Effects Of Land Use Practices On Protected Areas (Case Of Lake Nakuru National Park)

ACRONYMS

Kenya Wildlife Service

World Wildlife Fund

Lake Nakuru National Parle

Nairobi National Park

Kenya Agricultural institute

Green House Gases

Lake Nakuru Conservation and Development Project

Environmental Impact Assessment

Environmental Audit

NAW ASSCO: Nakuru Water and Sanitation Services Company Limited

NSREP:

LDC'S:

UN:

IUCN:

ITCZ:

NGOS:

GDP:

USS:

EMCA:

MCN:

NEMP:

Km:

Nakuru Sewage Rehabilitation and Expansion Project

Least Developed Countries

United Nations

International Union for the Conservation ofNature and Natural Resources.

Inter Tropical Convergence Zone

non-governmental organizations

Gross Domestic Product

United States Dollars

Environmental Management Coordination Act

Municipal Council ofNakuru

Nakuru Environmental Management Project

Kilometers

iv

m3 cubic Meters

m Meters

mm: Millimeters

0

c: Degrees Celsius

IBA: Important Bird Area

DDT: Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane

EU: European Union

PRA: Participatory Rural Appraisal

UNEP: United Nation Environmental Programme

GoK: Government of Kenya

FINNIDA: Finnish International Development Agency

DANIDA: Danish International Development Assistance

ASAL: Arid and Semi Arid Lands

ADG: Advanced Development Group

JICA: Japan International Cooperative Agency

MDG: Millennium Development Goals

V

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Front page ..................................................................................... pg

Declaration ..................................................................................... .i

Dedication ....................................................................................... ii

Acknowledgement ........................................................................... .iii

Acronyms ..................................................................................... .iv

Table ofContents ............................................................................. vi

Appendices ............................................................................................... x

List of tables' .................................................................................. xi

List of charts .................................................................................. xii

List of fignres ................................................................................ xiii

Abstract ........................................................................................ xiv

...... Pg

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION

1.1 Definitions of key concepts ............................................................................ I

1.2 Importance of Protected Areas ..................................................................... 2

1.3 Legislative frame work for the management of Protected Areas in Kenya3

1.3.1 National laws .......................................................................................... 3

1.3 .2 International laws .................................................................................... 7

1.4 Confilct between Protected Areas and Development in Kenya ............... l 0

1.5 Background of the study ............................................................................. 11

1.6 Statement of the problem ............................................................................ 12

1. 7 Objective of the study .................................................................................. 14

1.11 Specific objective of the stndy ..................................................................... 15

1.9 Research questions ....................................................................................... 15

1.10 Scope of the study ........................................................................................ 15

1.11 Significance of the stndy ............................................................................. 15

1.12 Anticipated limitation of the stndy ............................................................ I 6

vi

CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW

2.0 I11troductio11 .................................................................................................. 17

2.1 Impacts ofla11d use practices on protected areas ..................................... 17

2.1.l Catchment degradation ......................................................................... 20

2.1.2 Human settlement ................................................................................. 21

2.1.3 Industrialization and urbanization ......................................................... 23

2.1.4 Agricultural practice as a land use ........................................................ 25

2.1.5 Effects of climate change on wildlife ................................................... 27

2.1.6 Human and animal conflict ................................................................... 28

2.2 Minimizing the effects of land use practices on Protected Areas ............ 29

CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Case study: Lake Nakuru National Park ......................................... .33

3.1 Study area ..................................................................................................... 34

3.1.l Rainfall .................................................................................................. 34

3 .1.2 Temperature .......................................................................................... 34

3.1.3 Vegetation ............................................................................................. 35

3.14 Fauna ..................................................................................................... 36

3 .1.5 Human population ................................................................................. 38

3.l.6 Drainage; Hydrology and water balance ............................................... 39

3.1.7 Topography ........................................................................................... 41

3.2 Research design ............................................................................................ 41

3.3 Study population .......................................................................................... 41

3.4 Sample size .................................................................................................... 42

3.5 Sampling frame work .................................................................................. 42

3.5.1 Sampling design .................................................................................... 42

3.5.2 Sampling techniques ............................................................................. 42

3.6 Data collection instruments ......................................................................... 43

3.6.l Questionnaires ....................................................................................... 43

3.6.2 Direct observation ................................................................................. 43 

ABSTRACT

This report exposes the Major land use and environmental problems facing Lake Nakuru National Park today, the report focused on the following as its major objectives; identifying the land uses and practices in and around Lake Nakuru National Park, identifying the effects of these land use practices and suggesting possible control measures to mitigate their effects. The researcher used different data collection methods during his actual field expeditions and these methods included; interviewing of respondents, administering of questionnaires, photography and the observation method. The findings revealed that the major threats of Lake Nakuru National park are the uncontrolled land uses and their practices on its catchments. The collective impacts of increased human numbers, expanded settlement, growing small-scale farming activities, tourism, industrial activities and the vast modification of landscape e.g. clearing of vegetation, it has created strife throughout Lake Nakuru National Park ecosystems thus causing the loss destruction of flora and fauna. Secondly findings acquired showed that the major causes of failure to reduces the impacts of Land uses and land use practices within and out side Lake Nakuru National Park is the lack of controlled development on its catchments and lack of enough resources to carry out appropriate conservation measures within the park and mainly on the catchments surrounding Lake Nakuru National Park, the agencies that are responsible on the conservation of the Protected Area have lucked the resources and equipments to effectively implement and set up strategies of restoring biodiversity within the protected areas. Finally various recommendations and solutions to various environmental problems have been prescribed in the report and they are as follows: Promoting complementarities between land uses and biodiversity conservation objectives; Restoring degraded ecosystems where appropriate; Effective Planning; Effective Legislative framework and promoting gender sensitiz.ation on various parks conservation programmes.