Abstract
Abstract Several urban centres of different sizes have developed over time, and continue to grow, within the basin of Lake Victoria. Uncontrolled urban development, especially along the lake shore, puts environmental pressure on Lake Victoria and its local ecosystem. This study sought to monitor the extent and impacts of urban development (as measured by population growth and built-up land use/land cover) in the Lake Victoria basin, Kenya, between 1978 and 2018. Remote sensing and GIS-based land use/land cover classification was conducted to extract change in built-up areas from Landsat 3, 4, 5 and 8 satellite imagery obtained for the month of January at intervals of ten years. Change in population distribution and density was analysed based on decadal census data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics between 1979 and 2019. A statistical regression model was then estimated to relate population growth to built-up area expansion. Results indicate that the basin’s built-up area has expanded by 97% between 1978 and 2018 while the population increased by 140% between 1979 and 2019. Urban development was attributed to the rapidly increasing population in the area as seen in a positive statistical correlation (R2=0.5744) between increase in built-up area and population growth. The resulting environmental pressure on the local ecosystem has been documented mainly in terms of degradation of lake water quality, eutrophication and aquatic biodiversity loss. The study recommends the enactment and implementation of appropriate eco-sensitive local legislation and policies for sustainable urban and rural land use planning in the area. This should aim to control and regulate urban expansion especially in the immediate shoreline areas of the lake and associated riparian zones.
Highlights
A landscape region that drains water to an explicit water body such as a river, lake or wetland is called a watershed (FLOTEMERSCH ET AL., 2016)
Remote sensing and GIS-based land use/land cover classification was conducted to extract change in built-up areas from Landsat 3, 4, 5 and 8 satellite imagery obtained for the month of January at intervals of ten years
JUMA ET AL., (2014) considered that rapid population growth and economic development are the major drivers of urban expansion in the entire Lake Victoria Basin
Summary
A landscape region that drains water to an explicit water body such as a river, lake or wetland is called a watershed (FLOTEMERSCH ET AL., 2016). The interactions of geomorphological elements contribute to the flow of water in a watershed (YU & DUFFY, 2018). Watersheds are important systems that provide essential life-supporting ecological goods and services including provision of water, fuel wood, food and material cycling, among others (TOGNETTI ET AL., 2017). The most essential functions of watersheds are the regulation of water chemistry, hydrology, sediment regime and temperature, alongside habitat provision (USEPA, 2012; EDWARDS ET AL., 2015). The ability of watersheds to provide these services is heavily influenced by natural advancement in remote sensing and geographic and human pressures (WALKER & SALT, 2012). One information systems (GIS) technologies revolutionized of the greatest anthropogenic pressures affecting urban studies, with the availability of improved watersheds around the world is urbanization.
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