. Additionally, it has triggered relevant laws and regulations of the government of Kenya concerning Vulnerable and Marginalized Groups (VMG’s)
Scope of the Assignment
The Environmental Specialist will report to the Project Co-ordinator-SNV/Sun funder and will have the following major duties and responsibilities: –
Familiarization with each of the World Bank’s Environmental and Social Safeguards policies that have been triggered for the project
Develop a comprehensive Environmental and Social Management Plan (ESMP for E-waste/WEEE-Waste Electric and Electronic Equipment and ensure compliance of the same by the Solar Home Systems providers
Appraise the entire management processes including de-manufacturing, collection, storage, recycling, transport and disposal) in accordance with the Environmental Management and Co-ordination (E-waste Management Regulations 2013) and World Bank
Environmental, Health, and Safety Guidelines
Develop a project-specific environmental code of practice (ECOP) as a guidance on approach for the collection, transport, storage and disposal/reuse of spent batteries, Solar panels and waste generated from Cook stoves with the aim of ensuring that risks to the environment and human health are prevented or mitigated
Develop an elaborate and specific plan on recycling and disposal of spent batteries, solar panels and cook stoves for the solar home systems providers at the end of their useful lives.
Develop a Stakeholder Engagement strategy that will seek to inform discussion and build awareness of all stakeholders, including rural remote community members, vendors/suppliers of products and service providers, around safe management, handling and disposal of E-waste/WEEE including used batteries.
Supervision and monitoring of the implementation of environmental and social instrument-ESMP-WEEE in accordance with the respective Bank’s guidelines and policies
Supporting Solar companies in the review of documentation pertaining to environmental and Social compliance
Supervision and overseeing the implementation of the EPOC and World Bank’s safeguard procedures triggered for KOSAP in the operations of the solar home systems and cook stoves providers
Contribute to project’s Component 2 progress reports pertaining to overall implementation of Environmental and Social requirements of the project
Preparing training materials and conducting technical training workshops to Solar Companies and Microfinance organization on environmental and Social Safeguards requirements
Prepare environmental information materials and disseminating the information to the relevant stakeholders; and organize environmental and social orientation & awareness, consultations, and training programs;
Generate a screening checklist, guided by the ESMF against which solar home systems providers and cook stoves companies will be gauged as a precondition for accessing debt facility and Result Based financing to assess their preparedness on safeguard issues
Review bid documents to ensure environmental and social factors and mitigations are incorporated, and they are in harmony with environmental and social requirements;
Support the formation of the grievance/complaints redress mechanism and committees and communication of the grievance mechanism to all the stakeholders and other relevant procedures
Working with the social specialist, appraise the social aspects of the Project interventions. Advice on how the programme activities can be more gender sensitive to meet the priories of both men and women beneficiaries in K-OSAP project area
Ensure that each activity under the project-component 2 is subjected to the Project ESMF process and procedures, and carry out environmental screening of activities, and prepare specific Environmental and Social Management Plans (EMPs)
Undertake routine site visits during project execution and operation to assess how environmental and social screening and mitigation measures are succeeding or have succeeded in minimizing impacts
Preparation of environment and Social monitoring and evaluation reports and, perform tasks and responsibilities related to the social issues including sexual Exploitation and Abuse by solar companies staff, Gender-based violence, HIV/AIDS program, issues related to labour influx and child labour (people coming into the project area for project related work
Facilitate communication among various project stakeholders to promote socially and environmentally sound project implementation with sustainable development outcomes
Liaise on a regular basis with the Ministry of Energy and other implementing Agencies
Produce and document environmental and social safeguards implementation reports; and Undertake other duties as per the requirements of the project or as directed by Project Coordinator.
Deliverables/Consultant’s Reporting Obligations
The Consultant will be required to submit reports as follows:
One copy of quarterly progress on activities undertaken and solutions to challenges
One copy of annual progress report; and
One copy of project completion report after the completion of the task period
Qualifications
The candidate should have, as a minimum, a postgraduate degree from any recognized institution in the area of Environmental science, Environmental Engineering, Natural Resource Management or any related discipline with combination of appropriate trainings;
Registered with NEMA as a Lead expert
A minimum of ten years of relevant work experience in environmental and social issues, experience in development project is an added advantage. Direct experience in working on implementation of ESIA and ESMF, environmental and social safeguard issues preferably in Conservation organization or large industries in any private or public sector
At least 8 years experience working on projects financed by the World Bank with a good knowledge and understanding of the World Bank’s Operational Policies and Environmental, Health and Safety Guidelines
Experience with Community development, gender mainstreaming issues, VMG’s and participatory approaches are an added advantage
Good communication skills both verbal and written
Fluency in English is essential and fluency in Kiswahili is an added advantage
Additional Information
Supervision
The Environmental specialist will work in close co-operation with and under the guidance and supervision of the Project Co-ordinator –SNV/Sun funder and the PCU Project Coordinator in the Ministry of Energy
Duration of the Assignment/Contract Period
Up to 120 person days spread over a 12-month contract period with the possibility of extension based on satisfactory performance and continued project needs.
This is a Consultancy position with the successful candidate being contracted on a consultancy contract.
How to apply
Please apply by clicking on the “I’M INTERESTED” tab above/below and complete your application in our in-house recruitment system before 14 March 2019 attaching your CV and Cover letter.
We do not appreciate any commercial mediation based on this advertisement.
NB: Kindly note that SNV Kenya does not require you to undergo any medical test prior to employment. Only shortlisted will be contacted.