By Kipchumba Kemei
The Spanish Government, a regional authority and Unep have launched a three-year plan to plant 19 million trees in the Mau forest.
The Sh96 million-reforestation initiative will increase the depleted forest cover, protect river banks and economically empower communities through conservation.
Ewaso Nyiro South Development Authority chairperson Beatrice Sabana said her organisation, Unep and the Spanish Government have planted 750,000 trees since 2007 to rehabilitate the vast water tower. She said tree nurseries with capacity of 500,000 seedlings were started in schools and communal lands around the 146,000-hectare Maasai Mau block.
Project successful
The Community-Based Integrated Forest Resource Conservation and Management project, she said, would be successful if all settlements in that part of the complex where most landowners have either title deeds or sale agreements are cleared.
Sabana said the authority, which covers 16 districts in Rift Valley Province, has in the past month planted many trees and two tree nurseries with a capacity of 10 million seedlings will be established in Narok and Kajiado.
"The authority with its partners is planning to plant trees along banks of major rivers emanating from the complex and around springs, dams and water pans," she said during a media briefing in Narok.
The authority also seeks to conserve the banks of rivers Njoro, Makalia, Nderit, Ewaso Nyiro and Mara, where crocodiles and hippos have reportedly started dying because of the receding water levels.
