ECOSYSTEM BASED ADAPTATION IN MOUNTAIN ELGON ECOSYSTEM MINISTRY OF WATER AND ENVIRONMENT BASELINE INFORMATION FOR THE ECOSYSTEM-BASED ADAPTATION IN MOUNT ELGON ECOSYSTEM PROJECT STRATEGY November 2012 Ecosystem Based Adaptation In Mountain Elgon Ecosystem Ecosystem Services for Human Sustainability i ECOSYSTEM BASED ADAPTATION IN MOUNTAIN ELGON ECOSYSTEM ii Ecosystem Services for Human Sustainability ECOSYSTEM BASED ADAPTATION IN MOUNTAIN ELGON ECOSYSTEM MINISTRY OF WATER AND ENVIRONMENT Baseline Information for the Ecosystem-based Adaptation in Mount Elgon Ecosystem Project Strategy With support from United Nations Development Programme November 2012 Ecosystem Services for Human Sustainability iii ECOSYSTEM BASED ADAPTATION IN MOUNTAIN ELGON ECOSYSTEM ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The consultancy team would like to thank UNDP-EBA for providing the financial resources that enabled the consultancy team travel to the districts of Bulambuli, Kapchorwa, Kween and Sironko to seek views from stakeholders in the Mount Elgon ecosystem. We especially thank Mr. Paul Nteza the EBA coordinating team leader and Mr. Henry Mukasa, EBA Field Coordinator. We thank all the personnel in the four districts with whom we had fruitful deliberations that culminated into this report. We especially appreciate the services of the district personnel in the following departments: forestry, environment, fisheries, community development, planning, Agriculture, veterinary and population. The Uganda Wildlife Authority team we met gave us a first insight into the Mt Elgon Nation park ecosystem and its relationship to the communities. The team would like to acknowledge the contribution of national level institutions e.g. NFA, MWE, NARO, NEMA, UNFF etc. for their insightful contributions. We also appreciate assistance from NaFORRI through staff time and means of transport to the four target districts and all the facilities we used to prepare this report. The team used the National Environmental Authority (NEMA) library and World agroforestry centre - AHI for some of the information that has been used in the write up, would like to thank the management of the said institutions. iv Ecosystem Services for Human Sustainability ECOSYSTEM BASED ADAPTATION IN MOUNTAIN ELGON ECOSYSTEM EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This report is an output of contractual obligations between UNDP-EBA Project and the National Forestry Resources Research Institute (NaFORRI). This consultancy sought to produce supporting and baseline information to enable the detailed design, monitoring and evaluation of the project’s strategy for promoting ecosystem based adaptation (EBA) to climate change in Mount Elgon region. The results are to be used by the project team to: a) to produce a project theory of change, EBA strategy and monitoring design; b) update the project results framework vis-a-vis baselines and targets c) inform the design and implementation of a separate consultancy to conduct a vulnerability impact assessment (VIA) and mapping of EBA options. Since the consultancy was meant to provide sufficient information to assist in the definition of the project strategy and actions in Mt Elgon region, the activities in this consultancy involved mostly rapid methods for data collection and assessments. Thus, the research activities were limited mainly to Mt Elgon ecosystem covering specifically four target districts of Sironko, Bulambuli, Kapchorwa and Kween. The methods used to generate and analyze data depended on the type of information. The various methods used in data generation included: Desk reviews of published case scenarios and best practices documented by organizations like IUCN and IUFRO, Consultative meetings with key stakeholders from the relevant districts and key national institutions. The natural resources departmental staff particularly: DFO, DEO, DAO and DNRC in each of the four districts were involved in group discussions. Amongst the prominent national institutions consulted through semi-structured interviews were; Makerere University, Wetlands Management Department, National Environment Management Authority (NEMA), Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA), National Forestry Authority (NFA) and the Climate Change Unit. Furthermore, lessons learnt from other mountainous regions enriched some activity outputs in this consultancy. Communities have been adapting to changes in their environment by alternating settlements, agricultural patterns, and other sectors of their economies and lifestyles. Adaptation has become very important in the prevailing environmental changes observed that are a result of climate change. Ecosystem based adaptation is one approach to adaptation that recognizes the rights of indigenous peoples, considers both cultural and biological diversity, and emphasizes fair and equitable management of the ecosystem. EBA relies on recovering and maintaining ecosystem services and the resilience of natural resources. Highland areas of Uganda have already witnessed climate related challenges such as severe drought, heavy rains, floods, hailstorms, landslides, pests and diseases that have impacted on communities. Loss of tree cover, loss of soil fertility, soil erosion, poor health and sanitation have been identified as the most serious environmental factors affecting the Mt Elgon districts. In the Mount Elgon ecosystem, farmers have been adjusting to these challenges mainly through; Mulching; Use of crop residues; Crop diversification; Integrated crop-livestock systems; Avoided deforestation; Reforestation and afforestation; Agroforestry; Zero grazing; De-silting of rivers during the process of sand mining; Use of energy saving technologies (solar, stoves); Alternative income generation; Drought resistant crop varieties; Tree pollarding; Group/communal labour; Rainwater harvesting; Irrigation of crops; Restoration of river banks; Terracing and grass bands and digging water channels into crop gardens. Ecosystem Services for Human Sustainability v ECOSYSTEM BASED ADAPTATION IN MOUNTAIN ELGON ECOSYSTEM Implementation of ecosystem-based approaches to adaptation is constrained by the vast nature of the ecosystem, the solitary nature of the interventions and lack of sustained funding. Ecosystem- based approaches in the Elgon ecosystem have generally addressed a broad range of climate change impacts, including water shortage, floods, storms, soil erosion and ecosystem productivity and resilience. However, socio-economic considerations such as population pressure, land tenure and sustainability for the various interventions have not been adequately handled and such useful EBA measures have not been scaled out. Regarding current capacity for EBA, land users’ capacity and willingness to invest in ecosystem management, is compromised by population pressure, declining farm size and a complex history of contested entitlement to the natural resource. Customary land tenure, the common system of tenure on private land is relatively secure. Subsistence agriculture is the mainstay of community livelihoods in the project area. Farmer folk are poor and natural resource dependent, mainly relying on rain-fed agriculture and wetland-supported cultivation during dry seasons. Crop yields are reducing in both quality and quantity, in spite of the farming systems exhibiting a few inbuilt mechanisms for curbing soil erosion, e.g. intercropping of beans in banana and coffee, use of diversion channels and soil bunds. Laboriousness of constructing such structures hinders use of many soil and water conservation practices. Crop diseases are also emerging in locations they never used to occur, and farmers’ preferences amongst crop varieties are shifting towards varieties that are more resilient. Generally, land users attach importance to weather conditions in their vicinity, but faced with a limitation of alternative livelihood options, continue to pursue short-term survival strategies even when aware of the negative outcomes. Park neighboring communities are heavily dependent on park extraction of resources. People have intimate attachment to natural resources in their vicinity, although a history conflicts over disputed entitlements to park resources has generated need for more participatory conservation strategies. Significant decline in tree cover is evident, largely due to demand for fuel wood and income. Mount Elgon ecosystem has been a focal point of conservation activity given its importance as a water catchment and biodiversity conservation hotspot. The region has also drawn increased attention from conservation agencies because of its high vulnerability to climate variability. Many of the past and ongoing interventions in the Mt Elgon ecosystem have addressed non- climatic stresses as well as climatic issues. The relationship between the local communities and conservation agencies in the Mt Elgon region has been characterized by mutual suspicion. There are concerns over the quality of consultations that inform many of the interventions in the region. This is attributed to the tendency for projects or civil society organizations to implement blue prints of externally designed interventions, without adequate involvement and input from the local stakeholders. Ecosystem based interventions like MERECP and TACC have broken ground for ecosystem thinking, as opposed to piecemeal efforts that seldom deliver significant impact on the ecosystem. For EBA to genuinely inform about climate change impacts and progress in addressing them, foolproof mechanisms of ensuring information sharing need to be instituted. Ecosystem services