DevelopmentFeature

Nature takes revenge

The recent spate of load shedding by the Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi (Escom) is a direct effect of human destruction of the environment, EPHRAIM NYONDO writes. Could this moment be a silver lining to our romantic approach to managing the environment?

The Shire River is drying up due to silting resulting from deforestation
The Shire River is drying up due to silting resulting from deforestation

August has never been a cruel month that dries up rivers in Malawi. It is always September, October and November that symbolise a triangle of cruelty to rivers.

But this year, August, despite being windy, appears to have joined the triangle. Rivers are turning shallow, wider and some, have already dried up.

Of course, it is not a national concern when other rivers become shallow or dry up—or simply put, when their water levels become low. But when it is Shire River that gets its water levels low, we all know that the country is up for a tragedy.

In fact, Malawi is now living that tragedy.

Escom has already warned of ‘frequent and prolonged’ blackouts due to reduced water levels in Lake Malawi and its sole outlet Shire River, the major source of water for hydro electricity generation in the country.

In response to these blackouts, Consumers Association of Malawi (Cama) executive director John Kapito wants Escom to come out clean to explain if the blackouts are not sabotage to the current Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) administration. His reasoning is premised from the fact that blackouts were fewer during the reign of Joyce Banda’s People Party (PP).

Surely, Kapito has not been to Shire River recently.

Water levels in the river are pathetically low. From a distance, if you are passing at Zalewa Roadblock in Neno and Liwonde Barrage in Machinga, the sight of sand protruding from what is supposed to be Shire River’s deep area is quite disturbing. The protruding chain of sand is a potent symbol of the river’s shallowness—and this is bad news for electricity generation in the country.

“We are witnessing an environmental disaster—a complete disaster,” says Ben Botolo, principal secretary responsible for energy and mining in the Ministry of Natural Resource, Energy and Mining.

But this is a disaster that is not getting us off guard.

“It is a human-induced disaster,” explains Botolo, adding: “Our actions have disturbed the weather and climate patterns—something that has led to climate change, in the process, altering rainfall patterns.”

Though low water levels in the country’s water bodies could be attributed to the larger problem of climate change, the silting in Shire River, experts note, results from wanton cutting down of trees and also increased poor farming practices in the river’s catchment area.

With about 85 percent of the total energy supply in the country in form of traditional biomass energy, government response to wanton cutting down of trees for firewood and production of charcoal has been quite romantic.

It is illegal, according to Malawi’s environmental and forestry laws, for any person to produce charcoal without a license. Implementation of these laws, however, has remained loose.

Arguably, the resultant environmental degradation and deforestation, which in turn has adversely affected hydropower generation, could be linked to government’s failure to implement the laws that safeguard the environment from human encroachment.

Dzalanyama Forest Reserve in Mchinji, Lilongwe and Dedza districts could be a case in point.

The 93 000 hectare reserve—which is a catchment area for Lilongwe River which provides water to Lilongwe City—is facing disastrous encroachment and a recent study revealed that if left unattended to, it would extinct in the next nine years.

For years, government left the reserve unguarded to the privilege of encroachers who have terrorised with stead and ease. During a recent tour to the reserve, Natural Resources, Energy and Mining Minister Bright Msaka could hardly believe it when senior forestry officials narrated to him how they got chased by encroachers and how all the guard houses in the reserves were torched.

“You mean local people torched government houses and you did nothing? Then why were you employed? You allowed all this happen? No, this can’t be true,” said the visibly angry and irritated Msaka.

You would, of course, share Msaka’s fury. However, due to increased reduction of funding, the forestry department was left with few unarmed and poorly paid guards to patrol a 93 000 hectare reserve.

In fact, says Kosaku Onaka—adviser for forest conservation management in the department of forestry, under a Jica-funded programme—the department could not even have fuel to conduct patrols.

Today, courtesy of the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (Jica) funded programme, awareness of Dzalanyama has gone far and wide and early this year, government engaged the Malawi Defence Force (MDF) to take up patrol of the reserve.

“We appreciate their role,” says Msaka of the MDF, adding: “We also understand that they are inadequate.” It is a platoon of 35 to 40 soldiers.

However, as a long-term strategy, Msaka says plans are at an advanced stage to bring animals into the forest and also engaging in Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) so that some portions of the forest should be managed by certain interested individuals and companies.

He added that soon they will train more forest guards and arm them with guns—something President Peter Mutharika has already endorsed.

Beyond that, Msaka challenged forestry officials to immediately stop the ‘lawlessness’ in Dzalanyama insisting: “I will be back in 30 days to see progress.”

Admittedly, Msaka’s approach in calling for strict implementation of environmental and forestry laws does offer a tinge of hope. In fact, his stance ushers in a new hope of reversing nature.

However, talk—as the Greeks discovered before the birth of Jesus Christ—is cheap. The onus is on walking the talk, something that has barely been part of most Malawians.

Perhaps the recent blackouts would be a turning point—one that will help every Malawi to reconsider his or her position towards safeguarding the environment. But as the country awaits that, the blackouts will continue—the revenge of the destroyed nature. Welcome to new August.n

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