Residents of Kisumu living and carrying out a business around Lake Victoria have protested over a pungent and unpleasant smell emanating from the lake.
Joseph Owino, a trader in the area expressed his displeasure with the foul smell originating from the lake and complained that it makes the area unbearable to conduct business in.
“The smell is affecting us and it is torturous working for hours in such an unconducive environment,” Owino said.
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He lamented the fact that the lake is abused by the local community and the industries surrounding it through the careless disposal of plastics and other kinds of pollutants into the waters.
Owino urged the County Government of Kisumu to partner with other counties surrounding the lake to conduct a clean-up exercise in order to promote a healthy environment consisting of quality air, water and sanitation.
Following the outcry, the relevant authorities under the supervision and guidance of the head of the Freshwater Directorate of Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute (KMFRI) sampled water from different points in the lake for testing to find out the root cause of the menace.
A report released post the research by the Director in charge of Freshwater Systems Research, Dr Christopher Aura, showed that changes in weather variants between cool and hot conditions encouraged existing excess algae growth to decompose faster thus producing higher levels of carbon dioxide, ammonia and hydrogen sulfide, which promotes the foul smell witnessed during windy spells and air circulation.
“Industrial and domestic discharges, as well as Biochemical Oxygen Demand resulting from high nutrient levels from river inflow into Kisumu Bay, support high levels of aquatic primary productivity thus promoting algae blooming.
During decomposition of the organic matter, large amounts of dissolved oxygen are used enabling more and more decomposition to take place resulting in the unpleasant smell from the lake waters,” said Aura.
