CHAPTER 03: WATER MANAGEMENT FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Water is a clear liquid, without colour or taste, which falls from the sky as rain and is necessary for animal and plant life. Water management refers to the skillful or wise use of water resources. The following are the uses of water:

1.      Domestically water is used for cooking, washing, sanitation and drinking.

2.      It used in industries for cooling engines and processing.

3.      Used in Construction activities.

4.      Used in recreational purpose like Swimming.

5.      Used as medicine for curing skin diseases because they contain different minerals and chemicals.

6.      Water used as source of power or energy especially of hydroelectric power (HEP).

7.      Water is important for supporting lives of plants and animals.

8.      Water bodies act as source of rainfall through evaporation.

9.      Water is used in farms to support agriculture that is, in the irrigation schemes and other farms that need natural water from rainfall.

Economic Importance of Water:

1. It encourages industrial development since water is used in cooling machine, processing and purifications.
2. Water has led to the development of fishing industries.
3. Water encourages development of tourism through presence of different water bodies like rivers, oceans and seas, lakes, dams, beaches
4. It supports development of agricultural sector through presence of water for irrigation and water from rainfall.
5. Water improves the family life since it is used for cooking, drinking, washing.
6. Selling water in cities and in towns is used as the source of capital to individuals.
7. Water act as the source of power for different economic development and uses.
8. It stimulates the development of transport and communication.
9. Water encourages soil formation.

Sources of Water

There are three main sources of water, as namely below:

a)      Surface water sources: These include lakes, melting snow cover, and dams.

b)      Under ground water sources: these involve springs and wells.

c)      The atmosphere sources (meteoric water): This involves precipitation in forms of rainfall, snowfall and hail coming directly from the atmosphere.

Problem Associated With Water:

(1)   It tends to become scarce in many place of the world.

(2)   Water pollution is common in many water sources.

(3)   The sources are located very far from the home stead.

(4)   Water supply services are expensive especially in towns.

Water Supply

Water supply refers to the provision or distribution of water making water available to the society for different purposes

Factors Affecting Water Supply

There is a very close relationship between quality of life and water. An adequate and reliable water supply improves the quality of life of people. The following are the factors affecting water supply:

(1)   Climate: If an area has low rainfall the supply is limited or tend to be poor, while where there is high rainfall the supply of water is reliable.

(2)   Gender Socio – Cultural Discriminatory Practice: In most societies, it is women who are involved in the supply of water in the families; hence, supply tends to be poor due to lack of cooperation of men in the water supply.

(3)   Economic Level: Water in the societies is economically advanced the water supply system are well development and effective.  While in poor societies water supply tends to be poor due to the financial problems, especially in rural areas.

(4)   Water pollution due to oil spills, poisoning, dumping of wastes leads to problems in water supply: People avoid the sources, which have been polluted because they can get problem of diseases like cholera, typhoid, dysentery and diarrhea

(5)   Water Uses: The uses of water are so varied such that the available water supply is under high competition, because water is needed for irrigation, for industrial activities, mining, tourism and agriculture.

(6)   Poor Supply and Storage Facilities: Most of the supply and storage facilities are very old and others are no longer functioning. This leads to the water supply problems unlike to the place where facilities are good.

(7)   Governments: Governments can facilitate good water supply if they formulate good policies encouraging the supply of good and adequate water.

(8)   The Level of Education among the People: If people are well educated they can facilitate better supply of water by using it wisely and properly but if people are not educated ones the use of available resource unwisely.

(9)   The Distance to the Water Sources: If water resources are near the homestead then the supply can be effective unlike if the sources of water are very far from the residential areas as well as to the economic sector.

(10)  Vegetation: Vegetation has both negative and positive influence on water supply. Negatively, some vegetation absorbs a lot of water leading to the shortage of water supply. Positively, vegetation can encourage water supply by forcing water into the ground storage, preventing excessive evaporation, contributing to the rainfall formation and preventing pollution by checking surface run off.

(11)  The Size of The Family: Domestic water supply tends to be poor or inadequate where the family members are so many hence people get problems in drinking, washing and cooking. Poor domestic water supply can cause outbreak of diseases and unsanitary condition, which affect the life of the people. In most communities in Tanzania, girl child is affected than boy child in term of water supply from the distant water sources.

The distance affects the girl child as follows: Girls wastes a lot of time looking for water. This brings to them tiredness or fatigue hence may not study effectively; Girls cannot effectively participate in other important aspects of the society like studying sport and games; In addition, the girl child is exposed to many accidents like being attacked by lions, bitten by snakes and sexual harassment.

How the Long Distance to Water Sources Affects the Girl Child?

(A) The distance between the home and the water sources affects the girl child in the following ways:

(i)                 If the distance is long, girls have to walk long distances to fetch the water, hence consume a lot of time.

(ii)               May be attacked or molested along the way.

(iii)             They lack time for studying and playing.

(iv)             They become tired, hence no much attention to pay in the classroom hence poor performance.

(v)               This may lead to illiteracy because girl child fell to go to schools, hence early marriage and birth.

(B) If the distance from the home, to water sources is short, then girls:

        (1) Would spend less time in fetching water.

        (2) They may have more time to play and go to school.

        (3) They can be able to pay attention to the class and do well academically.

Effects of Water Shortage in the Society:

1. Causes industrial decline because water needed for cooling and cleaning are not enough.
2. Decline in agriculture since crops cannot grow well.
3. Outbreak of diseases like cholera due to poor sanitary conditions caused by the shortage of water.
4. The family members especially women travel very far in search of water, hence fatigue and health deterioration.
5. Decline in fishing industries.
6. Death of plants leading to the desertification and soil erosion as well
7. Occurrences of drought.
8. Conflicts may occur among people in the society due to the shortage of water.
9. May cause for migration of people from the place lacking source of water to another place that have enough water.

Water Conservation

Water conservation refers to the process of preserving water for proper or suitable uses. An important question someone should ask himself or herself is that, why should water be conserved? The answer would be, water should be conserved due to the following reasons:

1. To ensure constant supply of water.
2. To satisfy the increased needs of water to the population.
3. To lower the costs of living since water charges set by the water supply units are high.
4. To avoid time wastage to the girl children and women so as to be able to do other economic activities and schooling.
5. To facilitate environmental conservations by introducing irrigation schemes as well as to ensure a reliable supply of hydroelectric power.
6. To improve the health conditions of family members especially women and girls who are largely affected through and fetching water.

Ways of Conserving Water Sources:

1. Building dams and barrages across rivers.
2. Through afforestation and reforestation programs.
3. Declaring some of the areas as protected areas by laws so that trees cannot be destroyed by people through cutting for different purposes.
4. Preventing water pollution through educating people to stop dumping waste product in the water bodies and avoiding the disposing of sewage materials (effluent) in the rivers, lakes and recycling of the wastes from different places.

Water Supply and Sanitation Improvement:

1. Permanent wells should be constructed near the homesteads.
2. Protecting springs by fencing to keep away from animals.
3. Controlling the population growth through family planning and the control of migration.
4. There should be proper use of water especially in the well-organization economic sectors.
5. Providing pipes and drains to keeps the areas clean.
6. Latrines should be well designed to improve sanitation.
7. Trees should be planted so as to reduce excessive evaporation and water pollution.
8. There should be cooperation between women and men on the water supply and conservation of water sources.

Advantages of Clean and Safe Water and Sanitation:

1. People may become healthier.
2. Women who carry water from the sources may have shorter distance to walk.
3. People can have chances to engage themselves in other economic activities effectively.
4. People may improve their life standards.
5. Girl children can have ample time to concentrate on studies instead of thinking where to get water for their family uses.

Hydroelectric Power (H.E.P)

Hydroelectric power is the power generated under the influence of waterfall. The following are the conditions for harvesting or harnessing (tapping water for) hydroelectric power:

1. Reliable rainfall over high mountains in order to ensure the supply of water and presence of big sources of water.
2. Presence of good site like waterfalls, impermeable rock among others.
3. There should be reliable capital availability in order to invest all activities for establishing HEP station.
4. There should be technological advancement in order to run the project.

Importance of Hydroelectric Power:

1. Stimulates development of industries.
2. Encourages environmental conservation since it reduces the demand of the forest for power.
3. It encourages development of agricultural sector, tourism and mining sector.
4. It promotes the living standard of people.
5. HEP can be exported to other countries and bring in some foreign currency.
6. It encourages the development of science and technology, especially in the communication system like internet service.

Problems Encountered in Harnessing HEP

The following are the problems encountered in harnessing hydroelectric power:

1. Seasonal fluctuation in the volume of the river which makes it difficult to turn the turbines.
2. Excessive evaporation of water, leads to the reduction of water.
3. Underground percolation of water in sources of water.
4. Poor capital availability for constructing dams.
5. Inadequate availability of skilled labor like engineers and technicians.
6. Poor market, especially where the industrial base is poor.
7. Lack of communication network to link the area of production and the area of consumption.
8. Silting of dams which lead to the reduction in the volumes of water.
9. Lack of appropriate technology among the people in the country.

10. Destruction of power lines or transmission cables due to the results of civil wars and people steal some of the cable.

River Basin Development (Wetland Development Projects)

River basin is the land that is drained by a river and its tributaries. River basin development is therefore the sustainable use of river basin resources of economic gains and river basin development projects are schemes which are developed for different purposes.

Examples of River Basin Projects:

Africa: Volta river project (Ghana) Orange river project (S. Africa), Gezira irrigation scheme (Sudan), Aswan high dam (Egypt), Mwea-Tebere and Galde irrigation scheme in Kenya, Rufiji basin development, Kilombelo basin development and Kagera river basin development scheme (Tanzania).

Other River Basin out of Africa: Tennessee valley project (USA), Indus (Pakistan) Gouges project (India), Amazon basin development scheme (Brazil).

Process in the River Basin Development:

1.      Construction of the dams for retaining water.

2.      Dredging of the river. This refers to the removed of, straightening, and deepening and remove of silt or mud from the river so that it can accommodate more water.

3.      Clearing of vegetation where economic activities are going to take place

4.      Planting of tree on the sides of the river so as to protect soil erosion and preventing flooding due to the surface run-off of water.

5.      Creating some canals and installing the pipes that can help irrigation.

Conditions in Order a River Basin Development to Take Place:

1. The river basin has to cover a substantially large area.
2. The volume of the main river and its tributaries have to be large
3. The impact of the development should not negatively affect the people in the locality or the ecosystem.
4. There should be adequate funds to ensure successfully development.
5. Availability of land to set up offices and other necessary building and facilities.

Economic Importance (Benefits) of River Basin Development

The following are the economic importance of river basin development:

(1) River basin development helps in the control of floods where they are established.

(2) Lead to the improvement of navigation in the respective rivers where dams are constructed.

(3) Lead to the development of fishing activities.

(4) Ensure the availability of water supply to the domestic uses, and industrial uses.

(5) Helps to develop irrigation scheme leading to the development of agriculture.

(6) River development projects encourage the protection of the environment because there are planted trees.

(7) Act as the source of employment to the people corresponding to the respective locality.

(8) They lead to the development of timber industry like in Sweden; logs are transported in down streams to saw mills.

(9) Silt removed from the river during dredging add humans to the soil and hence promotes farming.

(10) Acts as Centre for HEP generation.

(11) River basin encouraged the development of towns in many countries, like Germany (Cologne, Bonn and Frankfurt).

(12)  Used as research centers for studying ecosystems and their importance to human being.

(13) River basin development encourages development of tourism since dams are used as recreational centers gorges and water falls for viewing hence source of foreign currency to the country.

Setbacks or Hindrances of River Basins (Wetlands) Development Projects

There following are the problems, challenges or limitation facing river basin development:

1.      Unreliable rainfall and excessive evaporation lead to the dry of rivers and other water bodies.

2.      Accumulations of silt in the dams lead to the reduction of the volume of water.

3.      Water pollution especially by the industries discourages the utilization of water from the river basin projects.

4.      Lack of capital for establishing and maintaining the river basin projects.

5.      Soil exhaustion due to intensive farming.

6.      The outbreak of disease like malaria and cholera.

7.      There is a problem of displacing the people to other areas in establishing the project.

8.      Soil erosion can also affect the established river basin development.

9.      Flooding due to high volume of water that caused by rainfall and melting of ice.

Rufiji Basin Development Authority (RU.BA.D.A)

River Rufiji is the largest river in Tanzania. It starts in the Southern highlands and has many tributaries such as the Great Ruaha River and ends in the Indian Ocean. The Rufiji river basin covers mainly the regions of coast, Morogoro, Mbeya, Iringa and some parts of Dodoma and Ruvuma. It has different resources including water, oil, natural gas, flora and fauna and land that are fertile.

Some of the main economic activities carried out within the basin include agriculture (farming), hydroelectric power production, irrigation, fishing and navigation. The Rufiji basin development authority (RUBADA) is a project which was set in 1975 to oversee the development of the Rufiji River Basin.

Benefits of the Rufiji Basin Development Authority:

1. A hydropower plant such as Kidatu which generates electricity.
2. HEP Produced by RUBADA help in the development of industries in the country.
3. The authority has encouraged the promotion, growth and development of tourism in the river basin. The Selous, Ruangwa and Ruaha national parks are example of the tourism attractions that located to the basin.
4. The development of Rufiji basin lead to the creation of job opportunities like in RUBADA and economic activities that are taking place in the river basin.
5. Facilitates to the improvement of agriculture, due to the presence of water for irrigation.
6. RUBADA ensured the environmental conservation in any activities operated within the basin development.
7. Act as the source of foods both aquatic food and agricultural food.
8. Encourages on the development of water supply to the home steady and industries.

Problems facing Rufiji Basin Development Authority:

1. Inadequate capital.
2. Low level of technology.
3. Rural-urban migration. This has denied the authority the necessary skilled and unskilled labors required to carry out developmental activities.
4. Poor transport and communication infrastructure.
5. Lack of support by local communities. Some of the local communities do not support some of the activities carried out or proposed by RUBADA.
6. Fluctuations of water levels. This is due to the variation of seasons especially summer and winter season.

Prospects of the Authority

The RUBADA has great power for growth. This potential will only be realized if the authority can put together large amounts of capital and receive great support from the government and the local communities. Below is an outline of potentials:

1.      Hydroelectric power generation: If funds are available, the authority will be able to upgrade its power production and setting new stations for power production.

2.      Transport: The authority is yet to actually exploit the potential of transport activities in the Basin. Navigation in this Basin is poor, but through introduction of better water vessels will improve transport in the area.

3.      Fisheries: Fishing in the basin is still on a very small scale. There is a great potential for fisheries in this region. Fish farms may also be set up to commercially produced for sale.

4.      Forestry: The authority has noted that, there is great potential for development and exploitation of forest resources in the basin at the industrial level. With adequate finances, the authority will be able to invest in this area and get good returns.

5.      Tourism: The Selous game reserve has one of the largest mammal populations in the world. It also has unique plant species. This makes it quite suitable for eco-tourism; these entire if observed clearly the basin would be great with potential for development.

6.      Agriculture: The total irrigable land in the basin is more than 620, 000 ha. Only a very small part of this land can be brought under irrigation. More agricultural production in the area can be highly attained.

Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)

The Tennessee valley refers to the drainage basin of the Tennessee River in USA. Tennessee is the tributary of Ohio River in the United States of America (USA). The Ohio River is in turn the tributary of the Mississippi river. The valley is much known in the world in terms of successful controlling the problem of severe soil erosion.

The Basin is spread across the states of Tennessee, Alabama, North Carolina, Kentucky, Georgia, Mississippi and Virginia. Some of the rivers in the basin include Holston River, Watauga River, Tennessee River and Doe River. The basin also has the Great Smoky Mountains and the Cumberland Plateau. The Tennessee valley Authority (TVA), Created in 1933, is a fully government owned body in charge of development activities in this Basin.

Aims of the Scheme Authority:

1. To control soil erosion and improve the quality of the land that had been degraded by severe soil erosion.
2. To control the floods.
3. To improve navigation.
4. To develop hydroelectric power generation centers.
5. Agricultural improvement.

Achievements of the Authority or Scheme:

1. Generation of electricity.
2. Successful control of soil erosion.
3. To control flood.
4. To improve navigation.

Steps that TVA took in developing the valley:

a)      Constructing the dams along the river course.

b)      Reforestation was done especially on the steep slopes of Appalachian Mountains.

c)      Gullies were filled up with brushwood to trap the eroded soil particles especially silt.

d)     Modern farming methods were introduced, for example terracing, contour ploughing and crop rotation on the slopes.

e)      Planting of grass or cover crops on the slopes so as to reduce surface run off.

Benefits of the TVA:

a)      The authority has successfully managed to curb soil erosion.

b)      The construction of dams and planting trees among other measure has helped to control flooding in the valley.

c)      Through irrigation the authority has managed to increase agriculture production.

d)     Ensured the supply of electricity the industries and homes in the basin.

e)      Ensure water supply both to the domestic uses and industrial uses.

f)       Availability of abundant water supply and electricity, the authority has attracted many investors is aluminum smeltry, that led to industrialization in the area.

g)      The activities in the authority created job opportunities to the people.

h)      Navigation in the basin has improved transportation of goods and people around the area of the basin.

i)        Development of fishing industries.

Qn: Discussion for the results of TVA project in the USA

Prospects of the Tennessee Valley Authority

Despite the success, so far achieved by TVA, there is still great potential for further development. The following are some of the prospects:

1. There is still great room for the expansion of gain culture in the region. There is still a lot of arable land and irrigable land that has not been fully utilizes.
2. A lot of land is still available for the establishment of various industries. Potential growth areas include car manufacturing and textile manufacturing.
3. The TVA has a lot of potential in the power generation sector. The main potential lies in generation of nuclear power.

Land Reclamation

Land reclamation refers to efforts to make land that was previously unproductive to be useful. It is the process of turning the waste (poor) land into a useful state. Land reclamation is also defined as the process of converting wasteland into land that can be used for economic activities and settlement. The following are some of the aims of land reclamation:

1. To increase the size land for agriculture.
2. To add the size of land available for human settlement.
3. To make availability of more land for the establishment of industries and offices.
4. To be in proximity to resources in order to be able to gain fully utilization of them.

Main Four Land Reclamation Techniques

The techniques used to reclaim land depend on the status of the land:

1. Irrigation: This refers to the activities of supplying water to dry areas. This is done through use of simple, pumps, pipes, or sometimes by constructing dams along rivers to create water reservoirs.

2. Afforestation: This refers to the establishment of forests water they did not previously existed. This carried out the area that experiencing desert condition and high rates of soil erosion. Afforestation is done for four (4) major reasons:

a)      To create water catchments.

b)      To protect the soil from erosion.

c)      Forest may be established for commercial purposes:

Ä  Extraction of timber

Ä  To provide wood pulp for to manufacture paper.

(a)    Forest has been known to modify the climate of an area.

3. Drainage: This is the process of reclaiming land that has stagnant water; example, sea water and other sources of water so as to: (a) avoid flooding (b) to get area for agriculture etc. A good example is in Zuider Zee project in the Netherland.

5.      Cleaning vegetation and controlling pests: Some areas can be reclaimed due to the dense vegetation covers in order to clear pests (e.g. tsetse flies). Sterilization may also be used to control pests away from the uses of pesticides.

How Land Reclamation is done in The Country like Tanzania?

Various efforts have been made to reclaim wasteland in Tanzania. Some of the efforts include the followings:

1. Irrigation: This has been carried out in the dry lands found within the Rufiji basin through using water from Rufiji basin for irrigation purposes.

2. Drainage: Parts of Dodoma and Dar es Salaam have been reclaimed through this method, especially in the area of Kunduchi and Msasani. Most of this land was reclaimed for settlement purposes.

3. Afforestation and Agroforestry: This is one of the most used methods of land reclamation in Tanzania. Example; in Shinyanga region that was reclaimed through afforestation that programmed and called Hifadhi Ardhi Shinyanga (HASHI). Also in Dodoma at Kondoa District, land also has been reclaimed through afforestation due to severe erosion.

4. Clearing of vegetation: This was mainly done by the colonialists especially in the Miombo woodlands. This was done in order to make the land useful for livestock keeping, settlement and crop cultivation.

Sustainable Use of Water Resources

Water is found both at the surface of the earth and underground. Underground water also called ground water or subterranean water or phreatic water. Underground water is the water that found below the surface of the earth. Sustainable use of water resources refers to the proper use of water resource in relation to the protection of water sources.

Underground Water

Underground water is water that found beneath or under the earth’s surface. There are main five types of underground water, which are explained below:

1. Rain water or meteoric water: This are water that formed when rainfalls on the ground (are underground water that originated from rainfall), then water enter (infiltrates) the ground through the available cracks and pores in soil.

2. Melt water: Is the underground water that formed in the areas that experienced in the winter season, snow accumulates on the ground during cold period. Also melt water enter the ground as rainwater does.

3. Connate water: Is water that was retained within the sedimentary rocks since the time of their formation. Most of connate water is saline.

4. Magnetic or juvenile or plutonic water: This is water that gets trapped in the rocks beneath the surface during volcanism (volcanic activities). Magnetic water contains a lot of mineral and is usually hot.

5. Oceanic water: This is underground water that results from seepage of ocean water into the ground. This water inters the ground seepage through the available spaces.

Ways Used to Tap Underground Water

The following are the ways in which underground water can be taped:

1. Drilling boreholes: Holes are dug deep into the ground until the underground water is reached. The water is then pumped to surface and collected through taps.

2. Digging wells: A hole is dug into the ground until the water is reached.

Note: The difference between wells and boreholes is, the water from wells is fetched manually or through use of simple pulley. The wall of well may also be lined with bricks or stone and cement.

3. Where the water occurs close to the surface: Can be scooped to expose the water. Can be scooped using cups or other utensils. Can also water be directed to farms for irrigation through use of channel or pumped into lines.

4. Natural springs or oases: Underground water can be naturally exposed to form springs or oases in deserts. This water may be directly scooped using various utensils or containers. Also may be directed to farms through channels.

Resources Obtained from Water

The following are some of the resources obtained from water sources:

    1. Fishes and other edibles water creatures, such as prawn, which is used for food.

    2. Sand, which is used in building.

   3. Hydropower, which is used to generate electricity.

   4. Salt, which is used domestically as well as in industries.

   5. Decorative items such as cowries’ shells.

Extraction of Water Resources

Extraction of water resource is the process of getting resources from all water bodies. Water resources can be extracted as follows:

1. Fish and other edible water creatures: Fish may be obtained from water through use of hooks and line, nets, herbs, spears, or traps. Hooks are used for small scale fishing unlike to the use of nets.

2. Sand: This is harvested by dredging riverbeds or riverbanks. This may be done by using scooping machine or by hand using simple pans.

3. Salt: Salt is acquired mainly through evaporation. Salty water is trapped in ponds. Due to rapid evaporation of water caused by high temperatures, salt crystals are left behind in the ponds. These crystals are collected and processed. Alternative methods are where the salty water is pumped into evaporation tanks from where the evaporation is conducted.

4. Hydropower: Hydropower is tapped by directing the water to turn turbines, which are used to generate electricity.

5. Decorative items: This can be harvested from the sea floor or beaches by simply picking them up. There is no specialized process of obtaining them.

Problems Caused by Extraction of Water Resources:

1.      Over fishing and indiscriminate fishing in which even immature fish are caught reduces the availability of fish. It causes an imbalance in the eco-system.

2.      Sand harvesting may lead to loss of soil for growth of plant life in the water bodies.

3.      Hydropower harvesting may cut-off water supply to the area due to the construction of dams.

4.      Construction of dams in harvesting hydroelectric power, may lead to the breeding of snails and mosquitoes that cause bilharzias and malaria respectively.

Solutions to the Problems Caused by the Extraction of Water Resources:

1.      Monitoring the nets used by fishermen to ensure that the net holes are too small that has not to catch young and immature fish.

2.      Restricting fishing in some areas to allow fish to breed and increase in number.

3.      Encouraging people to practice fish farming so as to reduce pressure on natural water bodies such as rivers and lakes.

4.      Restricting or controlling sand harvesting to ensure that aquatic life is no not destroyed or interfered with.

Water Pollution

Water pollution refers to the introduction of harmful substances into water bodies or sources. Pollution refers to the introduction of harmful substances into the environment. Water pollution kills aquatic life and renders the water unfit for human consumption or for any other productive uses. The followings are the main sources of water pollution:

1. Industrial waste: Industrial wastes are gases, oil, and chemical as well as solid waste such as scrap metals. This waste is either released directly into water sources or dumped onto land from where it is washed into water sources.

2. Domestic waste: This includes sewage, dirty water used for washing, food remains, dead animals, plastics and insecticides. This also may be dumped directly into the water sources or dumped on land and washed into the water sources by running rainwater.

3. Agricultural chemicals: These include insecticides, fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides, which are chemicals used for agricultural purposes. These chemicals may be good to use on land but when they are washed into water sources, they tend to pollute the water sources.

4. Oil spills: Oil spills normally occur in oceans during transportation of oil. The spill may be caused by a leakage in the pipelines or due to damage or sinking of ships carrying the oil.

5. Extensive construction: Large building and construction projects may lead to water pollution. Soil dug during the construction may be washed off into water sources. Materials such as cement may also be washed into the water sources, thus polluting the water.

Water Conservation

Water conservation refers to the protection of water and water sources. We can conserve water in the following ways:

1. Avoiding wastage: People should avoid wasting water. They should be encouraged to use water sparingly. People should turn off taps every time when are not using.

2. Controlling pollution: The control of water pollution starts with the individual. We should each ensure that we do dump waste or threw litters carelessly because it may end up being washed into water sources and pollute them.

3. Enforcement of law: Strictly laws should be encouraged and enforced to discourage industries as well as individual from discharging their waste into water sources.

4. Protection of water catchments: The government should ensure that human activities in water catchments do not interfere water catchments.

5. Education: People should be educated on the importance of conserving water resources.

6. Sewage treatment: Sewage effluent should be treated before it is released into the water bodies. This reduces the level of pollution.

7. Controlled use of agricultural chemicals: The use of chemicals in farms should be controlled, especially in areas that border water bodies.

8. Recycling: People should be encouraged to recycle their waste rather than dumping it. People can recycle water, plastics bags, scrap metal and glass, among many other possible pollutants.

9. Immediate clean up: In case of oil spills immediate and thorough clearing of the water should be done. This can be done by use of chemicals and special machines called skimmer ships.

TRIAL QUESTIONS

1. List down four domestic uses of water.

2. Show how water is important in economic development of the country.

3. Mention three sources of water in your place you live.

4. Identify the problems of water supply in the country.

5. Suggest the ways of solving the problems of water supply in any country.

6. How does the shortage of water affect the society of Africa?

7. Show the role of vegetation in the supply of water.

8. List down the factors that affects water supply in the countries of East Africa.

9. Explain in point form about how the distance of water sources affects girl children in Africa.

10. Define water management and water conservation.

11. Why should water be conserved?

12. Identify ways that can be used in conserving the water sources in your country.

13. What are the advantages of the river basin development schemes?

14. Mention five disadvantages of river basin development schemes in Africa.

15. Mention six river basin development schemes in Africa.

16. What are the basic requirements for developing the river basin development?

17. Outline the factors that facilitate the development of river basin development.

18. Mention the factors that hinder the development of river development schemes.

19. List down the problems caused by river basin development scheme.

20. Show five achievements of the TVA attained in development of Tennessee valley.

21. Explain four benefits of the farmers get from the river basin development.

22. (a) What is land reclamation?

      (b) Identify the process (techniques) which were involved in land reclamation in Tanzania

      (c) Mention 4 advantages of land reclamation in Tanzania.

      (d) Describe how the reclaimed land is used in Tanzania.

23. Mention the factors that hinder land reclamation in any country you have studied.

24. Define underground water and mention its three types.

25. Mention five problems (factors) that hinder Tanzania from utilizing the underground water properly.

26. Briefly explain the relationship between water supply and quality of life. Give clear example.

27. What are some of the developments that have taken place in Rufiji river basin?

28. State five water resources, and explain how each one is extracted.

29. Explain three problems resulting from the harvesting of water resources and finally suggest solutions to the problems.

30. What are the economic importance RUBADA? Give five reasons.