Drive to save Lake Victoria from plastics threat kicks off
By KNA, April 6, 2023Several organisations have come together to clean up Lake Victoria.
Led by Osiepe Sango (Friends of Lake Victoria), the exercise aims to remove plastics and other waste.
Osiepe Sango director Millicent Olal said the efforts were geared towards restoring the lake’s former glory following years of neglect and pollution.
Plastic pollution, she said, threatened the survival of the lake posing a danger to human beings and aquatic life. She said plastics in the lake are broken down into micro plastics which are ingested by fish.
“Since we all eat fish we end up consuming this substance which is harmful to our health,” she said.
The livelihoods of over 14 million people who directly depend on the lake, she added, were threatened due to the plastics menace.
The cleanup was launched by Kisumu Governor Anyang Nyong’o at Nanga area. During the launch, tonnes of plastics were removed from River Wigwa which drains into L Victoria.
Osiepe Sango, she added, had partnered with the Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute, Grand Royal Swiss Hotel, Water Bus, Wildlife Parks of Kenya, Amazon, Friends of Dunga Swamp among other organisations to scale up the cleanup to other parts of the lake.
“We have started here today but this drive is going to be extended to Dunga Beach and other beaches to ensure that we restore the lake,” she said.