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Roundup: Kenya's Drought Hits Reserves As Animals Compete for Water

Posted on: Saturday, 14 January 2006, 09:00 CST

Roundup: Kenya's drought hits reserves as animals compete for water

NAIROBI, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- Kenyan wildlife officials on Friday warned of the danger from rogue animals wandering out of nature reserves looking for water as drought grips the land.

Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) officials warned that these protected species are going out in search of water and to graze in nearby villages and farms, but their presence is proving to be a danger to human population.

"We have put out an alert for increased human-wildlife conflicts in the country. Wildlife, notably elephants, have left parks in search of water following the dry spell in the country," said Connie Maina, a spokeswoman for KWS by telephone.

The warning follows a famine alert issued by the Kenyan government and UN agencies.

They estimate that about 11 million people are at risk of starvation in the Horn of Africa (including 2.5 million Kenyans in northern part of the country).

Maina says elephants have killed at least two people in the past two weeks around Tsavo National Park in the southeast blamed on conflicts over scarce water supplies.

Hundreds of elephants also invaded neighboring farms from the Masai Mara National Reserve in the southwest.

Making matters worse, elephants charged at mourners during the funeral of a man who was himself trampled to death by an elephant.

The KWS is trying to do ground and air patrol to ensure that the problem animals do not cause any havoc and to try to drive the elephants back to the park, Maina said.

"We are using vehicles and a helicopter that flies low and pushes them in the direction where we want them to go. It is a very expensive operation but we have no alternative but to undertake," she added.

There are an estimated 30,000 elephants in Kenya and their population has risen in recent years because of successful anti- poaching policies.

Now, with millions of people suffering from drought, officials say competition for water between humans and wildlife is bound to get more violent.

Wildlife officials blamed the east African nation's growing human population which had gradually spread on to elephant territory, making conflict inevitable.

KWS Deputy Director of Community Wildlife Paul Gathitu said the best way to prevent an escalation of conflict and violence between wildlife and people is to encourage the wildlife not to stray out of their protected areas.

"We have put in rangers on alert, to be able to help communities deal with problem animals. We have sent in a special unit which we call the 'problem animal management unit' for the case of Tsavo," Gathitu said by telephone.

"We are asking all the communities in Kenya to let us know as soon as possible when they encounter any situation that will need KWS's intervention," he added.

The KWS warning came a day after the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) warned that drought currently ravaging the East Africa is a result of loss of forest cover, grasslands and other key ecosystems, leading to misery for millions of people alongside their and livestock.

UNEP Executive Director Klaus Toepfer said urgent action is needed to overcome the drought which is biting across parts of East Africa threatening misery for millions alongside livelihoods and livestock.

The causes of the drought are numerous including issues of good governance up to tensions and conflicts in water scarce regions, said Toepfer in a statement issued by the UN environmental body.

He said the drought also has strong links with on-going environmental damage to forests, grasslands, wetlands and other critical ecosystems as well as global climate change.

Last week, Kenya's climate experts warned that wildlife which is a major attraction in the tourism sector could be affected through reduced pasture for animals.

The Director of Meteorological Services Joseph Mukabana said human-wildlife conflict could arise during this time due to a rush for water and pasture.

The climate experts warned that food relief efforts "may need to go beyond December 2006 in some parts of the country."

The department said the dry spell had also created conditions conducive to fire outbreaks in forests, sugar plantations, game parks and slums.

About 2.5 million people are estimated to be suffering from hunger in the eastern half of Kenya as a result of the failure of both rainy seasons there in 2005.

Source: Xinhua News Agency - CEIS

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