A multi-agency team has embarked on the assessment and planning interventions to safeguard communities who are affected by the rising water levels of Lakes Baringo and Bogoria.
Speaking at Lake Bogoria in Marigat Sub County on Tuesday during a field visit to the two lakes, Climate Change Department Director Dr. Pacifica Ogola said they are collaborating with the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) and other actors in seeking short- and long-term solutions to a crisis which has displaced thousands of households and damaged local infrastructure.
Dr. Ogola said they are deeply disturbed by the massive displacement caused by the rapidly expanding shorelines across the two lakes to the extent it has affected the region’s rich biodiversity.
She noted that the team has been tasked to come up with preparedness measures within 90 days to secure locals residing around the two water bodies ahead of the anticipated El Niño rains during the months of October and November, which they anticipate may worsen the situation.
“We are requesting the local communities to give us their solutions and provide the exact number of those who are affected for them to be considered,” the director said.
A section of residents welcomed the evacuation of excess water through tunnels and construction of a dyke to protect against the merging of the fresh and saline lakes.
Jonathan Tireito, a resident of Loboi, told the committee that the Lake Bogoria community over the years has been witnessing a slow expansion of the lake until 2013, when the waters consumed most of their land.
He said that they are now living as squatters after their parcels of land, which they had settled for decades while farming maize and keeping livestock, were consumed by the lake.
Tireito urged the committee to take into consideration compensation of residents since they cannot move again into their original lands, which are currently deep inside the water.
Michael Kiptishia, in his remarks, noted that rivers Loboi and Waseges, which used to drain their waters into Lake Baringo, have changed course and reverted back into the salty Lake Bogoria.
Kiptishia, while calling for redirection of the two rivers, recommended the establishment of check dams upstream to reduce erosion and massive siltation around the two lakes.
He, at the same time, called for an immediate construction of a key road linking Mochongoi, which is crucial for connecting the area.
Michael Kimeli, an official at Lake Bogoria National Game Reserve, lamented that the rising water levels have taken a toll on the tourism sub-sector in the county following diminishing numbers of flamingos and wildlife, including impalas and gazelles.
He stated that from human-wildlife conflicts arising from hippos and crocodiles who have been moved by the water to neighbouring communities, the vibrant hot springs, which are a major attraction to visitors, are slowly being covered by the expanded lake.
Governor Benjamin Cheboi, who accompanied the committee to selected sites across the affected lakes, said that he is optimistic that the initiative will mark the beginning of a permanent solution to the crisis which has affected the residents of Baringo North, South, and Tiaty Constituencies.
Cheboi urged the community to take their own personal initiative to move out of such insecure areas and seek temporary shelter elsewhere as both levels of government work on a permanent solution.
By Benson Kelio and Joshua Kibet
