Kampala.
  19/08/07
 
LOW WATER LEVELS IN LAKE VICTORIA WORRIES REPARIAN COUNTRIES.

By Leo Odera Omolo

The low levels of Lake Victoria water are causing grave concern to the reparian countries in Eastern African region.

Uganda has denied that water level in Lake Victoria has come about as the result of the recent construction of two more dams, built by Ugandan Government to generate electricity at Bujagali Falls.

A week ago, the question about the water levels in Lake Victoria was raised in Kenya’s Parliament. It was stated that the water were at their lowest level in 83 years due to increased usage.

MPs had reckoned that the reduction could be attributed to some mysterious leakage on the floor of the Lake!!

Hon

. Tobias Ocholla Ogur (Nyatike) had told the house that the government should investigate the possible leakage as the reason behind the low levels of water, said to be standing at 1, 133.4 meters above the sea level.

But the irrigation Minister Mutua Katuku, rebutted that the level had dropped to 1,123.9 meters in 1923.

The Minister told parliament that water and environment experts had spent time at the lake trying to figure out the reasons behind the reduction of water level in Lake Victoria.

A back-bencher, Prof. Patrick Ayiecho Olweny suggested in a supplementary question, wanting to know the steps the riparian countries were taking to ensure that the water level did not go low as a result of the two dams built by the government of Uganda to generate electricity.

Another MP had reminded the house that water level in all Rift Valley lakes were at their lowest level.

In response, the Minister, however, attributed the drop in water level to water shortages in the lake feeder rivers, which are caused by change of climate, a phenomenal causing concerns regionally and internationally. He added that, he would soon gazette the rules to guide the use of water and protection of catchment areas.

Katuku said his Ministry was working closely with the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA).

The Minister said that riparian states had formed a commission to deal with the thorny issue of Lake Water use, the protection of water catchment areas and matters of abstraction.

Other stakeholders have blamed the massive destruction of forests caused by pressure of land for human settlement as the cause of low water level in Lake Victoria.

Most rivers and streams flowing down to the lake originate from the Highlands west of the Rift Valley in Kenya and there have been serious destruction of forests upstream.

Ends.
leooderaomolo@yahoo.com