BARINGO, Kenya- “Saa hii nafanyia kazi chini ya maji.” (“Currently I work under water”) William Kimosop, the Baringo County Chief Warden, sarcastically says while pointing at his submerged office as we drive along the shores of Lake Bogoria.
Lakes, hot springs, woods, and wide-open spaces are just a few of the many natural resources that support Baringo county’s economy and way of life for its people.
One of the few hot saltwater lakes in the world and a flamingo nesting site, Lake Bogoria, an alkaline lake on the floor of the Great Rift Valley, has been incredibly stunning for decades.
But now that the lake’s water levels have started to rise due to the catastrophic repercussions of climate change, nothing is the same as before.
Kenya’s lakes, just like Bogoria, are essential to the nation’s inhabitants, economy, and fauna.
A handful of salt lakes support many marine and avian species, including endangered vultures, eagles, cranes, and regional businesses.
“You have seen that there are a lot of springs that are on the shores of the lake, but most of them are underwater because of the devastating effects of climate change, which started in 2013 when the lake levels started rising to the maximum where it is right now,” said James Kimaru, senior warden at the Lake Bogoria National Reserve.
Kimaru told this publication that the lake used to be around 32 km per square, but currently, it is almost 40 km per square.
“The geysers and hot springs are the main tourist attractions here. They are meant for institutions of higher learning to do research. They are also one of the attractions because they have boiling points. But currently, most of them are underwater because of the effects of climate change, and this is visible,” Kimaru further said.
Kimaru says that since 2013, the lake has witnessed many flamingoes (approximately one million) because the higher the water level, the more algae is produced for the flamingos to feed on.
“But on the negative aspect, several infrastructure development projects have been impacted by the rising water levels in the lake. Most of the springs are underwater because they used to be the main tourist attraction,” the warden said.
Also affected is the famous Fig Tree camp, which cannot be accessed now because the raging floods submerged it.
The ecosystems have several indigenous forests, home to colobus monkeys and the Greater Kudu.
Kimaru further says that even the local community has been impacted because the lake has swollen beyond the usual boundary.
“The lake has gone, displacing major infrastructure development projects like the local hospital, that is, Loboi Dispensary, some hotels that were part of the tourism infrastructure, and community households because even as we speak, we have 50 households which were impacted by the same,” he added.
Kimosop, who has been forced to relocate after his office was submerged and became part of Lake Bogoria, said the lake’s waters are alkaline.
“You can’t drink them. Even the animals themselves. They find the need to look for their water. But nature has made it possible for freshwater springs to come from different sides like rivers, and so the wild animals, flamingos included, go there to quench their thirst,” Kimosop explained.
In the past, maybe 10 to 15 years, Kimosop has observed that the lake has been significantly important to flamingoes.
“Flamingoes are migratory birds in nature. They go along the Rift Valley lakes, mainly Bogoria, Nakuru, Lake Salai, Elementaita and Magadi. In the north, we have Lake Lokipi; on the south of Lake Turkana and beyond our borders, we have alkaline lakes in Ethiopia,” Kimosop said.
He reiterated that they have now realised that the flamingoes have made Lake Bogoria their permanent home for a very long time, so they are increasingly taking many measures to protect the ecosystem.
“One of the significant measures that have happened is the terrestrial part of the reserve, which is the catchment area for both the waters and the dispersal areas for the wildlife, which are community-owned. The terrestrial boundary is only one mile (1.5 km to 1.6 km) from the shoreline, leaving a tiny area for the wildlife,” he added.
While delivering his thoughts on investing in climate solutions at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg Centre, Washington, D.C., USA, President William Ruto said the world cannot afford to resign to fate over the deadly climate crisis.
“The world must return to work and take a bold, unusual and path-breaking resolve to safeguard our ecosystem. We can only keep our communities safe and healthier through the healing of our planet,” said Ruto.
The Baringo ecosystem has historically been a tourism hotspot. However, its iconic lakes and hot springs have been damaged by the ever-increasing impacts of climate change, rising Rift Valley lake levels and human activities.
Communities are now looking for alternative ways to attract tourism investment to the landscape.
For example, the Irong Conservancy has identified archaeological sites and traditional sacred grounds at the hilltops that would appeal to research-based tourism, adventure tourism and the increasingly popular nature therapy.
Environmentalists and conservationists expressed concern that if this plan is implemented, visitors might shun Lake Bogoria owing to its current state.
However, Kimaru maintains that the lake also plays a significant role in flamingo conservation. Flamingos are the main birds that feed on the algae being hydrated in the alkaline lake.
Kimosop noted that the Rift Valley has a geological beginning, so the formation process is connected to the hot earth’s crust.
“In Bogoria, geologists tell us that the thrust is much thinner and that any water coming over the fault lines is subjected to the high heat from below, and that is why we can see the geysers and the hot springs,” Kimosop said.
Kimosop revealed that Lake Bogoria has the highest concentration of geysers.
“I think in the whole of Rift Valley, more than 2,000, and you can see some of them in the water which are coming out of the water. We also have the hot springs that have given rise to the warm spas we have around here,” explained Kimosop.
Water levels in Kenya’s Rift Valley lakes have increased during the last ten years.
In addition to climate change, scientists believe improper land use and tectonic plate movement within the earth’s crust are also responsible.
“Do you believe we have wronged God?” Opinion leader Johanna Karatu, from the Endorois community, asks me. “Is it impossible for Him to let us return home and live again?”
