Kabarole: the land abound with craters

Lake Kyaninga, one of the many crater lakes in Kabarole District. It and many others attract tourists all year round, who come to bask in the beauty they present. Photo by Felix Basiime 

Kabarole: the land abound with craters

By FELIX BASIIME 

Friday, April 13  2012 at  13:06 [http://www.monitor.co.ug/SpecialReports/ugandaat50/-/1370466/1385766/-/uixqnez/-/index.html]

In Summary

Can you believe that there is a single district in the world, with more than 50 crater lakes, more than 10 rivers and that this district is in Uganda?

This is the case with this western district. With such endowments, one could think that the Kabarole is covered by water and that its people stay on and or walk on water.

Kabarole has a total area of 1, 814km2 of which, 1,569 km2 is covered by arable land and 198 km2 is covered by open water and wetlands. Most valleys in Kabarole have many flowing rivers and streams, something that makes farming easy since animals and people have several options on water points and there is almost no dry season throughout the year.

Why there are many craters
The many craters simply mean that there was a lot of volcanic activity in this area, leading to formation of the several crater lakes. This also explains why pozzolana, the mineral used in manufacturing cement, has high deposits in Fort Portal.

Craters are flat floor depressions, formed when explosions and eruptions of gases blow off the rocks at the surface, leaving a shallow circular depression. These depressions are at times filled with water to form crater lakes with typical examples found in Kasese, Kabarole, Bushenyi, Kisoro and Rubirizi districts.

Location
Kabarole is found within the Albertine Rift Valley, mainly comprised of numerous rivers, lakes and swamps that attract flora and fauna in this region, which is ranked the highest in bio-diversity, in Africa according to the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).

Tourism
All these aspects make the district a one-stop centre in drawing in tourists with its unique attractions such as the mountain gorillas. This natural endowment has attracted investors to set up hotels, beaches and camp sites on some of the ridges of these crater lakes, to boost tourism.

Mr Steve Williams, a furniture designer, recently set up the magnificent Lake Kyaninga Lodge at the highest edge of Lake Kyaninga, one of the beautiful crater lakes in Kabarole, just eight kilometres, north of Fort Portal town. The magnificent hotel of nine cottages attracts several tourists to the area, who come to enjoy the beautiful scenery.

Other crater lakes that have attracted hoteliers include Nyinabulitwa which has the Nyinabulitwa Country Resort and Safari Camp, about 20 km from the main town on Fort Portal-Kamwenge road. CVK (Crater Valley Kibale Resort Beach Lodge) is located on Lake Nyabikere, 21 kms on Fort Portal-Kamwenge road.
Others are lakes Nkuruba, Lyantonde, Nyinambuga where Ndali Lodge is perched on the ridges, and Lake Kasenda where Kasenda Beach Resort is perched.

Kabarole is also endowed with several rivers which include; Kayagi, Kaija, Kahomba, Sogohi, Muzizi, Rwimi, Kakoko, Kakule, Kabago, Kizikibi and Mpanga among others. Commercial fishing also takes place on about 30 of the 52 crater lakes, scattered in Kabarole District.

Rubirizi District in south western Uganda is the second place, after Kabarole that has several crater lakes with about 30 crater lakes to its name.

CRATER LAKE INVENTORY IN KABAROLE DISTRICT

Name	Location	Size
1.      Kigere/Balama	Mubuhara zone, Bwanika Parish, Kicwamba Sub-county	250,000msq
2.      Kaasindikwa	As above, near Muhoti barracks	40,000msq
3.      Kaitabarogo	Do (behind Muhoti Barracks)
4.      Wabikere	Do (behind Muhoti Barracks)	200,000msq
5.      Hamugoma	Kicwamba Sub-county	500,000msq
6.      Saaka	Kicwamba S/C, Nyamiseke Parish, Nyamiseke zone	250,000msq
7.      Mwegenywa	Buheesi S/C , Nyamiseke Parish , Nyamiseke Zone	250,000msq
8.      Ntanda	As above	300msq
9.      Nyainabulitwa	Ruteete S/C	300msq
10.  Nyamirima	Do (Nyamirima zone)	150,000msq
11.  Nyabikere	Do	400.000msq
12.  Kanyamukale	Rwimi S/C, Kaina Parish, Kaina Zone	150,000msq
13.  Kitere	Rwimi S/C, Kadindimo Parish, Kajumiro A Zone	200.000msq
14.  Njarayabaana	Rwimi S/C Kaina Parish,  Kaina Zone	100,000msq
15.  Mubiro	As above	100,000msq
16.  Nyamugoro	Kibiito S/C, Mujunju Parish, Nyamugoro Zone	100,000msq
17.  Kaisamukoma	Do	50,000msq
18.  Nyamugasaani	Rwimi S/C, Kaina Parish, Kaina Zone	200,000msq
19.  Nyamiteza	Kibiito  S/C, Mujunju Parish, Kyatwa Zone	100,000msq
20.  Ntambi	Rwimi S/C, Kaina Parish, Kagoro Zone	10,000msq
21.  Kyanga	As above but Kaina Zone	200,000msq
22.  Rwankenzi	Rutete S/C Kasenda Parish, Nsongya Zone.	200,000msq
23.  Rwandakarra	Rutete S/C Nyabweya Parish, Kibuga Zone	100,000msq
24.  Nzigamire	As above but Kibwera Zone	100,000msq
25.  Marusi	Do	150,000msq
26.  Budallah	Rutete S/C  Nyabweya Parish Nyabweya Zone	150,000msq
27.  Rwenjubu	Rutete S/C, Kasenda Parish Kikeeri Zone	000msq
28.  Ndikya	Do	160,000sq
29.  Kanyango	Do	60,000msq
30.  Mwamba	Rutete S/C, Mukimya Zone, Kasenda Parish	100,000msq
31.Rugembe	Do but Rugembe Zone	180,000msq
32.Nyinambuga	Rutete S/C, Kasenda	250,000msq
33.Kifurukwa	Do	150,000msq
34.Bwabya	Busoro S/C	100,000msq
35.Bukoni	Do	80,000msq
36.Lyantonde	Rutete	150,000sq
37. Nyahirya	Do	120,000msq
38. Kanyanswiga	Do	100,000msq
39. Nkuruba	Do	100,000msq
40. Rukwanzi	Do	130,000msq
41. Mbajo	Do	100,000msq
42. Mahuhura	Do	150,000msq
43. Kasenda	Do	150,000msq
44. Kyerere	Do	80,000msq
45. Kanyamasirra	Do	120,000msq
46. Kesibenda	Do	90,000msq
47. Kamiramacumu	Do	150,000msq
48. Kiribwato	Do	160,000msq
49. Kyaninga	Harugongo

Source:Kabarole Natural resources office

felix.basiime@gmail.com

Kibaale faces environment crisis

A man burns charcoal at Kiryanga in Kibaale district. Photo by Felix Basiime

Kibaale faces environment crisis

By FELIX BASIIME  

Posted  Tuesday, April 10  2012 [http://www.monitor.co.ug/News/National/-/688334/1383270/-/aw5a0pz/-/index.html]

World Wildlife Fund (WWF), a worldwide non-governmental organisation contracted by government to conserve the biodiversity in the Albertine Rift Valley forests, has warned that Kibaale District risks facing serious consequences of environmental degradation due to deforestation.

According to Mr Andrew Johns Grieser, the technical advisor of the WWF, the organisation has focused on Kibaale in the last two years after finding out that it faces the most impact in the whole region.

“According to our projections, people will start moving away from this district due to environmental degradation. There are climate change refugees all over the world, not of wars but of climate change-related issues like hunger,” Mr Grieser said last week.

Hunger looms
He added: “Unless something special is done at the political level, in the next 20 years Kibaale will be hit by hunger.” According to Kibaale Forest Services officials, deforestation is at about 80 per cent of the gazetted forest reserves.

The findings come at a time when residents have already faced some effects of climate change.
Ms Jane Bagwa Ateenyi, a local beekeeper at Kisaalizi in Kyebando, told this newspaper that there is likely to be one rainy season this year contrary to the previous two.

“We used to have rains by February each year but now they have started in April, an indicator of climate change,” she said. Whereas conservation and mitigation measures would be progressing well in Kibaale by WWF and other NGOs like Navoda through community-based natural resources management, the players accuse the political class of derailing their activities.

The conservationists, without mentioning names, said some politicians encourage residents to settle in reserves while others are involved in timber and charcoal trade.

Most difficult
 

Ms Madrin Kutusa, the district secretary for production and natural resources, could neither deny nor confirm the matter. “Not all of us are involved, at least as a district we have a policy against deforestation but farmers have overwhelmed us with their activities,” she said yesterday.
 

But Mr Grieser said: “This is my 20th project in my lifetime, but this is the most difficult. There are fresh migrations, political pressure and poverty. All these issues are very difficult to handle as an NGO. Unless government steps in, I have little hope on these forests”.
 

The Albertine Rift Valley is the richest in biodiversity in Africa, according to conservationists.

“Our project is trying to convince people to stop deforestation, but it is very difficult, although there is some progress through our interventions,” Mr Grieser added.
 

Kangombe, Guramwa, Nyakarongo, Kasato, Rwengeye, Kyamurangi, Kanaga, and Ruzaire, are some of the gazetted central forest reserves in Kibaale. Others are Kijuna, Rukara, Nakuyazo, Kihaimira, Nyabigoye, Nyabiku, and Kagada Eucalyptus forest.