Atlas of Mt. Elgon Atlas of Mt. Elgon Copyright © 2015 by the African Collaborative Centre for Earth System Science and the IUCN Eastern and Southern Africa Regional Programme This publication may be reproduced in whole or in part and in any form for educa- tional or non-profit purposes without special permission from the copyright holder, provided acknowledgment of the source is made. No use of this publication may be made for resale or for any other commercial purpose whatsoever without the prior permission in writing from the African Collaborative Centre for Earth System Science and the IUCN Eastern and Southern Africa Regional Programme. Copyright for certain images remains with original copyright holders as indicated in the Acknowledgments. Disclaimer The colors, boundaries, denominations, and classifications in this report do not imply, on the part of United States Agency for International Development, the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the African Collaborative Centre for Earth System Science or the Lake Victoria Basin Commission any judgment on the legal or other status of any territory, or any endorsement or acceptance of any boundary. Maps are not to be used for navigation. Data Access and Questions For access to the GIS files and maps referred to in this report or for any questions and/or clarifications, please write to ACCESS at [email protected]. Recommended citation ACCESS (2015) Atlas of Mt. Elgon. Prepared by African Collaborative Centre for Earth System Science (ACCESS). Authors: Thomas J. Ballatore and Lydia Olaka. Edited by Eric Odada and Daniel Olago. Published by USAID/IUCN. 54p. Contents Preface ..........................................6 Overview Maps Mt. Elgon in East Africa .............. 10 Satellite....................................... 12 Physical ....................................... 14 Political ....................................... 16 Thematic Maps Geology ......................................20 Soil .............................................. 22 Topography .................................24 Vegetation ..................................26 Surface Water .............................28 Temperature ...............................30 Precipitation ............................... 32 Protected Areas ..........................34 Population ...................................36 Roads and Fires ........................... 38 Special Topics Land Cover Change .....................42 Climate Change ...........................44 Landslide Risk .............................46 End Matter Acknowledgments ......................48 Preface ount Elgon is a transboundary the montane environment, leading Mecosystem shared between Ken- to increased risks of hazards such as ya and Uganda. With the peak of the landslides, water shortages, water pol- mountain at 4,320 m above sea level, lution, and biodiversity loss. Climate it is the seventh highest mountain in change projections indicate that the Africa. It is an important watershed montane ecosystem will experience in the eastern Africa region, providing further stress in the long term through ecosystems goods and services directly changes in temperature and precipita- to those who live on its slopes, as well tion, and indicate that adaptation and as to others far afield, including in mitigation actions need to be initiated the Nile basin, primarily through its now in order to build the resilience of river network. Some of its rivers feed, both the natural and human commu- for example, the River Nile, through nities and their associated natural and the Kyoga aquatic system and Lake socio-economic systems, respectively, Victoria. The mountain boasts of so as to sustain benefits from the nat- a National Park both in Kenya and ural systems and the well-being of the Uganda, and is an important biodiver- people even under long-term climate sity resource. Studies so far conducted change related stresses. on the mountain ecosystems indicate that it is undergoing changes that are The Atlas of Mt. Elgon has been likely due to complex climate-land produced to provide easy to assimilate interactions and climate change. Com- yet powerful evidence of the changes munities have reported higher tem- that are taking place on the mountain peratures and more erratic, variable as a consequence of global warming, and intense rainfall accompanied by climate change and other actions that changes in the onset and cessation of may be attributed to human activities. rainy seasons, as well as changes in the The Atlas draws from information and distribution of rains within the season. data that were produced during the In addition, increasing human pressure USAID/IUCN project on “Imple- due to growing settlements, farms, and menting a Resilience Framework to use of timber resources is degrading Support Climate Change Adaptation in the Mount Elgon Region of the human activities; providing an evi- Lake Victoria Basin” carried out from dence base to support actions geared 2012 to 2015. This project was imple- towards preparedness for a changing mented by IUCN in collaboration future in the Mount Elgon region with the African Collaborative Centre including the adoption of adaptation for Earth System Science based at strategies which mainstream ecosys- the University of Nairobi, the Lake tem services, economic diversification, Victoria Basin Commission and the adaptive management, and learning in Global Water Partnership in Eastern water and land management; influenc- Africa, with financial support from the ing regional policy frameworks to United States Agency for Internation- better utilise systems approaches for al Development (USAID). building climate resilience and inte- grating these approaches across It is our hope that this Atlas conveys sectors and into poverty reduction information that can be put to good strategies and national development use in many different ways, including: plans; and, enhancing learning from providing scientific evidence to policy local to regional levels through better makers, practitioners, and communi- access to information, networking, ties on the changes taking place as a capacity building and leadership consequence of climate change and development. Mr. Luther Bois Anukur Prof. Eric Odada Regional Director, IUCN African Collaborative Centre Eastern and Southern Africa, for Earth System Science, Regional office University of Nairobi Overview Maps Mt. Elgon in East Africa .............. 10 Satellite....................................... 12 Physical ....................................... 14 Political ....................................... 16 Mount Elgon is colossal by al- most any measure. At its highest, Wagagai Peak (4,321 m), it rises far above anything in the surrounding terrain. And while it may be lower than the better known Kilimanjaro, the shield of Mt. Elgon is an as- tounding ~75 km in breadth—mak- ing it approximately 10 times wider than Mt. Everest! The following overview maps set Mt. Elgon in its regional context and put on display the rich variety of physical and political features one would expect of this beautiful, sleeping giant. 30°0'0"E 32°0'0"E 34°0'0"E 36°0'0"E 38°0'0"E 40°0'0"E 42°0'0"E 10 Overview Maps Juba Admin. Boundary S N O U D A T H S U 4°0'0"N 4°N 4°0'0"N e il N e it h W Gulu DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC of 2°0'0"N 2°N U G A N D A 2°0'0"N t r CONGO e lb A L. L.Kyoga MOUNT 4321m Mbale + Kitale V i c t ELGON o r i a N i l e I R Jinja O la Z Kampala Ya N E W R 0°0'0" 0°N 0°0'0" Kisumu d ar w d E Mbarara Lake Victoria Goma Kivu RWANDA 2°0'0"S 2°S Kigali 2°0'0"S a r e g a K Mwanza BURUNDI Bujumbura si ya L.E T TANZANIA a n 4°0'0"S 4°S g 4°0'0"S a n y i k a 30°E 32°E 34°E 30°0'0"E 32°0'0"E 34°0'0"E 36°0'0"E 38°0'0"E 40°0'0"E 42°0'0"E 30°0'0"E 32°0'0"E 34°0'0"E 36°0'0"E 38°0'0"E 40°0'0"E 42°0'0"E Mt. Elgon in East Africa 11 E T A H I O P I 4°0'0"N 4°N 4°0'0"N Lake Turkana A I L 2°0'0"N U G A N D A 2°N 2°0'0"N A M O W e b i J u S b Kitale b a KENYA E M T. K N YA 0°0'0" A 0°N 0°0'0" B E + R 5199m Tana Nakuru D A R E Garissa R A N G E Nairobi 2°0'0"S 2°S 2°0'0"S Lamu lena K Ga I + L 5895m IM A N JA INDIAN RO OCEAN 4°0'0"S Mombasa 4°S 4°0'0"S EQUIRECTANGULAR PROJECTION – WGS84 SCALE 1:4,000,000 1 CM = 40 KM 0 202.5 405 8010 12015 16020 km 36°E 38°E 40°E 30°0'0"E 32°0'0"E 34°0'0"E 36°0'0"E 38°0'0"E 40°0'0"E 42°0'0"E 34°0'0"E 34°15'0"E 34°30'0"E 34°45'0"E 35°0'0"E 35°15'0"E 12 Overview Maps 1°30'0"N 1°30´N 1°30'0"N 1°15'0"N 1°15´N 1°15'0"N 1°0'0"N 1°N 1°0'0"N This satellite image of Mt. Elgon and its surroundings is a composite of several Landsat 7 scenes centered on 16 March 2015. It shows the great diversity of land cover types in the region ranging from the afromontane rainforests and alpine vegetation high on the mountain, to the surrounding cropland and urban areas at lower 0°45'0"N 0°45´E elevations, along with deforested 0°45'0"N zones at mid-elevations. Seasonal biomass burning on the mountain can be seen as orange fires with light, smoky plumes. 34°E 34°15´E 34°30´E 34°0'0"E 34°15'0"E 34°30'0"E 34°45'0"E 35°0'0"E 35°15'0"E 34°0'0"E 34°15'0"E 34°30'0"E 34°45'0"E 35°0'0"E 35°15'0"E Satellite 13 A D N GA U YA EN K 1°30'0"N 1°30´N 1°30'0"N 1°15'0"N 1°15´N 1°15'0"N 1°0'0"N 1°N 1°0'0"N 0°45'0"N 0°15´N 0°45'0"N EQUIRECTANGULAR PROJECTION – WGS84 SCALE 1:400,000 1 CM = 4 KM 0 2 2.5 54 1 80 1125 2160 km 34°45´E 35°E 34°0'0"E 34°15'0"E 34°30'0"E 34°45'0"E 35°0'0"E 35°15'0"E 34°0'0"E 34°15'0"E 34°30'0"E 34°45'0"E 35°0'0"E 35°15'0"E 14 Overview Maps L.