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Post by bixaorellana on Sept 8, 2009 16:38:49 GMT
A land renowned for its natural beauty, rich agriculture, and herds of wild and domesticated animals is reeling from drought and poor government response. Stories, video, and photographs here.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 8, 2009 18:58:02 GMT
And meanwhile, Senegal, Guinea-Bissau and several of the neighboring countries in the west are suffering from the worst floods in history.
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Post by bixaorellana on Sept 8, 2009 19:13:49 GMT
Which, with horrible irony, could be a side effect of drought:
The last paragraph in the linked article:
Meteorologists predict rains will be coming by October, and they may even bring the other extreme from present conditions. Another El Niño cycle is forecast, which after years of drought and earth baked to a rock-hard crust could bring the opposite problem: floods.
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Post by bixaorellana on Nov 15, 2009 22:31:05 GMT
More on this topic. Click on picture. (x-posted here)
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Post by bixaorellana on Apr 20, 2010 18:18:52 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Apr 27, 2010 18:42:29 GMT
Meanwhile, all of the fresh green beans of Europe (and some other vegetables) are flown in from Kenya until summer arrives. During the recent flight ban, Kenya lost a fortune.
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Post by bixaorellana on Apr 27, 2010 20:33:45 GMT
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 10, 2010 18:30:48 GMT
Here is a travel article from this morning's NYTimes online. Click on the text to read the full article. CrescentIsland ... was created when the nearby Mount Longonot erupted, creating the crater on which the island now sits. It has grown in size because of the drastic reduction in Lake Naivasha’s water level, caused both by drought and the drainage of the lake by more than 100 flower farms. ... ... Crescent Island rivals any zoo for diversity: zebras, impalas, giraffes, wildebeests, gazelles, waterbucks, antelopes, dik-diks, steenboks, buffaloes and several other types of animals populate the island. And because there are no predators, fences or cars, visitors can walk freely among the animals.Lake Naivasha, at the heart of the Great Rift Valley in Kenya. Matt Fletcher
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Post by bjd on Jul 10, 2010 19:38:25 GMT
I stayed at that Fisherman's Lodge in 2003, so it can't really be said nobody knows about the place. There were almost no tourists. With my son, who had been working in Kenya, and a German girl, we went to Crater Lake -- by matatu and then on foot for about 5 km. It's a small, very green, lake in a volcano. The park there was completely empty of tourists and we walked around seeing zebras and giraffes. It was wonderful. In the evening we went for a beer at a bar on the shore of Lake Naivasha and indeed you were supposed to be careful because of the hippos. You can't see Lake Naivasha from the road coming from the town of Naivasha because of all the flower farms/greenhouses. Already at the time there was talk of water levels having gone down a lot.
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Post by spindrift on Jul 19, 2010 18:44:08 GMT
When I lived in Kenya (1976-1978) we often camped on the shores of Lake Naivasha and bought provisions in Naivasha town. There were no flower farms and greenhouses in Naivasha at that time. I went back with my family during the late 1980s (still no flower farms) and stayed in a lakeside hotel that extended over the (then receding) lake. I love, just love, Naivasha.
I wonder how much of the lake is left now.
And Lake Nakuru? Anyone know?
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