After the Nyiragongo eruption near Goma, some almost frozen files reappeared. Authorities are warned of the massive presence of carbon dioxide in Kabuno Bay, which is located in the northwest corner of Lake Kivu. They suddenly accelerate the procedure for phasing out this land hatch, where only a narrow passage separates it from the lake. Funds are now needed to avoid the risk of seeing millions of people in the region one day suffocate. For the Congolese Minister of Hydrocarbons, it is now an emergency.
as reported from Kinshasa, Pascal Mulegwa
Authorities are scared to death, especially with the intense activity of the volcanoes Nyiragongo and Nyamulagira, the risk is almost permanent with the permission of Hydrocarbon Minister Didier Budimbu.
“It is very dangerous, it is the carbon dioxide that is less than 20 meters from the surface. It is enough that there is a flame, an explosion that will release this gas and if the wind is not favorable and it goes towards Goma, this gas will reduce the population. “
To phase out the bay, it takes about 5.5 million dollars. “The government is rapidly coming down to the payment so that the delivery of the equipment that enables this degassing takes place as quickly as possible. “
The French entrepreneur Michel Halbwachs was commissioned to degrease Kabuno Bay. This French researcher was already involved in the degassing of Lake Nyos in Cameroon, which exploded in 1986. “Lake Nyos killed more than 18,100 people, there is ten times more gas, the risk is serious. If we go to this higher scale, there will be no risk at all in five years, even if a large flow arrives in Kabuno Bay, it will not cause a gas explosion. “
The rest of Lake Kivu in Goma is also full of significant amounts of gas, including carbon dioxide, but it poses no risk because it is far from the surface, according to this expert.
Methane gas can be used to produce electricity, which Rwanda has already done for 5 years. The Democratic Republic of Congo is stepping foot, but this time the government wants to compensate for it.
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