Marigat: A multi-agency team has embarked on the assessment and planning interventions to safeguard communities affected by the rising water levels of Lakes Baringo and Bogoria. Speaking at Lake Bogoria in Marigat Sub County 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 to seek short- and long-term solutions to a crisis that has displaced thousands of households and damaged local infrastructure.
According to Kenya News Agency, Dr. Ogola expressed deep concern over the massive displacement caused by the rapidly expanding shorelines across the two lakes, which has affected the region’s rich biodiversity. The team has been tasked with developing preparedness measures within 90 days to secure locals residing around the two water bodies ahead of the anticipated El Ni±o rains during October and November, which may worsen the situation.
‘We are requesting the local communities to give us their solutions and provide the exact number of those affected for them to be considered,’ Dr. Ogola said. A section of residents welcomed the evacuation of excess water through tunnels and the construction of a dyke to protect against the merging of the fresh and saline lakes.
Jonathan Tireito, a resident of Loboi, shared that the Lake Bogoria community has witnessed a slow expansion of the lake until 2013, when the waters consumed most of their land. He explained that they are now living as squatters after their parcels of land, which they had settled for decades, were consumed by the lake. Tireito urged the committee to consider compensating residents since they cannot return to their original lands, which are currently submerged.
Michael Kiptishia noted that rivers Loboi and Waseges, which used to drain into Lake Baringo, have changed course and reverted back into the salty Lake Bogoria. He called for the redirection of the two rivers and recommended establishing check dams upstream to reduce erosion and massive siltation around the two lakes. He also emphasized the need for constructing a key road linking Mochongoi, which is crucial for connecting the area.
Michael Kimeli, an official at Lake Bogoria National Game Reserve, lamented the toll that rising water levels have taken on the tourism sub-sector in the county, following diminishing numbers of flamingos and wildlife, including impalas and gazelles. He noted that human-wildlife conflicts have arisen due to hippos and crocodiles being moved by the water to neighboring communities, and the vibrant hot springs, a major attraction, are slowly being covered by the expanded lake.
Governor Benjamin Cheboi, who accompanied the committee to selected sites across the affected lakes, expressed optimism that the initiative will mark the beginning of a permanent solution to the crisis affecting the residents of Baringo North, South, and Tiaty Constituencies. Cheboi urged the community to take personal initiative to move out of insecure areas and seek temporary shelter elsewhere while both levels of government work on a permanent solution.
