Chalbi: Why this awe-inspiring desert now threatens the North

But before it could fully claim a position on the country’s list of must-visit locations, there comes a warning.

Environmentalists warn that timely interventions and management approaches are needed to prevent and reverse continuing desertification in northern Kenya.

Environment Chief Administrative Secretary Mohammed Elmi called for collaborative efforts from all stakeholders to prevent desertification.

He spoke on behalf of Cabinet Secretary Keriako Tobiko during the commemoration of the World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought in Korolle, Loiyangalani in Marsabit County.

Act in time

“If we don’t act in time, the Chalbi Desert might escalate beyond manageable proportions in the northern and north eastern parts of this nation,” he said.

He warned that if no timely interventions are implemented in curbing the rapid spreading of the Chalbi Desert, its expansion might not be controlled.

So bad is the situation that some sand dunes from the area were recently shifted by the winds to as far away as Mandera, Wajir and Garissa counties.

This is because there is no vegetation cover to reduce the speed of such winds.

Mr Elmi observed that effective prevention of desertification required local management approaches that would promote the sustainability of ecosystems.

He noted that much efforts focused on prevention rather than attempts to rehabilitate already desertified areas, which are comparatively costly and tend to deliver limited results.

Addressing desertification in northern Kenya, especially in Marsabit County, was critical in meeting the Millennium Development Goals, he said.

Preventing desertification

Environmental watchdog Nema Director Mamo Boru, for his part, observed that integrated land and water management are key methods of preventing desertification.

All measures that protect soil from erosion, salinisation and other degradation forms would go a long way in effectively preventing desertification in the region, he added.

Sustainable land use, he said, could also address activities such as overgrazing, overexploitation of plants and adopting irrigation practices.

He cited over 200 acres of land that had been rehabilitated and irrigated and became productive in Kalacha Location.

Nema board of directors chairperson, John Konchella, also commended the management strategies that included measures to spread pressures of human activities such as rotational use of rangelands, and stocking rates matched to the carrying capacity of the ecosystems in the region.

True desert

Chalbi is the only area in the east and central Africa that offers what can be categorised as a true desert.

Located east of Lake Turkana, Chalbi is the largest permanent lake desert in the world and is believed to be the hottest and most arid region in Kenya.

Lake Turkana, the world’s largest permanent and alkaline lake, is believed to have been part of Chalbi Desert before it dried up 100 years ago.

Chalbi, locals say, means a piece of land that is bare and salty or a salty lake, believed to have been a lake that dried up millions of years ago.

The desert covers an expansive 100,000-square-kilometre area.

Conservationists have recently observed that the area covered by the desert might have been comparatively smaller in the past.

Destruction of vegetation

It expanded due to the continuing extensive destruction of the neighbouring vegetation cover by the locals.

The desert borders Mt Kulal, Huri Hills and Forole Hills and spreads to the Ethiopia-Kenya border.

The western part is home to the Rendille while the eastern part, towards the Ethiopian border, is home to the Gabbra community in North Horr and Kalacha.

Surrounded by volcanoes and ancient lava flows, the Chalbi Desert is one of the hottest and most arid places in Kenya.

It is home to guinea fowls, oryxes, antelopes, ostriches and even the endangered Grevy’s zebras.

No distinct temperature

The Chalbi Desert does not have distinct temperature conditions. It has a semi-arid kind of climate.

February is the warmest month in the Chalbi, with temperatures shooting up to 40 degrees Celsius, while July is the coldest with temperatures dropping as low as 18 degrees.

Temperatures drop sharply at night. It can get chilly in this desert.

There are huge salt pans ranging from extremely fine to very coarse and dry baked earth strewn all over.

The towering dunes that began forming back in 2015 have become the emblem of the Chalbi Desert that attract tourists who visit the region.

It also has pans of salt that are used by pastoralists as a salt lick.

Ecotourism attraction

The desert has in the last three years gained admiration for being one of the most enchanted and pristine ecotourism attraction, drawing lovers of nature and adventure.

Indeed, if well-publicised and maintained, it will offer an alternative tourist destination away from conventional tourism circuits as it still largely remains unexplored.

It is one of the most breath-taking natural features and best-known natural landmarks of symbolic stature in northern Kenya.

Contrastingly, it has a gorgeous area with oases covered with groves of palm trees that attract wildlife on its northern edges.

The oases are used by the Gabbra communities for watering their camels and small stocks.

Irrigation scheme

A pilot irrigation scheme undertaken by the national government through the funding of the African Development Bank in 2018 on 20 hectares established that farming is also viable in the area.

The site characterisation of the Kalacha scheme and surveys done proved that the mountains and oases of northern Kenya have great potential to contribute to the national economy.

The scheme members harvested 1,800 bales of hay in 2018, sold 1,300 at Sh500 each, raking profits of Sh800,000 as the remaining 500 bales are stored awaiting buyers.

They have also been planning on how to diversify farming activities from pasture production alone to introducing high-value crops such as Irish potatoes, kales, spinach, carrots and cabbages.

Harness strong wind

Researchers have also found that the strong wind in the desert can be harnessed into electricity and the exportation of salt licks to create employment for local youths.

However, the greatest concern for environmentalists is that if the rapid expansion of the desert goes unchecked, it could end up affecting even arable lands in the northern and north eastern parts of Kenya.

That is why accelerated efforts have been deployed to have residents embrace desert rehabilitation and reclamation technologies such as massive tree planting and even irrigation.

The best time to visit the Chalbi Desert is during the dry seasons, from July to October and in January and February.

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