On Thu, Jun 18, 2009 at 1:22 PM, Japheth Kioko <japhking@gmail.com> wrote:
Well, without the SOURCE we've nothing havent we... But its pudent to save all since we already have them.
Back to the basics: The destruction of forests has a spiral effect - rather than rain water being absorbed into the soil, it washes away the exposed soil into the rivers. Rivers that would run all year through have become seasonal since their source - underground springs that would be formed when rain water is absorbed well - have dried up . Wind carries away what's left of the topsoil, leaving behind unproductive land. The result is heavy flooding in low-lying areas like the perennial Budalangi chaos, followed by dry spells. Earlier this week I posted this link: www.youtube.com/homeproject It's the documentary showed recently on Citizen and NTV and released in theaters worldwide. It's scaringly realistic. I've saved it to disk, so anyone interested can get a copy from me, hopefully if I make tomorrow's social (there's beer, so I'll probably be there) This is already happening at an alarming rate in our forests, while our leaders are busy playing politics with our environment. What they don't seem to care about is the fact that even those they claim are valid settlers would not benefit from this lands for long, probably not through the next generation if the destruction is left unchecked. Already the tea industry in Kericho and the environs is under threat. Lakes in the Rift Valley, notably Nakuru, are drying up. The Mara river may soon be just a seasonal stream. Agriculture and tourism, two of our major income earners and employers, are under a great threat, and with these two, our entire economy is at risk. My take is that the Government has totally failed in managing our natural resources. I don't see the logic in endless discussions and politicking about resettlement when the activities of a few - some of whom are not genuine squatters/settlers - threaten the very livelihood of tens of millions of people. They should be evicted now and resettlement discussed later. I encourage all to google Lake Chad and see what's happened out there.
From Wikipedia:
"In the 1960s it had an area of more than 26,000 km², making it the fourth largest lake in Africa. By 2000 its extent had fallen to less than 1,500 km²." This will soon be the story of our lakes. http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2001/04/0426_lakechadshrinks.html Let's each ask ourselves a question: how many trees have I planted this year? If the answer is none, start getting info from KEFRI and local forest department offices, see what species do well in your home area, and when to plant. Then plan to do it, and rope in as many as possible. They also sell seedlings are reasonable prices from their nurseries. Closest stations I know of are Karura and Muguga. BR, S