Destroy forests and tea could be history

By Lucianne Limo

The future of the Sh12.4 billion-tea industry looks bleak due to wanton destruction of the Mau Forest.

Tea, which is one of the country’s main cash crops, greatly depends on the forest.

For optimum yields, tea needs constant moisture, appropriate soil and air temperatures.

Mau Forest provided these climatic conditions. But today, excessive illegal logging, charcoal-burning and encroachment have plagued the forest, which helps in holding ground water, reducing soil erosion, water purification and micro-climate regulation.

An assessment of how key national sectors depend on the Mau Forest Complex paints a grim picture of how deforestation has impacted the tea industry. The industry is a key source of foreign exchange and provides a livelihood to many Kenyans.

In western Kenya, the tea sector employs about 50,000 people and provides a livelihood to 75,000 small-scale farmers. The two groups then support some 645,000 dependants.

Ecological functions

The report says tea-growing areas are located near montane forests. They include Kericho Highlands, Kisii Highlands, Nandi Highlands, Cherangani Hills and Mt Elgon.

It is estimated that two-thirds of the tea produced in western Kenya benefits from the ecological functions of the Mau Complex.

The assessment for a multinational tea company, Finlays Tea Estate in Kericho, showed inconsistency in annual tea production.

This was blamed on the change in micro-climatic conditions caused by climate change and deforestation.

The report concludes that the emerging trend of increased inconsistency of tea production is due to variation in soil and temperature caused by extensive deforestation.

Most tea companies also depend on the rivers flowing from the Mau Forest to generate power.

To avoid power outage losses, tea factories generate electricity from hydro power plants installed on rivers flowing from the Mau Forest.

Some four megawatts of power is generated from Sondu River.

In addition, a feasibility study for 9.2 megawatts on Yala River in the Nandi Hills has been completed.

However, generation of such power is threatened due to reduced water levels.