Government introduces lakewater charges

WITH more than 82 million litres of lake water used by flower farms a day and local domestic and tourist uses in addition to this, the Kenyan government has been forced to get pro-active before Lake Naivasha dries up.

Farms began this year paying water charges and a “traffic light” system is being introduced to allow or stop water use according to levels in the lake.

The newly-established Water Resources Management Authority has a long way to go.

Trying to govern growers, unplanned settlements, an overused sewage plant and roaming cattle herders will be no easy task.

“We can’t rule out some chemicals having an effect. There have been allegations groundwater has been affected by (flower) chemicals. We’re only starting to look into that,” explained the authority’s Canute Mwakamba.

The authority is daily monitoring levels of the lake. There are concerns about dust and silt clogging the lake, the invasion of cattle around its shores and deforestation. There is also concern about a number of flower farms using the riparian zone, the buffer area between the land and lake, to grow roses.

The town council have failed to run a proper sewage system for the area.

“Homes were small units before with their own septic tanks, now they are three and four story flats. We need more water for these. The plant was made for a small town,” said Mr Mwakamba.