A-descriptive-assessment-of-the-wetlands-of-the-lake-victoria-basin-in-tanzania

Resources,ConservationandRecycling20(1997)127–141AdescriptiveassessmentofthewetlandsoftheLakeVictoriabasininTanzaniaG.R.Kassenga*En�ironmentalEngineeringDepartment,Uni�ersityCollegeofLandsandArchitecturalStudies,P.O.Box35176,DaresSalaam,TanzaniaReceived24January1997;receivedinrevisedform15March1997;accepted15April1997AbstractLakeVictoriaisthesecondlargestfreshwaterbodyintheworldbysurfacearea.Itisaveryimportantwaterbodyforthelivelihoodofpeople,particularlythoselivinginitsbasin.Thelakeiscurrentlyfacingmanyproblemssuchasseriousenvironmentaldegradation,pollutionandoverfishing.Mismanagementofwetlandswhichisanotherproblemthreateningthehydrologicalandecologicalbalanceofthelakeisdiscussed.Thisreportprovides:anoverviewoftheLakeVictoriaecosystem;describesmajorwetlandsoftheLakeVictoriabasininTanzaniaandtheiruses;identifieswatersupply,agriculture,fishing,conversionintootheruses(mainlyresidential);andcattlegrazingasmainusesofwetlands;anddiscussesthreatsandchangesfacedbywetlands.Directanthropogenicactivitiessuchasirrationalusesofwetlandsforagriculture,pollutionandconversionofwetlandsintosettlementareasareresponsibleforwetlanddegradationandloss.Problemsofsedimentationasaresultofagriculturalactivities,hydrologicalchangesofwetlandsduetoroadconstructionandsubsidenceofwetlandsduetoexcessiveextractionofwaterareindirectresultsofhumanactions.Droughtisthecommonnaturalcauseforthechangeorlossofwetlandsinthelakebasin.Absenceofwetlandspolicy,conflictingsectoralpoliciesonissuesrelatedtowetlands,deficientplanningconcepts,limitedinformationandawarenessontheimportanceofwetlandsandabsenceofaninstitutiontodealspecificallywithwetlandmanagementcontributetodegradationandlossofwetlands.Anumberofrecommendationsforsustain-ableuseofwetlandsareputforward.FormulationoftheNationalWetlandsPolicyandlaunchingofawarenesscampaignsonwiseuseofwetlandsarerecommended.Thepresenta-*Tel.:+2555175004.0921-3449/97/$17.00©1997ElsevierScienceB.V.Allrightsreserved.PIIS091-3449(97)00014-1G.R.Kassenga/Resources,Conser�ationand