Water conflict tears users apart in Baringo

When the water levels in his three fish ponds receded to alarming levels, Bernard Chemchor was worried.

Chemchor is a renowned mixed farmer in Emining, Baringo county, having started farming in 2003.

He does horticulture, vegetables, tree nursery, livestock keeping, poultry and fish on his 12-acre piece of land.

But as a downstream farmer, Chemchor has faced a myriad of challenges arising from the over-abstraction of water by those living upstream.

“Every time during the drought, we get water challenges. However, the challenge has worsened for the last two years, when the river dried up completely,” Chemchor says.

In the county, Sabatia and Soliam catchments form the upper catchment, while Kabimoi, Sageri, Sagat and Chemiik and Rosoga form the middle catchment.

The lower catchment is composed of Emining, Kimobe and Nato.

In upper catchments, most farms are located a distance from the river.

Here, water pumps roar at any given time, with millions of litres being directed into farms. Flood irrigation is practised by everyone.

COUNTING LOSSES

Chemchor says all his crops dried in weeks, exposing him to losses running to millions.

“I had to sell all the fish in my three fish ponds at a throwaway price due to water shortage,” he says.

The three fish ponds had 1,000 fish each.

Chemchor says his family ate some of the fish.

“The fish pond is still dry as a result of the water scarcity,” he says.

Chemchor says each of his 24 dairy cows was also affected by water scarcity.

“I was forced to engage water bowsers to bring me water for my livestock twice a week,” he says.

He says his blossoming farmyard used to generate Sh700,000 a year from sales.

The dried river, however, went down with his farm.

Chemchor says water from a nearby Emining River helps his green stone farm to become green.

He reveals that the farm was initially full of stones.

Chemchor says the river is his resource.

He says going forward, there is a need to harvest rainwater.

Chemchor says all those living downstream use water to quench the thirst for livestock.

“Those living upstream plant various types of crops, such as tomatoes and vegetables, by irrigating using the same water resources,” he says.

Chemchor says the long season for rain is April to July.

He says as from December to March, there is a dry spell.

GOOD RETURNS

Ngosonoi Green Group chairman Esau Tesot has also been farming tomatoes for several years and understands how water scarcity can mess with profit margins.

Tesot is an upstream farmer.

He says his group has 40 members who used to do farming using water from rivers Narosura and Sageri.

He says tomato farming has huge profit margins, attracting many players.

“When we all went to the river, water levels in the river went down,” he says.

Tesot says tomatoes and melons need enough water as compared to other crops.

He says water shortage has seen some of his members move their farming activities near Lake Baringo.

“As we speak, we are harvesting tomatoes in Lake Baringo,” he says.

Tesot said the advantage of farming near the lake is that there is plenty of water.

The only challenge is that the land does not belong to them, they have to lease it.

Tesot says they pull water almost one kilometre away from the lake.

He says there is a need to protect water catchments as well as adopt new farming technologies.

“We need to move away from flood irrigation to drip irrigation,” he says.

Tesot says drip irrigation is, however, expensive as the layout alone is Sh200,000 per acre.

He says the state needs to invest in mega dams, such as Chemususu, and check dams along the river to ensure residents get water.

Tesot says they have identified Sageri forest as a perfect site for the mega dam.

WHEN CONFLICT ARISES

Koibatek assistant county commissioner Lily Maasai says plenty of water prevents conflicts.

However, she says, water shortages are experienced on the Esageri division in Narosura from October to March, leading to conflicts.

The downstream water users have in the past invaded the irrigation farms for those upstream before tearing down their piping systems.

Maasai attributed the water shortage to people upstream abstracting water to irrigate their farms.

“They use a lot of water (upstream) to the extent those downstream lack it,” she says.

Maasai says they normally engage Water Resource Authority, the police, political leaders and the community to resolve the conflicts.

She says the conflicts arise when people from downstream dismantle water pipes belonging to the upstream residents.

Maasai said irrigation activities upstream should be regulated for all to access the commodity.

She said they have plans to grow trees along the riparian to protect them.

So far, they have planted 402,000 indigenous trees as a subcounty.

Narosura Water Resource Users Association (WRUA) secretary Wyne Kemei says they have been working with communities along Narosura, Emining and Sageri Rivers to protect and conserve the catchment.

“We also try to mitigate issues of conflict that arise from water, especially during the dry season,” Kemei says.

A WRUA is an association of water users, riparian land owners and other stakeholders who have formally and voluntarily associated for the purposes of co-operatively sharing, managing and conserving common water resources.

Kemei says they are currently implementing a water harvesting programme funded by the Water Trust Fund, which started in October last year.

“So far, we have distributed 10 water tanks and established harvesting structures in 10 schools.”

Some schools in the upper catchment that have benefitted include Kirobon, Sabatia Primary and Solian Mixed Day.

Kemei says the sub-catchment management plan has since been reviewed.

CATCHMENT PLAN

The issue of water scarcity and its associated conflicts is, however, not confined to Baringo.

The conflict is also evident in the Gilgil catchment, where bad blood between upstream and downstream over over-abstraction is endemic.

In Mbegi Akorino of Gilgil within the Naivasha basin, farming of kales, onions and sukuma wiki uses water from the Gilgil River.

Some of the farmers use flood irrigation, denying those living downstream water for use, leading to conflicts.

Gilgil Water Resource Users Association (WRUA) chairman Daniel Nyoro says conflicts, especially during the dry spell, threaten to tear the communities around the catchment apart.

Some of the farmers are using water in an unsustainable manner, he said.

Within Mbegi Akorino, there are about 254 farmers practising using the old method of farming.

This means there are more than 200 machines roaring and drawing water from the river at any given time.

Interestingly, none of the farmers has permits allowing them to abstract water as required by the law.

This means each farmer can abstract water from the river in a manner they wish, denying those downstream the commodity.

Nyoro said it is costly for farmers to use flood irrigation, adding that the cost of fuel to pump water had increased.

“The farmer will pump water from 6am up to 6pm,” he said.

“The consumption of the portable machine per day is between Sh1,200 and Sh1,500 per day. The farmer will pump water to his or her farm two times a week. In a month, the farmer will have used Sh12,000.”

This is in comparison to drip irrigation, which uses less fuel and conserves water.

Nyoro said the increase in population is also to blame.

“The government should intervene and help the youth with friendly farming loans as the move will help create job opportunities,” Nyoro said, adding that sustainable farming is the way to go.

Nyoro, however, praises the initiatives being put in place to address some of the challenges.

He says the World Wide Fund for Nature Kenya (WWF-K) has facilitated them with training and equipment that they are using for the health of the river.

WWF-Kenya advocates for integrated water resource management (IWRM) approaches to enhance water security and reduce water-related conflicts among water users.

IWRM is a comprehensive approach that recognises the interconnectedness of water resources and aims to balance the social, economic and environmental aspects of water management.

By focusing on the management of catchment areas, water sources and streams, these organisations are addressing critical aspects of water resource management.

This approach recognises the importance of a holistic understanding of water systems and the need for collaboration among stakeholders, including local communities, government agencies, industries and civil society organisations.

The goal is to achieve sustainable water management practices that support human livelihoods, protect ecosystems and address the challenges posed by water scarcity, pollution and climate change.

Conflicts over water had been predicted in 2002 by world-renowned environmental thinker and activist Vandana Shiva.

Shiva in her concise and well-written book 'Water Wars: Privatisation, Pollution and Profit', says as natural rights, water can be used but not owned.

In her book, she asks fundamental questions.

“Who does water belong to? Is it private property or commons? What kind of rights do or should people have? What are the rights of the state? What are the rights of corporations and commercial interests?”

Shiva says societies have been plagued by these fundamental questions throughout history.

She says water, more than any other resource, needs to remain a common good and requires community management.