Key role of water catchment areas in agricultural production

A woman draws water at a tank which is part of the Masue Rock Water Catchment project in Makueni County on April 13, 2023. [Philip Muasya, Standard]

Water catchment areas act as magnets and land reservoirs capturing and filtering rainwater that ultimately finds its way to our streams, rivers, dams and underground aquifers which store this water for use in the dry periods.

As climate change speeds up and water scarcity becomes a crisis, the role of water catchment areas in national development has never been more evident.

Globally, four billion people face water scarcity for at least a month in a year and since 1970, freshwater species have declined by 84 per cent according to Climate Change Action in the Water Sector in Kenya 2021 report.

In Kenya, the situation is worse, water availability is expected to drop to 230 cubic meters per person per annum by 2025 due to climate change and overuse of forest resources.

As of 2010, Kenya had about seven to eight million acres of land under agriculture but only 345,000 acres (five per cent) of that was under irrigation.

This has the potential to more than double by 2030 and as such there is significant potential to increase acreage under irrigated agriculture in Kenya.

Hence, the a need for water catchment areas protection and conservation as they become crucial tools for water management, ecosystem conservation and community support.

The Kenya 2019-2029 Agricultural Transformation and Growth Strategy envisions the expansion of irrigation infrastructure to cover 150,000 acres through rehabilitating existing dams and creating new large-scale farms.

This will however only be possible if we also focus on the preservation of water catchment areas in our quest to increase agricultural productivity.

Beyond agriculture, water catchment areas address climate-induced challenges. The increasing frequency and severity of droughts highlight the need for rainwater storage solutions to reduce crop failure and increase agricultural resilience. They also conserve biodiversity by preserving local ecosystems and preventing soil erosion.

Pillar nine of the Kenya 2019-2029 Agricultural Transformation and Growth Strategy focuses on Sustainability and Crisis Management by actively monitoring two key food system risks.

These key risks include sustainable and climate-smart natural resource management, including sustainable irrigation and water basin health, soil quality and land use, and crisis management for pests, diseases, climate and global price shocks.

Land policy

To manage these risks, focusing on sustainable irrigation and water basin health are crucial factors towards the efforts to fill up dams and other reservoirs for irrigation. However, filling up dams takes sacrifices that may not be visible to all, such as ensuring that the water catchment zones must be left undisturbed to fill the dams.

National development stakeholders including land policy formulators must work to ensure the ecosystem is conserved in a productive and hopefully profitable manner through our livestock operations.

In Athi River water catchment basin, agribusiness firm Kakuzi Plc is a good example of water catchment conservation for agricultural production. On its nearly 14,000 hectares of land, the firm uses 4,000 hectares of water catchment areas to feed its 19 dams.

To maintain these catchments at an optimum level for harvesting rainwater, the firm grazes livestock and grows pasture for animal feed. 

Conservation and preservation of such water catchment areas becomes imperative to facilitative sustainable irrigation of its avocado, macadamia and blueberry orchards.

The water in these dams is used to sustainably meet the heavy watering needs of the plants and livestock.

In areas where water catchment areas are under stress, best practices in reservoir management are key to ecological health. Riparian zones around water bodies are critical to maintaining ecological balance.

They act as natural buffers, filter pollutants, reduce soil erosion and provide habitat for diverse species. Guidelines recommend that at least 30 per cent of riparian zones around reservoirs be preserved to protect these functions.

Including biodiversity in reservoir management plans further improves ecological outcomes. Reservoirs managed for ecosystem services like wildlife corridors and invasive species management have higher biodiversity.

According to the Kenya Forest Service, reservoirs in Kenya’s Mau Forest have shown improved biodiversity when managed with conservation measures. The National Environmental Management Authority (Nema) advises integrating adaptive management practices like adjusting water levels based on ecological needs to maximise the ecological benefits of reservoirs.

As Kenya and the world face more environmental challenges, the role of land reservoirs in development becomes critical. By harvesting and storing water, catchment areas provide water for agriculture, support biodiversity conservation and improve the lives of communities.

- The writer is the executive head of corporate affairs at Kakuzi