WWF Restoring the Collapsing Semuliki River Bank in Uganda

GSTDTAP > 资源环境科学

	WWF Restoring the Collapsing Semuliki River Bank in Uganda
	admin
	2018-09-21
发布年	2018
语种	英语
国家	国际
领域	资源环境
正文(英文)	River Semuliki is a major source of livelihood for neighboring farming communities as it provides water for livestock and crops but, it is also controversially referred to among the same communities as the “river which eats our land” The reason for this sentiment is the gradual loss of land due to the collapsing river banks. The river, located in the Western part of Uganda, marks the natural boundary between Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Rising water volumes sparked off by melting glaciers in the Rwenzori Mountains, poor farming methods upstream, overgrazing and population pressure have contributed to the weakening of the river banks which eventually burst depositing large amounts of silt by tributaries into the Semuliki river. This has caused the river to widen on either side causing land loss in either country. The influx of cattle in the in the area has also accelerated the problem. The animals drink directly from the river which weakens the river banks further due to their large numbers. World Wide Fund Uganda Country Office (WWF UCO) working with Joint Effort to Save the Environment (JESE) , the District Local Government, Albert Water Management Zone and the communities are piloting a river bank restoration scheme to mitigate further damage. So far, a 5.2Km river bank stretch has been restored through river buffer zone establishment and river bank stabilization with local materials such as bamboo and water reeds. The buffer zone in agreement with the land owners has been cordoned off to limit cattle grazing and other forms of land use which weaken the banks. Community structures have also been strengthened as evidenced by the functional water user groups and the communities’ commitment in monitoring and ensuring the sustainability of the interventions. George Kaija, WWF’s Community Conservation Manager comments that the success of this intervention was largely as a result of the participation of community members in the decision making process. “River bank stabilization requires community members to create a buffer zone along the river bank for regeneration or planting the appropriate species, and this cannot be achieved unless they clearly understand the benefits of this sacrifice”, he told the Weekly. The pilot phase has registered significant success. Notable among others is the fact that some land owners have independently, without any financial support replicated the same techniques on their land to stabilize the banks. This is a sign of adoption and an indicator of sustainability. The good news for is that more players, both government and civil society, are coming on board to replicate and scale up the interventions to cover more hotspot areas.
URL	查看原文
来源平台	World Wide Fund for Nature
文献类型	新闻
条目标识符	http://119.78.100.173/C666/handle/2XK7JSWQ/124812
专题	资源环境科学
推荐引用方式 GB/T 7714	admin. WWF Restoring the Collapsing Semuliki River Bank in Uganda. 2018.