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Humbo Solkuwa Mountain Landscape Nature Positive Food Systems for Climate Change Adaptation (Nature +) – Public Comments Invited

[27 Janurary, 2025] – Global Affairs Canada must determine whether the proposed Humbo Solkuwa Mountain Landscape Nature Positive Food Systems for Climate Change Adaptation (Nature+), located in Ethiopia is likely to cause significant adverse environmental effects.

To help inform this determination, Global Affairs Canada is inviting comments from the public respecting that determination. All comments received will be considered public and may be posted online.

Written comments must be submitted by 26 February 2025 to:

Environment Specialists

Global Affairs Canada

200 Promenade du Portage
Gatineau (QC) J8X 4B7
Email: CommentsIAARegistry-CommentairesRegistreLEI@international.gc.ca

 

The Proposed Project

The project aims to improve low-carbon, climate-resilient economies in rural areas of Ethiopia, for the enhanced well-being of communities, especially women, girls, and other vulnerable groups. Nature Positive Food Systems for Climate Change Adaptation (in short: ‘Nature+') is a three-year program to foster nature-positive food systems for enhanced climate change adaptation. Nature+ works in rural landscapes of Ethiopia. The proposed physical works will enable more sustainable resource use, prevent overgrazing, control and prevent erosion, promote better water infiltration and collect surface runoff, etc).

The proposed physical works include:

• Micro dams and mesh gabions will be built to stabilize the soil, prevent erosion, retain slopes and control waterflow during high intensity rain events.

 

• Small-scale irrigation systems include the construction of lined canals towards storage ponds that will help irrigate up to 63 ha of cropland.

 

• Farm ponds will be built to enable rainfed farming systems where annual rainfall is more than 500 mm. The ponds will capture and store rainwater for irrigation during prolonged dry-spells. Their cumulative foodpring will be 2400 squared meters.

 

• Gullies and woven wire dams will be built to allow the unobstructed flow of water through the prevailing slope of the natural channel. These structures will minimize runoff and bank erosion, while allowing to stor water upstream for irrigation. Woven wire dams will be constructed at 1.2 m intervals and 60-90 cm deep.  Heavy gauge woven wire is placed against each structural post with the lower part set in a trench (15-20 cm deep) so that 25-30 cm projects above the ground surface along the spillway interval.  Rock, brush or sod may be placed up to a length of 1.2 m to form the apron. For sealing the structure, straw, fine brush or a similar material will be placed against the wire on the upstream side up to the height of spillway crest.

 

• Trenches consisting of short ditches dug along contours of the slope to trap runoff water and allow it to slowly seep into the water table, limiting surface runoff and erosion.