Drive to list three lakes as heritage sites begins

By Beatrice Obwocha

A campaign has started to have three salty lakes in the Rift Valley declared World Heritage Sites.

Lakes Nakuru, Bogoria and Elementaita are also home to thousands of flamingos.

The National Museum of Kenya and Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) have initiated the campaign.

World Heritage Sites are places of cultural or natural significance. The two parastatals have held workshops to prepare a report to be forwarded to Unesco for consideration.

The last workshop was held in Baringo last week, where participants agreed that the lakes had cultural and natural significance.

The hot springs at Lake Bogoria. A campaign to list the lake together with lakes Nakuru and Elementaita as World Heritage Sites has kicked off. Photo: File/Standard

KWS senior scientist in charge of Central Rift Joseph Edebe said the lakes share cultural, hydrological and geological connection.

"The lakes are not only salty, but home to about 75 per cent of the world’s population of flamingos and are all Ramsar sites," he said

Pre-historic site

Ramsar sites are wetlands of international importance, he said. He said most significant was the cultural background as the three lakes have sites that show early signs of humanity.

Lake Nakuru, he said, is located next to the Hyrax Hill pre-historic site, one of Kenya’s important sites after the discovery of settlements, tombs and tools dating to 1500 BC by Louis and Mary Leakey in the 1920s.

Lake Elementaita is next to the Kariandusi pre-historic site where ancient tools used between more than a million years ago were discovered.

And Lake Bogoria National Park was once home to the Endorois community.

Mr Edebe said the three lakes also share water. It has been scientifically proven that they are fed through underground water from Lake Naivasha. He said Kenya has four sites listed as World Heritage Sites.

They are Lamu Old Town, the Sacred Mijikenda Kaya Forest, Lake Turkana National Park and Mount Kenya National Park.