World Forests Clock

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World Environment Day 2017: Mark it

The blogger  during her graduation ceremony appreciating 
the nature by planting a tree

‘Connecting People to Nature’, the theme for World Environment Day 2017, implores us to get outdoors and into nature, to appreciate its beauty and its importance, and to take forward the call to protect the Earth that we share. World Environment Day is the biggest annual event for positive environmental action and takes place every 5 June.  We have all it takes to protect our environment. So come out and participate fully.

Some of the objectives of the world environment day are:

• To make people aware about the environmental issues
• Encourage common people to actively participate in developing environmental safety measures
• Encourage people to make their nearby surroundings safe and clean to enjoy safer, cleaner and more prosperous future.

“You will die but the carbon will not; its career does not end with you. It will return to the soil, and there a plant may take it up again in time, sending it once more on a cycle of plant and animal life”. –Jacob Bronowski

Restore or destroy main water tower

Unsustainable timber harvesting

The vegetation around the Enapuiyapui Swamp in the heart of the Kiptunga Forest block in the eastern Mau Forest Complex is in a pathetic state. Lined with reeds, bunchgrass, switch grass and indigenous cedar trees, the veritable wetland — which is the lifeline of three major rivers — has not been spared by encroachers, who are grazing their animals in the wetland, thereby degrading the Mau Forest ecosystem.    

         

Tens of acres of the wetland grasses, which play a major role in protecting the swamp from the vagaries of weather, are being destroyed thanks to human greed and uncontrolled livestock grazing.

The Enapuiyapui Swamp, which is not a gazetted wetland but exists within a government gazetted forest, is the source of the Amala River, which joins the Nyangores River to form the Mara River. It is also the source of the Molo River, which flows into Lake Baringo and River Njoro, both of which flow into Lake Nakuru.

Cattle grazing in the Enapuiyapui Swamp in the Mau Forest. The local pastoralist communities say the drought has made pastureland scarce. 

When DN2 visited the Mau Complex a few weeks ago, there were herds of cattle and flocks of sheep  grazing in different parts of the swamp, trampling on its vegetation as those herding them sat nearby, watching them.

Less than 10 metres from the wetland is a seven-year-old plaque dated January 15, 2010, commemorating the day when then Prime Minister Raila Odinga and the late Prof Wangari Maathai led a host of government bureaucrats, politicians and environmentalists on a tree-planting ceremony in the area as part of the efforts to restore the complex’s ecosystem.

Sadly, however, just like the ill-fated vegetation surrounding the wetland, all the trees planted on that occasion have been destroyed.

A herdsman we met at the swamp said the trees could have been nibbled up by animals, uprooted by the local people, or even dried up.“We have nowhere to graze and water our cattle apart from this place. Pastureland has disappeared due to drought, leaving us with no option,” he told DN2.Other herders in the area also maintained that due to lack of pasture, they were forced to graze their livestock in the swamp.

While the law regulates the number of livestock that may be grazed within a gazetted forest and also requires that livestock owners pay Sh100 a month to the Kenya Forestry Service (KFS), in the Enapuiyapui and Kiptunga swamps, the law of the jungle applies, such that herders drive their livestock into and out of the forest at will, and without paying any fee.

FORCED TO GRAZE IN DELICATE WETLAND

But while the herders say it is desperation that is forcing them to graze their livestock in the delicate wetland because of the drought, their determination to save their animals poses a major risk to millions of people who, though living far from the wetland, rely on the swamp for their water supply.

Jackson Ole Koraso, the chairman of Kiptunga Community Forest Association (CFA), says that the livestock owners in the area usually drive their herds into the wetland, particularly when it is very dry.

PROMOTING CONSERVATION

More than two years ago, the Ogiek and the Maasai communities living around the water tower were brought together by the World Wide Fund-Kenya (WWF), an environmental non-governmental organisation, as well as other environmental stakeholders, to form a community forest association as an initiative to promote the conservation of the fores,t but the gains have been minimal due to lack of cooperation.

“When the grassland disappears, the water also disappears, therefore, farmers drive their animals here where there is grass and water. We have been trying hard to caution them but the response is slow,” Ole Koraso lamented.

The community also claims that the exotic forest of pine trees surrounding the swamp could be a major cause of the wetland’s destruction since they take up a lot of water through their roots.

However, Mr Sammy Kamati, the KFS assistant forester at Kiptunga Forest Station, refuted the claim, insisting that grazing of livestock within the swamp was solely to blame for the environmental destruction.

“The swamp ecosystem is so delicate that when you destroy the vegetation that covers it, the wetland gets exposed to heat and as a result the water dries up,” he explained, adding that that swamp is bordered by a belt of indigenous forest, and that the exotic forest begins half a kilometre from the swamp.

MASSIVE DESTRUCTION

The environmental degradation is even worse in the Olokurto Forest block in the Maasai-Mau Forest, one of the Mau Forest Complex’s 22 blocks. While most of the Mau Forest blocks have been gazetted and are managed by the national government, the Maasai-Mau Forest is trust land managed by the Narok County government. There is massive destruction within the Olokurto Forest, where at least 300 acres of forest were recently cleared to make way for wheat farming. Mr Reuben Ndete, the chairman of the Naituyupaki Community Forest Association, accused the county government of simply watching as the forest was destroyed.

“Charcoal burning is rampant in the forest. Huge caravans of donkeys leave the forest every day, each carrying two sacks of charcoal,” said Mr Ndete, adding that no action has been taken against the encroachers, even though the community  has  reported the matter to government authorities. The Mau Forest is the country’s largest remaining indigenous forest and also the largest of the country’s five water towers as well as the largest closed-canopy forest ecosystem. The complex forms part of the upper water catchment area, and is the catchment source for Lake Victoria and the White Nile.

The Mau Forest Complex spreads across five counties, namely Nakuru, Kericho, Baringo, Narok and Bomet. The forest’s degradation has led to erratic weather patterns and flash floods, whose worst effects are felt in Narok Town.

PARTICIPATORY FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN

The community also has a participatory forest management plan which contains the community’s by-laws for managing the forest.“The initiative has improved the forest’s condition considerably compared to 2008, when such activities had not been introduced. Today there is no charcoal burning in the forest, neither is there uncontrolled grazing,” Mr Rono pointed out.

The boundary of the Nyangores Forest block  is also lined with strips of tea plantations  — popularly known as the Nyayo Tea Zones — which act as a buffer between the people living around the forest and the forest. As a result, it is easier to monitor the movement of people and livestock into and out of the forest. Like Kiptunga Forest, Nyangores Forest falls under the national government.

Community management is also practised in Leshuta Forest in Mara, Narok County, where the community is conserving little springs located in small forested areas.

Mr Tony Tuya, the chairman of Leshuta Water Resource Users’ Association, said they started the initiative in 2012 with 150 members, and cover 150 square kilometres.

They have fenced the water source and there is no tree cutting within the forested strip, which is the source of Sand River, a major tributary of the River Mara. Water from the spring is piped and flows via gravity into a water tank where people can draw it from a tap. The people have also constructed water troughs for their livestock.

“The water is used by more than 15,000 people, including a school, hospital and a rescue centre, as well as 30,000 livestock,” he said.

Mr Amos Sangoyo is the scout in charge of the forest. Last year he arrested two young men who harvested trees from the forest to make goals during a local football tournament. They were fined Sh1,000 each and made to plant 10 trees.

CO-MANAGEMENT OF THE FOREST

When the community is organised, they can manage the environment properly, says Mr Kennedy Bwire, the WWF-Kenya freshwater project officer in the Mau-Mara Serengeti Landscape Programme.  The organisation is trying to involve the people living in the sub-catchments in forest conservation initiatives by encouraging them to monitor grazing and tree harvesting in the forest and also to report to the authorities those burning charcoal or cutting down trees in the forest to create farmland.

Mr Vincent Mainga, forestry leader in the WWF-Kenya Mau/Mara/Serengeti Forest Programme, says the main aim of the programme is to ensure  co-management of the forest,  adding that “Everything is based on the forest management plan, which controls utilisation to minimise destruction. Management needs an elaborate strategy.”

For a water-scarce country like Kenya, conservationists say, the water tower should have been fenced off and protected from encroachers. So its neglect points to the wanton disregard for the environment by the surrounding communities, as well as  the government’s laxity in protecting the  water tower.

Mr Emilio Mugo, a Kenya Forestry Service director, notes that there has been a high influx of livestock into forested areas in many parts the country as a result of the ongoing drought.

He explains that legally, livestock found grazing within a gazetted forest without their owners paying the designated fees should be confiscated.

“But the situation is a little complicated in Kiptunga Forest because there are communities living within the forest, making it difficult to enforce the regulation. We, therefore, depend on the community’s goodwill to pay the fees but there is low compliance, which makes the rate of defaulting higher,”  Mr Mugo revealed, He added that KFS had mapped out different areas’ potential for rehabilitation, and was also planning to fence off parts of the forest.More

The Olympic Games are just around the corner, but pollution and deforestation are here to stay

This year’s Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, promised to incorporate sustainability. Though the games officially start on Friday, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has been committed from the beginning to build a sustainable future though ethical event planning and staging, innovations in design and construction, and improvements in energy, water, and waste management. Sustainability reports and agenda’s from the IOC ensure that the environmentally safe practices will be incorporated in all stages of the games—from construction to ethical supply chains and transit options for visitors.

The latest addition of the city’s commitment to sustainability

Make Food Legal: Turning ‘Waste’ Into Meals | Earth Day Network

Oxfam reports that almost a billion people do not have enough food to eat every day. That’s a heck of a lot people considering we produce around 20% more food than the current population needs.

Making our food distribution systems better is no longer a suggestion, it’s a necessity. Some countries are already blazing ahead to reduce food waste and get food to those whom need it the most. Take Italy for example: earlier in August the nation introduced new laws to cut food waste by 1 million tons per year. The laws removed red-tape and blocks that made it hard (or even illegal) for places such as supermarkets and farms to donate food. Donating food past its expiry date and allowing businesses to record their donations and the end of the month, rather than five days before, has been approved by parliament. Not only that, but the government also introduced a line of incentives to retailers and consumers to prevent food waste; ‘doggie-bags’ are being rebranded as ‘family-bags’ and one million euros

Make Food Legal: Turning ‘Waste’ Into Meals | Earth Day Network

Oxfam reports that almost a billion people do not have enough food to eat every day. That’s a heck of a lot people considering we produce around 20% more food than the current population needs.

Making our food distribution systems better is no longer a suggestion, it’s a necessity. Some countries are already blazing ahead to reduce food waste and get food to those whom need it the most. Take Italy for example: earlier in August the nation introduced new laws to cut food waste by 1 million tons per year. The laws removed red-tape and blocks that made it hard (or even illegal) for places such as supermarkets and farms to donate food. Donating food past its expiry date and allowing businesses to record their donations and the end of the month, rather than five days before, has been approved by parliament. Not only that, but the government also introduced a line of incentives to retailers and consumers to prevent food waste; ‘doggie-bags’ are being rebranded as ‘family-bags’ and one million euros

World Environment Day Tree Planting Held on June 4, 2016 At Delmonte Kenya Limited, Thika

Ms. Carolyne Kyalo (Left- The blogger) and Former Principal ( CAVS - UoN), 

Agnes Mwang'mbe (Right) Planting a tree during World Environment day 2016.

The University of Nairobi (UoN) staff and students from College of Agriculture and Veterinary sciences (CAVS) and College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHSS) participated in marking the World Environment Day (WED) by planting trees and inter-corporate sports. A total of 44 students and 4 staff members attended the event. They were led by the Coordinator, CAVS Environmental Sustainability (ES) committee and Prof. G. Kironchi, and the former Principal CAVS, Professor Agnes Mwang’ombe assisted by  Ms.Carolyne Kyalo and Ms Esther Waribu both from department of Land Resources and Agricultural Technology (LARMAT). Over 2500 tree seedlings were planted. The following institutions participated in the planting occasion:

1. Del Monte Kenya Limited
2. University of Nairobi (CAVS & CHSS)

UNO interessiert sich für den Emmentaler Wald

Climate change practitioners in a  Secondary forest at 
 Emmental west central Switzerland.The blogger in the middle in red jacket

"Is climate change adaptation or investments"

Future of climate Change resilience

• Building capacity, Enabling society and ecosystem to bounce back to change on  success
• Should support adaption planning and action
• Ensure ecosystem are  healthy and adverse
• Access to information
• Help people to understand adverse effects and prepare  in response early warning systems
• Access to technology and services and access to  quality infrastructure
• We need to reform our  model development
• Deploy new technologies

Financial resources especially to vulnerable countries to build investments

Strategies to build climate disaster and climate resilience
Implementation of national implementation plans
Establish awareness among local people

Opportunity to improve society and livelihoods

We must all  address , take responsibility  and commitment to address  climate change

Meatless movement vs greenhouse gases

Did you know that the meat industry is responsible for approximately 20% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions? In fact, producing one calorie of meat requires nearly twenty times the amount of energy as one plant calorie!

With global meat consumption tripling over the last four decades, meat industry generates nearly one-fifth of the man-made greenhouse gas emissions that are accelerating climate change worldwide – more than the entire transportation sector.

To make matters worse, producing meat also requires a huge amount of water. An estimated 1,800 to 2,500 gallons of water go into a single pound of beef. By comparison, soy tofu produced in California requires only 220 gallons of water per pound.

Imagine how much carbon and resources we could save if we ate less meat. Even just eating meat one less day a year would make a difference.

If we want to make a real dent in the world’s carbon footprint and reduce our own personal footprint, we need to eat less meat.

Fruits: Diet, Healthy nutrition and value addition

Everyone knows that fruit is really good for you, and should be regularly included in your daily diet. It does not matter what form it takes, be it juice, whole and fresh, or processed, as long as you are careful about the type of processed fruit you use. Some have way too much added sugar to be healthy, so be sure to read the labels. Do your research, because studies are done all the time, and opinions will change. Wine, for example, used to be frowned upon, at least until it was discovered that the antioxidants that grapes possess transfer intact, to the wine, making it healthy to drink once more.

Another Source of Water

A surprising side benefit that comes from fruit and nutrition is that including fresh fruit into your diet will also provide you with an additional serving of water every day. The standard, according to nutritionists, is to drink at least eight glasses of water. A medium sized piece of fruit, one that is naturally juicy, like oranges, can be substituted for one of those glasses, making it easy to incorporate both water and fruit into your diet.

Fiber

Another item that is often recommended for healthy nutrition is to up your consumption of fiber every day. This will help you to improve your digestion, and keep you regular. According to recent studies in fruit and nutrition, you can easily add fiber to your eating regimen simply by adding at least one portion of fresh fruit to your meals. Apples, bananas, melons and grapes are great for this, and easy to eat on the go, if need be.

Helps Weight Loss

When it comes to dieting and the consumption of fruit, you cannot go wrong by using fruit for purposes of snacking. Fruit, no matter its form, are some of the lowest calorie foods that you can find. Making snacks out of fruit is just smart, because they will not destroy your count per meal. And, as an added bonus, they also make great appetite suppressants, thanks to the amount of water they provide.

Vitamins and Antioxidants

Next to the production of patent medicines, the next multi-billion dollar industry has to be the creation of over the counter vitamins. Why clog up the countertops with countless bottles to get the vitamins you need, when you can get them directly from the source: fruit! Combined with the right amount of vegetables, you can take in all the vitamins a healthy diet requires, just by eating a balanced diet. And, as a bonus, you also gain sources of antioxidants, which boost the immune system and fight off all the nasty pollutants from the air, sun and water, especially carcinogens.

Money Savers

With the costs of processed foods continually on the rise, you can easily argue the foods in your diet, and save money, by buying fresh fruit whenever possible. Admittedly, canned might be easier to handle, but its cost is much higher, because it often includes a percentage of the cost of processing and canning. Eating fresh is also healthier, because you will not have all those preservatives and additives, like sugar, busting your diet by their presence.

Timber theft leads to degradation of critical habitat for endangered animals

Timber merchants mercillesly  choping tree- Kibwezi, photo by Carolyne Kyalo

Rampant Deforestation of tropical forests constitutes to one of the greatest threats to biodiversity and the conservation of nature. Incredibly, fauna and flora in Kenya is the most endangered on Earth. Though selective timber harvest is part of a silvicultural system used to create or maintain an uneven-aged forest, preservation of critical forest habitats for endangered biodiversity is a difficult and largely unsolved problem.

It requires identifying the critical habitats and excluding all competitive uses from them. Reducing the incentives for forest land conversion to agriculture will help protect some critical habitats in select regions of new development. Moreover, the problem will only compound in any region where local development is associated with further clearing of the forest.

Given the economic, ecological, and climatic importance of plants, scientists will continue to discover ways to facilitate their genome characterization. Trees have significance importances in our lives and “every tree counts in environment conservation”. We manage trees on a landscape to know that they are correctly identified, their geographic source and adaptive characteristics. This can be probably be adopted by utilizing .DNA markers technology. This will be attained through biodiversity recovery and creation of  local carbon sinks to compact global climate change.

In my current research on landscaping and mitigation measures to climate change in Eastern part of Kenya, the key aspects of controlling timber theft, is by sensitizing the community thorough outreach programs on nature restoration . This will be enhanced by propagating of both indigenous and exotic trees nursery management, and pilot plantations timber utilization till maturity time. Most under-utilized tree in this area is Melia volkensii. a tree extraordinary economic importance smallholder farmer

Wild life Animals

Habitat loss for forest animals due to illegal logging contributes to increased deforestations and remains threat to wildlife and other endangered animals.

Climate change communication and adaptation

Farmers and pastoralists, as well as policy makers, development and humanitarian programmes in Africa are searching for the best ways to adapt to the impacts of climate variability and change. Changes in seasonal rainfall patterns and more unpredictable, severe and frequent extreme events like floods and droughts are already being observed, threatening livelihoods in vulnerable communities.

Most adaptation strategies aim to spread or reduce potential risks, for example by using drought tolerant seeds, cereal banks, diversification to non climate dependent income sources, weather based insurance products, or early warning systems. Although such concrete measures are essential, climate change is continuous and unpredictable. Adaptive capacity to make informed and flexible decisions for action is becoming even more important to ensure resilience to climate change impacts.
Climate science and meteorology provide valuable sources of information that can help, not only in predicting future weather and climate (which can never be fully accurate), but also in developing understanding and skill in befriending and managing uncertainty. Seasonal forecasts for example, give probabilities of three different rainfall scenarios.

Gene cloned proteins yet to live up to the Hype...

There’s no argument that biotechnology has dramatically improved global healthcare with the introduction of many novel biotherapeutics . A few examplies include:

Enbrel for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis; 

Rituxan for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma; Herceptin for breast cancer; 

Humulin for diabetes; Procrit for the treatment of anemia in patients with kidney failure, HIV, or cancer

Avastin for metastatic colorectal cancer, advanced nonsquamous non–small cell lung cancer, metastatic kidney cancer, and glioblastoma.