Sustainable Water & NRM

Sustainable Water and Natural Resource Management

This component is designed to improve the sustainable utilization of water and other natural resources, mainly using community groups including the WRUAs and the CFAs. The outputs are:

• Water resources of the Upper Tana catchment sustainably managed; and
• Sustainably managed forest and agricultural ecosystems.

The outputs are achieved through two sub-components namely;

Sustainable Water Resources

The activities address;

• Sustainable management of water resources- Support for implementation of SCMPs through grants to WRUA’s through WSTF and technical advice from WRMA.
• Community water development and management; improving access to the water resources for domestic uses
• Water-saving irrigation technologies: emphasis on improving irrigation efficiency by use of controlled intake structures, pipes and lined canals to reduce wastage.
• Remedial works at environmental hotspots: This targets hotspots that contribute to silt loads and pollution to water. The project target specific problem areas such as road embankments, borrow pits, quarries, denuded hilltops, coffee processing plants, eroding riverbanks, wetlands, springs and urban waste disposal facilities.

Sustainable management of forest and agricultural ecosystems

The activities address:

• Rehabilitation of degraded forest reserves: Activities include capacity building of community groups in Participatory Forest Management, seedling production, enrichment planting of degraded forests, and the rehabilitation of degraded forest areas.
• Efficient use of fuel wood: This includes fuel efficient stoves, biogas generators and charcoal kilns through matching grants, together with training in the manufacture and use of such equipment.
• Human-wildlife conflict: Construction of solar powered wildlife control barriers in Mt Kenya.
• Soil and water conservation on farm lands: This is implemented through matching grants (30% beneficiaries and 70% Project).