Three Kisumu East residents have sued a sugar factory for allegedly causing massive pollution of River Kibos and its surroundings.
The petitioners are Benson Adega, Eric Ochieng’, and Bether Opiyo.
Kibos Sugar and Allied Industries Ltd is listed as the first respondent together with Kibos Power Limited, Kibos Distillers Limited, Nema and the Kisumu county government.
The residents filed the petition on Friday at the Kisumu Environmentcourt before Justice Stephen Kibunjia who certified the matter as urgent.
He ordered an inter-parties hearing tomorrow.
The suit follows complaints and court battles pitting the National Environmental Management Authority against residents over the company’s poor compliance with environmental regulations.
The residents seek a court injunction to stop the factory from emptying effluent into the river that is the main source of water for thousands of people.
In March, Nema issued a 14-day closure notice to the factory after a raid by the authority officials and the county government who found the firm violated environmental laws.
Nema threatened to suspend all its operations should the factory fail to implement recommendations in two weeks.
Nema says their action was prompted by many complaints from Kibos residents and the county government.
But factory chairman Raju Chanan denied the allegations. He confirmed there was a spillage but it was stopped immediately. Chanan said no other complaint had been raised.