Impact of development and management options on water resources of the upper Mara River Basin of Kenya

Abstract

This study employed the Water Evaluation and Planning model to evaluate selected policy-based water development and management options on water resources of the upper Mara Basin of Kenya. The major water resources of the region were identified and quantified to establish the current demand versus supply status. Data on domestic water consumption, agricultural demand and industrial consumption were collected through a rigorous fieldwork campaign and used to define the current state of water use and demand. The water resource model was calibrated and validated against observed discharges and subsequently used to simulate the selected policy-based options. Results indicate that an increase between 49% and 180%, depending on the assumed scenario, in annual water demand is expected by the year 2030. As a conclusion, the simulations demonstrate that there is both the need and significant potential to reduce the demand by implementing water conservation measures.