Disaster looms in East Africa - Drought
Once again Africa faces ruin..........What do we do for the long term ???
Rotting carcasses testify to the scale of the disaster looming in East Africa.
No rainfall for three years has left the Kenyan landscape strewn with animal carcasses
On the plains of Marsabit the heat is so intense the bush seems to shiver. The leafless scrub, bleached white by the sun, looks like a forest of fake Christmas trees. Carcasses of cattle and camels are strewn about the burnt red dirt in every direction. Siridwa Baseli walks out of the haze along a path of the dead and dying. He passes a skeletal cow that has given up and collapsed under a thorn tree. A nomad from the Rendille people, he is driving his herd in search of water.
He marks time in seasons but knows that it has not rained for three years: "Since it is not raining there is no pasture," he says. Only 40 of his herd of sheep and goats that once numbered 200 have survived. Those that remain are dying at a rate of 10 every day.
Already a herder before Kenya's independence he has never seen a drought like this.
"If I was young I would go to look for cash work. I am old. I may just die with my animals."
Across East Africa an extraordinary drought is drying up rivers, and grasslands, scorching crops and threatening millions of people with starvation. In Kenya, the biggest and most robust economy in the region, the rivers that feed its great game reserves have run dry and since the country relies on hydropower, electricity is now rationed in the cities.
And yet, it is in the semi-desert on the southern fringe of the Sahel zone where the most dramatic changes are being felt. Droughts are nothing new here and the nomadic way of life where herders follow patchy rains across the seasons developed centuries ago as a response to precarious natural resources. The herds of cattle, sheep, goats and camels – which are venerated by the nomads – were built up in the good years to pad the margins of life when the rains failed. But this way of life is being overwhelmed, even the camels are dying of thirst.
Article: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/the-great-drought-disaste...
dracula investing/cevelopping SOLAR energy!
it's like playing with fire!
Oh, people can come up with statistics to prove anything, Kent. 14% of people know that.
REMEMBER: cannot be turned OFF after ignition :(
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Jervis
I-Bomb it's a russian invention.
Remember WWII - Kursk Tanks Battle
The main ideea is: MUG is stronger than HI-TECH TANKS!
And for mug..you'll need RAIN!
Simple, huh?
how i can delete a previous post? :P
Dear Count..
HAARP has been around since the early 1990's - Secretly ofcourse :O)
a cheap solution: Iode Bomb!
The main problem: cannot be turned OFF after ignition :(
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An expensive solution: HAARP technology!
The main problem: it's secret! :)
lol, MD!
This was my job in Bamberg!
Free Solar Engergy!
But , if the land is not sustainable, then what do we do ?
Brit, they could use fuel cells. They win H from the atmosphere with electricity generated by silicon solar cells. The H feeds the fuel cell, which produces electricity and perfectly clean water on the exhaust side. It's basically a one-time investment, it's clean and can run until the sun explodes.
I too am interested, so It would be good to know your findings..
Jervis: the problem is that this has been going on for years and we still haven't taken any concrete steps to address the issues.
As i said earlier, "Mass Migration" is an alternative. People would not be happym but it is one idea being floated as weather patterns change and water becomes a comodity. Not only in Afric , but Asia also.
Its a serious issue for Kenyans. Rain and crops decides the price of essentials. Poor becoming poorer day by day.
Kibaki and Raila should stop playing group games and do something to resolve the issue once and forever
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- Listen to Many...Speak to a Few -
Brit, Im actually doing research on this cause Im fed up of the situation. I dont know much right now but I really believe its the way to go. Will let you know what my research turns up.
--------Do I look like Bambi's sister???-------
What type of technology do you think would help ?
Fully agree with jervis. Thats the crux of the matter.
--------Do I look like Bambi's sister???-------
I disagree. I think we've gone too far down the route of just doing things our way and we should learn to embrace the technological advances that might be more costly but more sustainable. I really wish we'd stop taking short cuts...
Re-locate to where? I dont know of a single part of the country thats not hard hit. Temporary solution yes but Im sure it will end up causing more issues unless planned really well. There are already so many IDP's from the last elections violence. Add that to the refugees we have from Somalia and Ethiopia and its a settlement crisis already happening.
Technology please!
--------Do I look like Bambi's sister???-------
Technology is not neccessarily the answer, but a long term plan including perhaps building of irrigation canals may be the answer.
Another route often discussed is "relocating" communities to other parts of the country.
In my ancetsral home, central Kenya, farmers have not harvested crops for four seasons now. Things are really bad.
In my opinion, the only way forward is through innovation in technology that will somehow turn things for the better. If our leaders could take their fingers out of their *uhem behave Labda* wallets for a minute, and look at ways of using the global experts in innovative technology to help combat this crisis, we'd go a long way. But what use will technology be with poor leadership :(
--------Do I look like Bambi's sister???-------