Lobby group urges state to probe encroachment of Lamu water tower

Lamu youth protest in Shela /HANDOUT

A lobby group has written to state agencies for immediate investigation into alleged illegal encroachment on the Shela water catchment area in Lamu County.

Shela Youth and Community Representatives claim some powerful grabbers have started illegal developments on the protected land.

The youths have petitioned the National Land Commission, Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja, Deputy Inspector General Eliud Lagat and Director of Criminal Investigations Mohamed Amin.

“We, the Shela youth, elders, business owners and the majority of the Shela community, write to your office to raise urgent concern regarding ongoing illegal activities taking place on Shela Beach and within the Shela water catchment area,” the petition to IG Kanja reads.

In the letter dated August 28, the group asked the agencies to investigate illegal allocations and construction within the catchment area, suspend and halt ongoing development and fencing until the legality of land claims is properly determined and ensure enforcement of protections, including revocation of irregular titles and upholding of gazette notices in court.

In recent months, the group said fencing and construction works have started on land legally designated as a protected water catchment and national monument under Kenya Gazette Notice No 1933 of March 28, 2002, warning that these activities directly threaten the environment and public welfare.

The Shela and Lamu water catchment is the sole source of freshwater for about 50,000 residents of Lamu Island and parts of Manda Island, with this number steadily increasing as new households and businesses settle inland.

“The aquifer sustains households, businesses, schools and health facilities. It is ecologically critical not only for water supply but also as a nesting ground for endangered species along the beach and dunes,” the group staged a demonstration last week said.

“The risk is not theoretical. If development proceeds on the dunes and beachfront, Lamu stands to lose its only natural aquifer, triggering a water crisis of unprecedented scale.”

The group warned that once the precedent of illegal allocation and construction is set, the damage will be irreversible. It said future enforcement will be ineffective, the aquifer may collapse, and the livelihoods of more than 50,000 people will be permanently compromised in exchange for short-term private economic gain.

“Despite the area’s protected status, politicians and outside investors have begun to demarcate and fence off sections of the dunes, citing irregularly issued title deeds," the group said.

"While some of these titles were previously revoked by Gazette Notice No 5564 of May 21, 2010, enforcement has been inadequate and encroachment persists. Reports also indicate past fraudulent allocations, where local councillors used elders to sign documents later exploited for speculative land sales.”

While desalination plants could, in theory, offer an alternative water source, they require enormous financial investment and significant energy inputs the group emphasised.

“Considering the current state of infrastructure in Lamu and the wider region, the upkeep and maintenance of such a facility would be unstable and unsustainable," the group says.

"Protection of the Shela aquifer is therefore not only the most cost-effective solution but the only viable long-term safeguard for Lamu’s water security. This is not merely a Shela issue; it is a matter of island-wide survival. If this aquifer is compromised, there will be no realistic or sustainable alternative source of water for the people of Lamu.”