The Selous Game reserve is downstream from and close to the Kito drilling location.
Page 33 of the Krakow report said that one of the Selous reserve impacting factors, identified in a previous reports, was "mineral and hydrocarbon prospecting and mining".
Page 34: "The World Heritage Centre and IUCN were informed of an oil and gas prospecting concession called Kito-1 in the Kilombero Valley Floodplain Ramsar site, upstream of the property. The World Heritage Centre sent a letter to the State Party on 22 March 2017 requesting information on this matter."
Page 35: "The mission noted with concern the oil and gas prospecting concession of Kito-1 in Kilombero Valley Floodplain Ramsar site, which also supplies two-thirds of the Rufiji River's waters and may therefore lead to potential downstream impacts on the property. According to the project operator, Swala Oil and Gas plc, drilling is expected to start in the third quarter of 2017. Therefore, it is recommended that the Committee urge the State Party to not permit drilling until a specialist study on the hydrological regime of the floodplain has been undertaken, subsequently informing the EIA, which should include a specific assessment of potential downstream impacts on the OUV (Outstanding Universal Value), and both are submitted to the World Heritage Centre for review by IUCN."
So we have to wait for consultants water report to be reviewed by the IUCN. This probably means that Swala gets an extension of one year to drill Kito. Maybe drilling starts in Sep 2018? or maybe the IUCN recommends no drilling because the potential impacts on Selous reserve are too great.
It would also appear likely that nothing about Kito-1 proceeding will happen until the World Heritage Committee holds its 42nd session in Bahrain on June 2018. http://whc.unesco.org/en/sessions/42COM
SWE Price at posting:
3.7¢ Sentiment: None Disclosure: Held
