NAIVASHA, Kenya (PAMACC News) - After weathering the strain of decreasing water levels, Lake Naivasha, the largest fresh water body in Kenya’s Great Rift Valley, is faced with a new threat: pollution.

Solid waste load from the surrounding economic society is on the rise. Filthy water used to clean fish is drained back into the lake. As pastoralists stress the lake further by driving their livestock into the water body for a thirst break.

But it is the increasing volumes of effluent from the surrounding horticultural farms that has led the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) to sound alarm about the threat facing the lake.

According to Joakim Harlin, head of the Freshwater Unit at UN Environment, nutrient loading from the use of fertilizers and other chemicals by the farm is leading to the spread of colonizers like the water hyacinth.

“This has led to the death of fish populations in the lake and the clogging of waterways used by fishermen, leisure boats and wildlife,” says Harlin.      

Pollution is also putting pressure on the Lake Naivasha habitats, argues Fleur Ng’weno, of Nature Kenya.

According to her, hundreds of migratory bird species which nest in the Lake could be affected by the increasing pollution.

Unique plant life found there too is being affected by pollution, including the irregular rise and fall of water levels, she says.

Yet, the Nakuru County government depends on tourism flow there, which is second to Mombasa, to boost its revenues. The community also depends on the lake to feed their domestic water needs, she adds.

“Lake Naivasha is now supporting a powerful horticultural industry, a growing population of flower farm workers, geothermal energy production, intense fishing and a runaway building boom,” says Ng’weno.

However, not everything looks cloudy for the lake. UNEP, in collaboration with partners pooled a group of volunteers to help clean Lake Naivasha to mark the World Water Day.

The volunteers managed to collect solid waste weighing hundreds of tonnes, which was later taken to the community cooker for incineration, according to Lis Mullin Bernhardt, the cleanup lead.
“The purpose of the cleanup was to raise awareness about the increasing pollution facing the lake and show the community that they are not alone in conserving this water body of international importance,” said Bernhardt, who is also the UNEP Freshwater Unit Programme Officer.