Over 100 tonnes of abandoned nets recovered in Lake Naivasha

Lake Naivasha has now been declared as safe for navigation and fishing following a three-day clean-up, in which over 100 tonnes of abandoned nets were recovered.

In Karagita only, estimated 40 tonnes were recovered, which was among the highest in the four landing beaches.

Naivasha subcounty fisheries officer Raymond Mwangata on Monday said the cleaning in the four landing beaches was successful and productive.

Fishing had been suspended for the three days to allow for the cleaning, which involved fishermen and the traders.

“We have managed to recover 104 tonnes of abandoned nets from the lake and this will now be an annual event,” he said.

Mwangata attributed the high number of the abandoned nets to the hyacinth weed that had covered nearly a third of the lake.

“The weed has been sweeping away nets worth thousands of shillings every week but we can now declare the lake as clean for navigation and fishing,” he said.

The fisheries officer added that they have introduced 10,000 fingerlings in the lake while the other 40,000 would be brought in the coming weeks.

He noted that they were working on enforcement, saying the number of illegal fishermen was on the rise.

“The only way we can make sure that these fingerlings survive is by making sure we sustain enforcement by intensifying our patrols,” he said.

Naivasha Boat Owners Association chairman David Kilo said the next phase of clean-up in the lake should target permanent structures in the water and on riparian land.

Kilo noted that the structures were posed a major threat to the ecosystem of the lake and boat operators.

“A couple of weeks ago, a boat carrying international tourists capsized after hitting an underground cable laid by one of the farms but luckily, no one was injured,” he said.

The honorary warden said that the association had raised issue with the proliferation of structures with Nema and they expect action to be taken.

“We are wondering what happened to the operation by the national government to demolish structures on riparian land,” he said.