Description

Abstract: Institutional, environmental, and economic factors are affecting water quality and quantity within the River Njoro, a major tributary to Lake Nakuru. Between 1979 and 1999, the population within the Njoro watershed greatly increased, from 270,912 people to 413,698 spurring large-scale land use change and increased pressure on watershed resources. In 2003, the USAID funded, Sustainable Management of Rural Watersheds Project (SUMAWA) implemented participatory rural appraisals in the Njoro watershed to identify water use and other resource concerns within the area. Local residents identified two main concerns: 1) lower water quality and associated increases in water borne diseases and 2) reduced access to water and lack of improved water supplies related in par to reduced water quantity. Preliminary results suggest that the hydrologic response within the watershed has been altered to favor increased annual runoff with higher intensity and longer dry spells (Baldyga, 2005). Forest conversion to small-scale agriculture reduces canopy cover, thus exposing soils. If rainfall rates exceed infiltration rates, water once intercepted by the forest canopy contributes to flow flashiness and altered flow regimes. In turn, this may affect the recharge timing of Lake Nakuru.