KIRAGU: Use nature-based solutions to fight climate change

Climate change has been posing a major threat to our economy and the sustainability of the environment.

It has led to extreme weather events, including unpredictable rainfall, rise in temperature and droughts that have been taking longer than usual.

These extreme weather events have made our country a victim of food and water insecurity.

It is worth noting that our economy majorly depends on agricultural production. However, the current climate change that we have been experiencing has lowered agricultural production.

Farmers cannot know when to plant and when to wait for the onset of rainfall.

Extreme drought has also affected multiple communities that depend on livestock. We have heard reports of how their animals have died in large numbers.

This has been happening due to a lack of rainfall mostly as a result of climate change.

Due to this, Kenyans need to come up with robust solutions that can help to fight climate change, hence the use of nature-based solutions.

Some of these nature-based solutions include switching to vital agricultural practices such as crop rotation, planting more trees, allowing regrow of forests, and restoring coastal wetlands.

According to scientists, nature-based solutions can be used to fight climate change since they capture Carbon (IV) oxide from the air that is then sequestered into the plants and soils.

Consequently, these nature-based solutions provide other environmental benefits, such as cleaning and increasing biodiversity. Green gas emissions can also be prevented by conserving the existing wetlands.

Although these nature-based solutions can help to address climate change, they cannot happen independently.

It will therefore sound good if everyone takes part in using them. People should be encouraged to plant more trees and avoid deforestation.

Measures should also be put in place that will help to prevent the emission of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.

Our government should also enact policies that will ban all human activities that lead to the depletion of the ozone layer.

Lastly, public awareness is needed to educate Kenyans on actions that can lead to climate change.

Student at Maasai Mara University

Edited by Kiilu Damaris