Commercial Farmers Conserving Water
Mara River Basin
Interviewee
Tarquin and Lippa Wood
Commercial wheat farmers
Interviewers
Alison M. Jones
NWNL Director and Photographer
Alison M. Fast
Videographer
At Olerai Farm, on the Mara River, Kenya on Sept 24 & 25, 2009
Introductory Note
Meeting with Lippa and Tarquin at their wheat farm was a great chance to hear these farmers’ opinions on conservation as they run their successful commercial farm. The Woods’ farm is located just below the Amala and Nyangores Rivers, the two Mara River tributaries flowing downstream from the Mau Forest. From this confluence, the Mara River flows southwards through farmland and then to the world-renowned reserves of Kenya’s Maasai Mara National Reserve and Tanzania’s Serengeti National Park.
The necessary proximity of the Woods’ farm to a perennial water source grounds their consciousness towards ensuring healthy flows of the Mara River. They know respecting that relationship is the key to preserving the Maasai Mara ecosystem downstream that supports one of the world’s greatest wildlife habitats.
See also our Mara River Basin interview in the same week with Tarquin’s father, Hugo Wood on Saving Water by Stewarding Together.
Outline
PART 1: USE of IRRIGATION from the MARA RIVER
PUMPING WATER for IRRIGATION
CROP DEMANDS versus AVAILABLE WATER
PLUSES & MINUSES of PUMPS
PART 2: CHALLENGES and SOLUTIONS of FARMING
SEEKING SOLUTIONS
WORKING with MAASAI on CONSERVATION
LIVESTOCK MANAGEMENT for WATER QUALITY
TOURISM CAN SUPPORT CONSERVATION
MARA RIVER WATER USERS ASSOCIATION
CATCHMENT DAMS
TREES v. NEEDED FUEL
Key Quotes Moisture is the only thing a wheat farmer worries about. – Tarquin Wood
Our Mara River Water Usage Association/MRWUA monitors water usage. This forum shares advice and pays water permits for usage, creating more sustainable usage of the Mara River by large-scale irrigators, lodges, and tourists. – Lippa Wood
All images © Alison M. Jones, unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved.
PART 1: USE of IRRIGATION from the MARA RIVER
PUMPING WATER for IRRIGATION
NWNL As we stand here by your pumping system that pulls water for crop irrigation, it’s clear why your commercial farming venture is situated here, on the Mara River.
TARQUIN WOOD Yes. We’ve taken a channel out of the Mara River, so our farm’s irrigation water comes up from there via a submerged, diesel-generated water pump that fills another reservoir that serves the farm. It takes out 750,000 liters/hour and runs for about 10 hours/day on average. Obviously that amount depends on the weather. We irrigate 5 pivots from this pump which goes to a central hub and then to the other pivots.
We’re trying to create a schedule of harvesting in the dry period, rather than planting then. That means that we won’t use water in the Mara River in drought periods, and that we’ll only use the river’s water in wet seasons. In those dry periods, when we are harvesting and don’t need to irrigate, we can let the river run through. In between the dry and wet seasons, we just quickly irrigate. Hopefully, that 10 hours/day of pumping will come down to 4 hours.
We just want to top off our soils with the water. But, despite that minimal amount of water usage, we – as farmers in this area – couldn’t survive without the Mara River.
NWNL As we came here, we saw your fields under pivot irrigation. Why did you choose that method of irrigation?
TARQUIN WOOD I’ll show you the difference of crops with no irrigation, versus those that have it. They are totally different. It’s not economical even to think about farming without pivots. We fully depend on that system.
NWNL You talked about harvesting during the dry period to accommodate the river. What other technological changes have you made – or can you make – to reduce the amount of water your pump pulls off the Mara River?
TARQUIN WOOD That’s a good question. We’re going to adopt “zero-till farming” – which means we won’t plow before we plant. We’ll plant straight into the stubble of the last crop, so we won’t disturb the soil. Doing so would take water moisture out of the soil because, as soon as you turn the soil over, it dries out.
As well, we rotate our crops from field to field, including sunflower, maize, wheat and maybe beans. That allows us to create the “avenues” inside the soil for roots to develop. For instance: sunflower roots will go down, and the next season wheat roots can follow the “avenues” created by sunflower roots. Doing this means that, in time, we’ve created a situation where we don’t have to plow our soil ever again. As well, the water storage in our “soil profile” is much more consistent and even throughout the year.
NWNL That all makes a lot of sense.
TARQUIN WOOD It makes great sense; and it will pretty much reduce our takeout of water from the river by 20%.
NWNL I would think 20% is significant….
TARQUIN WOOD It’s huge.
NWNL Do you, or can you, measure the percentage of river water you pull off?
TARQUIN WOOD At the river’s lowest, I think we’re taking out about 2%.
NWNL So, when the Mara River flows are very high, your pull-off is minimal.
TARQUIN WOOD Negligible. You can’t even notice it.
NWNL Are other farmers in this area doing what you’re doing? Do they also use a “zero-till” approach and rotate crops?
TARQUIN WOOD Yes; and I’m learning from other regional farmers. Clifford, who is next door, is experimenting and leading the way in this area. However, all the big cereal farmers across Kenya are moving towards zero-till because this year the whole country has had crop failures.
People are now more focused on soil moisture. Moisture is the only thing a wheat farmer worries about. If your soil is moist, you get a good crop. So, we adopt all approaches to getting the best possible moisture conservation in the soil.
CROP DEMANDS versus AVAILABLE WATER
NWNL The news coverage of Kenya’s crop failures this year has been international! How have your crops fared, particularly those irrigated with water from the Mara River?
TARQUIN WOOD Well, we’re okay on our lower farm. But we have a large farm of wheat up on top that relies solely on rain. That wheat crop has struggled this year. We have done better than most of the country because we had a couple of lucky showers early on that the rest of the country didn’t get. We harvested about 2 tons of hay, whereas the rest of the country probably didn’t get half of their normal yields. Some of the country didn’t even plant. So, we were lucky.
NWNL Where do you sell your maize and wheat?
TARQUIN WOOD We sell mostly locally. We mill our own wheat and sell it very locally. Some wheat will get to Nairobi. The maize brokers come to us. Our maize won’t even go 40 kilometers from here. It is purely for this area – and we can’t produce enough of it. There are hungry people around. The queues are huge. We just can’t do enough of it. The price has shot through the roof.
NWNL That is certainly a testimony to the importance of commercial farming in Kenya.
TARQUIN WOOD Certainly, commercial farming in this area is very important. We have a large population in this area that has just had crop failure. There’s no maize now for 200 kilometers around. They need food; so luckily, we have a good crop we can sustain with water.
People are here picking it up every day with their lorries. Some people even come and take it as far as to Narok. There’s no maize between here and North Kenya. We don’t supply the whole country, but we’re certainly critical locally. Our harvests don’t get very far – especially the maize, which sells quickly. We could sell the whole of our maize crops in a day. There are hungry people around.
NWNL You and the local people around here are fortunate you can access the Mara River!
TARQUIN WOOD Yes. We get water for irrigation only due to this pump. That is how we’re able to produce crops we plant during sustained droughts, such as this.
PLUSES & MINUSES of PUMPS
NWNL Do you foresee a future when small-scale Kenyan farmers can also have pumps?
TARQUIN WOOD Yes. I see more and more pumps coming in along this river. In fact, in the last 6 months, we had 2 new farms going up nearby. One is owned by Isaac Ruto, a government minister; and one belongs to a local farmer with small hand-pumps that can cover a 5-acre patch. I see that being the future along this river.
NWNL What will the impacts of that be to the levels of the Mara River?
TARQUIN WOOD Look at other Kenyan rivers – for example, in Laikipia District around Nanyuki. Those rivers come off the Aberdare Mountain Range into more developed areas. They include slightly richer communities that can afford pumping systems. They’re 5 years ahead us.
The uncontrolled impacts in Laikipia are that those rivers don’t even get to their end. They are being sucked dry. For the first time in living history, Laikipia’s Ewaso Nyero River hasn’t reached that watershed’s lower swamp this year because there are pumps upstream every 20 meters, irrigating cabbages and tomatoes to feed people.
NWNL That exemplifies the national need for the solutions now being considered and offered by your local Mara River Water Users Association [hereafter, MRWUA]. Let’s chat about that tomorrow, when we sit down with you and Lippa, your new bride. Meanwhile, thank you for showing us this pump on the Mara River.
PART 2: CHALLENGES and SOLUTIONS of FARMING
SEEKING SOLUTIONS
NWNL How has commercial farming led you to seek ways to support both farming needs and the health of the Mara River?
TARQUIN WOOD Being farmers, we knew we would be criticized for taking and consuming significant amounts of water. We knew we needed answers. So, we created MRWUA as a monitoring vehicle, so we could create laws along the river to protect and create awareness of the catchment area.
It’s been a bit of an uphill struggle, due to lack of interest. We find it hard to reach the people and big businesses that use the river – lodges and other farmers. Nobody has really become involved. It’s just us and maybe 5 or 6 other people involved with MRWUA.
Our plan is to charge everybody who uses the river a certain fee. Depending on their usage, they would pay a certain amount. Use just for your cows would be X. Use for an irrigation farm like this would cost Y per liter. That could establish MRWUA as a sustainable organization to:
— create awareness.
— offer lectures,
— plant indigenous trees on Mara River’s banks up to its Mau Forest source.
The lodges, I believe, should be paying since they benefit from it. While they’re not directly taking water out, their tourists are there to photograph wildebeest jumping across the river. Everyone should be paying a certain amount to fund a conservancy along the river that eventually would be self-funding. The tricky bit is getting momentum going to move the snowball. As soon as we get going, I think we can self-perpetuate income.
NWNL You’ve assigned yourself a big job. What is the response?
TARQUIN WOOD There are many who are willing to hear us out and work for the cause. People see the importance of the Mara River more and more. I think as these droughts and hard times come, people will change and want to protect the Mara River. This Mara River Water Users Association/MRWUA will offer something to jump onto when tough times come.
Mainly people around here and in the nearby Maasai town of Mulot are our MRWUA members, because the meetings are held there. Driving to meetings is a problem because few have cars. So, we only see the people in walking distance attending. We are trying to invite some lodge owners and tour operators to come on board MRWUA so they can add their recommendations and help police the Maasai Mara NR section of the river.
I think each section should have different laws, and so I believe that if MRWUA got the right amount of funding just to get going, it would be a sustainable association that people could respect and appreciate for helpful input.
WORKING with MAASAI on CONSERVATION
NWNL Is your Maasai associate, Dickson, part of that support group?
TARQUIN WOOD No. Dickson has set up 3 or 4 conservancies in the area. His specialty is facilitating Maasai efforts.
LIPPA WOOD Dickson is a well-educated Maasai and incredibly helpful in forming these conservancies around the Mara. He has been very helpful. He owns land in the area we hope to conserve. He has also provided great goodwill and help for us. He helped pull everyone together in an area that now is very volatile. We are in a gap between other conservancies in and around the Mara and areas that are heavily deforested for a huge charcoal. industry. There’s also poaching here. This bush-net snaring has caused some tribal conflict between the encroaching Kipsigis small-scale farmers [in the Kalenjin ethnic group] and the Maasai that live here currently.
Yet, we need to protect this area to keep it as amazing as it is. We want landowners to realize they can get something for their land without totally exploiting it and/or selling off their land for irresponsible and unsustainable uses.
As of now, we don’t have any lodges here, so we’re different from the other conservancies who have their funding. Here we have a bit of development, quite a few Maasai manyattas, and not much game since it doesn’t venture this far, other than in very dry times and when it’s been disturbed.
NWNL What is your concept of a conservancy on your land? How did that idea develop; and how does it compare to agriculture, regarding sustainability for the Mara River Basin?
TARQUIN WOOD This area has just recently been subdivided. Landowners are getting their title deeds now, and they are thinking about what to do with them. A landowner can farm or sell his land. He can cut his trees to create and sell charcoal. He can poach on his own land or conserve its wildlife.
We’re trying to convince them that conserving their land is the most sustainable option they have for their family and future generations to hold control of their land – rather than their next-door neighbor deciding to farm his land and fence it so cattle can’t come in to ruin his crops. A group effort prevents such conflicts – and the Maasai governance is traditionally a group effort.
But if they cut up their land, they lose that advantage and their whole Maasai ethos disappears. So, we are trying to create a conservancy where everyone shares the idea that conserving the land would offer the most sustainable and consistent income. Perhaps it offers the best income, especially if tour operators take their game drives around there and thus are helping to conserve habitat.
LIPPA WOOD It’s a question of how to use land as sustainable income for the Maasai. Tourism is an obvious source of income since each guest would pay a conservancy fee split between landowners in the area they visit to see wild dog, leopard or other attractions there. But, to launch that is a long-haul effort, needing new ideas.
LIVESTOCK MANAGEMENT for WATER QUALITY
LIPPA WOOD Our main focus for this conservancy is better livestock management. The Maasai mindset is quantity over quality in terms of livestock. We must change that to reduce risks of disease, predators and drought by better livestock management, improved husbandry systems, plus smaller and more productive herds. We must improve their breeds and help them create a working financial model.
TARQUIN WOOD The benefits of that will be especially obvious when droughts like this mean there’s no grass at all in the river’s catchment. It’s now totally overgrazed; and so, when it rains, water just flows off, as if on a tarmac road, carrying away the first inch of topsoil. That loose topsoil then clogs dams and freshwater streams. Overgrazing causes havoc in the river – and inland from the river.
So, overdevelopment and overgrazing will accentuate the aggressiveness of the peaks and troughs of increased water flows. The remedy is in establishing more vegetation and little ponds to maintain the quality of our water. The slower the catchment area releases the water into the river, the better – rather than a cycle of flash floods, drought, flash floods, drought…. Also, more vegetation means more grazing for the local people’s cattle.
TOURISM CAN SUPPORT CONSERVATION
LIPPA WOOD Our concerns focus on the Mara River’s rise and fall. Today’s hugely fluctuating ranges affect commercial farming here. This farm just ticks on, but it provides a huge amount of employment.
Maasai landowners see the attraction of a big-scale farmer who comes in saying, “We’ll pay you X per acre. Can we have the land?” We try to explain that’s not the best option; and that we, a big commercial farm, want it all in conservation. That would be ideal in a beautiful spot like this; but financially, it’s impossible until there’s funding.
TARQUIN WOOD We need tour operators to become our partners. We need to attract people who will pay for the land’s beauty and biodiversity.
LIPPA WOOD That would make it sustainable.
TARQUIN WOOD Our role is as commercial farmers, primarily. We produce food for the area; but as things unravel, I feel we should hold the flag for conservation. We understand where things are going. I see us doing forums; and using the Mara River Water Users Association/MRWUA to coordinate with everybody working to save the river.
I think our Enonkishu Conservancy can facilitate preservation of this catchment area. That will ensure higher water quality here and downstream, plus more frequent and consistent water flows coming into the river.
I see us educating the Maasai and creating income from the things I’ve mentioned. Landowners can greatly profit from both tourism and conservation. If we all work together, as the Maasai have done for millennia, I think we’ll succeed.
But this farm can’t do it alone; and a single Massai with a single title deed can’t protect his 100 acres by himself. We need to think on a scale of thousands of acres. Conservation needs to include all as one. That’s the only way to make a big difference.
NWNL So what’s your role in seeking solutions?
TARQUIN WOOD Within this Mara River Basin we are a big commercial farm sucking water out of the Mara River and using surrounding natural resources. Our roles are primarily commercial farming, supplying food for the area, and creating jobs for the area. I also feel we help the environment to which we have access. I think it’s our responsibility; and we’re very passionately bringing those issues forward by creating the MRWUA. We hope to bring everybody who depends on the river into this association.
We may divide the group into sections: the Mau which is our area; the section between here and the Maasai Mara; and the Maasai Mara itself. Each should play its role to conserve water in the river. The other option is to create conservancies and areas of sustainable development.
We also hope we can help conserve the Mara River via our Enonkishu Conservancy, a 30,000-acre water catchment sloping towards the Mara River. There, we are trying to restore vegetation, increase grazing, reduce the human footprint, and generally try to ensure the quality and flows of water. Water from our Enonkishu Conservancy is cleaner, fresher and more reliable.
As I’ve said, we can only do this if we work together, following the Maasai who’ve worked together for thousands of years. Yes, their population has increased, and local resources have lessened; but I feel that their model is sound. We need to be in one big group thinking about great chunks of land for conservation to be economically viable.
NWNL That could create sustainable water levels in the Mara River for generations to come.
TARQUIN WOOD I think we can create systems and awareness that can sustain the river through future generations. I now worry about the quality and low water levels we see. The river will dry up in the future if we don’t do anything about it. I don’t think it’s too late. If the rain keeps falling, then the river should keep flowing. It’s our responsibility to make sure that happens.
MARA RIVER WATER USERS ASSOC. / MRWUA
LIPPA WOOD Tarquin’s father, Hugo Wood, has been very proactive in setting up MRWUA. It’s an organization with great potential to work with people on all scales: those who use the Mara River; those who are involved in it; and those who are based around it. Together, they can help preserve the river in so many ways by gathering information and sharing it amongst each other.
MRWUA monitors water usage. It started off as a small organization monitoring commercial farms. Now it encourages others to be involved and to set up a big database. This forum shares advice and pays water permits for usage, creating more sustainable usage of the Mara River by large-scale irrigators, lodges, and tourists.
TARQUIN WOOD Given the fragility of this ecosystem today, I think people should pay for the privilege to use it so it can also be used by future generations. I think they should pay for better management advice; better water quality and quantity for current and future generations; and a service that can carry that dream forward.
LIPPA WOOD People need to be involved in MRWUA, from the Mara River’s source in the Mau Forest all the way down to its Lake Victoria terminus. People must unite to ensure preservation of the Mara River Basin. To save the Mara River watershed, we need to set measures to mitigate deforestation in the Mau, including:
— tree-planting programs
— riverbank-saving programs
— river harvesting of all rain in the area
— alternative ways of getting water
— more sustainable operations and practices
NWNL So stakeholders need to coordinate, and MRWUA should set conservation goals. You say everybody should pay to use the Mara River. What about those who can’t pay, such as struggling local farmers?
LIPPA WOOD There would be a pro-rated system.
TARQUIN WOOD Perhaps 200 Kenya shillings a year, just so everyone realizes the value of water. I don’t feel they should think it’s free. I think everyone can afford 200 shillings a year. Our water resources are just something we don’t get for free.
Depending on how you use the river – such as your cattle come to the river to drink, etc. – I think you should pay 200-300 shillings [US $3] a year, so you know it’s not free. Then you will respect it, so will be aware of future water availability. No amount is too little – it’s just the concept. You are paying for the privilege of future generations to have water.
LIPPA WOOD A water-use fee also spreads awareness, not only in schools, but also to those lacking the privilege to go to school. The point is to share knowledge through conservancies and community-based initiatives and encourage people to talk about water. It will get people down by the river to be aware that people involved in deforestation are impacting their livelihood and their income. Payment will also help spread more awareness campaigns.
TARQUIN WOOD Awareness is key. “When I cut down this tree, what am I doing? Making charcoal?” “Yes, but now, where the tree was there is now a great big hole.”
With awareness and education, people will learn the downstream consequences, and hopefully think twice. Workshops and MRWUA information can share details and awareness of the consequences, bringing the issues to the forefront.
NWNL So, your point is that water is a commodity and thus has a value.
TARQUIN WOOD Yes. Since it just falls from the sky, people tend to think it’s “free.”
CATCHMENT DAMS
TARQUIN WOOD Large-scale farmers should think about dams. Clifford, our next-door neighbor, has 3 pivot systems upstream on the Mara River. He would like to run those 3 pivots without taking from the river and forget the river is there. Thus, he has huge catchment dams, so his pivots run solely due to the dams. It’s much more sustainable irrigation than taking water straight from the river. I think he’s very wise. The way we’ve been going, I don’t think the river is going to last forever.
LIPPA WOOD All large-scale farmers are obliged to think how to feed more water into their farms’ catchment dam systems.
TARQUIN WOOD In Zimbabwe, almost the whole country is a dam. Every farm has a dam next to it. If you fly over Zimbabwe, you’ll see dams everywhere. The government was very shrewd in giving loans for dam building. Now all Zimbabwe’s rivers run free; and each farm has its own dam.
In Kenya, however, we don’t have any such plan. There is a fund to help you build a dam by covering 50% of dam’s cost. But that fund is nowhere to be found, so nobody builds any dams.
TREES v. NEEDED FUEL
TARQUIN WOOD I think one key issue is the trees. It’s known that the fewer trees there are, the less it rains; and so more erosion occurs. One way to slow down harvesting of trees is to produce other fuels. By decreasing dependency on trees, you decrease deforestation. Fortunately, many technologies are coming out of the woodwork, including biofuels and biogas (fermented cow dung that produces methane to use as cooking fuel).
So now there are ways of getting away from wood. Biogas can go straight into your generator and provide free electricity. MRWUA may be able to buy some, have some demonstrations and teach local people about that alternative. This is what people should pay for.
LIPPA WOOD The main source of fuel here, including for cooking, has been firewood. So, it’s important to find alternatives such as biogas, which is readily available here since livestock is the Maasai’s main livelihood. It is an easy and very sensible form of energy to use. Technologically, it is not that difficult to get cooking gas out of biogas.
Alternative sustainable ways forward like biogas need to be introduced here. It’s just a matter of education and having the technology, which is not incredibly expensive. It is affordable and manageable.
TARQUIN WOOD And, it’s sustainable. The best thing is it’s a “forever supply” once you buy the fermentation chamber.
LIPPA WOOD If you have 2 cows, you can survive forever without buying fuel.
TARQUIN WOOD Yes, a family can survive with 2 cows – rather than 10 acres of forest!
LIPPA WOOD Biofuels are one great solution to deforestation and thus helps prevent lower water levels. Another solution is to get local small-holding farms to grow biodiesel in the form of sunflower or canola, and then using generators that run on that biofuel. That they can do themselves. There is a definite market for that.
NWNL Thank you both so much for sharing your experiences in facing conservation challenges and commitment to finding solutions such as biofuels, biodiesel and especially the MRWUA/Mara River Water Users Association to spread the word and inspiration.
Posted by NWNL on July 4, 2024.
Transcription edited and condensed for clarity by Alison M. Jones.
All images © Alison M. Jones, unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved.