CHAPTER ONE

GENERAL INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of Study:

Land use involves the management and modification of natural environment or wilderness in to build environment such as settlement and semi-natural habitats such as arable fields, pastures, and managed woods. It is the total of arrangements, activities, and inputs that people undertake in a certain land cover type such as recreational, transport, agricultural, residential, and commercial. Land use change is a process by which human activities transform the natural landscape, referring to how land has been used, usually emphasizing the functional role of land for economic activities (Dabrowski, 2013).

All land uses have an effect on water quality and quantity whether positive or negative. In built-up areas with pavement and buildings, little rainfall soaks into the soil, causing high runoff, stream flows with high peaks and low flows in between, and poorer water quality. Rapid changes in land use and land cover pattern have exerted an irreversible change on different natural resources, and water resources in particular, throughout the world (Chu, 2013).

Land use and water resources are inextricably entwined. The need to quantity and quality of water resources can impact potential land uses and land management practices, while water availability is a pre-requisite for land uses requiring irrigation (Ding, 2015). Land use and land management changes impact water resources, for example through changes in catchment yield, infiltration rates, dissolved organic carbon and nutrient transfers. Thus, land use and land management practices affect the eco-hydrological processes in combination with other factors such as the topography of the basin, the hydrological properties of agricultural land and the rainfall characteristics (Dabrowski, 2013).

In many regions of the world, already-scarce freshwater resources are under an unprecedented amount of stress from different drivers and pressures, including urbanization, land use change, population growth, increased food/water demand, and climate change (Glieick, 1993). It has been well reported that the cumulative effects of both natural and anthropogenic activities have significant impacts on land use, which ultimately affects the services provided by the local ecosystems. For instance, it affects their ability to provision and regulate fresh surface water and groundwater. This is exacerbated by the lack of water governance and inadequate infrastructure

Recognizing this problem, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) highlights the necessity of clean water for achieving different goals pertaining to the environment like Goal 6, Clean water and sanitation; it say, safe and affordable drinking water for all by 2030 requires that we invest in adequate infrastructure, provides sanitation facilities, encourage hygiene, protecting and restoring water related ecosystems. Goal 14, Life below water and human well-being; aim to sustainably manage and protect marine and coastal ecosystems from pollution, as well as address the impact of ocean acidification. Enhancing conservation and the sustainable use of ocean based resources through international law will also help mitigate some of the challenges facing our oceans.    And Goal 2, Zero hunger; it seeks sustainable solutions to end hunger in all its forms by 2030 and to achieve food security. The aim is to ensure that everyone everywhere has enough good-quality food to lead a healthy life. Also along these lines, a recent study found that more holistic and integrated land use management practices could help achieve SDGs related to water, food, health, and climate change (United Nations, 2015). Water governance has an important role to play in this kind of holistic integrated land use management.

With the coming of industrialization and civilization in Africa, the land has been greatly exploited for different purposes like agricultural and infrastructural activities. These activities has in turn affected the geomorphology, soil properties, hydrological processes and hence water quality and quantity thus, the ecological integrity of aquatic ecosystems ( Keesstra et al., 2018).

1.2 Statement of Problem

The land use changes in Bambili have greatly been in the domain of  different agricultural activities, infrastructural developments and waste disposal, meaning Bambili actually has not been left out of the problem of  water scarcity. For example, in the Bambili village especially the university zone, most students, dump their waste in to gutters and small streams or on open space which are later washed away by surface runoff into big rivers, hence contaminating the water bodies rendering the water unfit for used. Also, due to increasing population in Bambili especially around the university zones, natural vegetation has been destroyed and replaced with buildings like hostels and commercial buildings. This has greatly led to a reduction in the water table that could provide wells or spring water and thus increasing the problem of water scarcity in bambili.  The agricultural activities like cattle rearing on hill tops has led to over grazing and the destruction of water loving plants especially around the water sources. All these land use activities influences the quality and quantity of water in Bambili in one way or the other.

For the past years water scarcity has been a significant problem in bambili in terms of quantity and quality. Most often, Student and other people living in most neighborhoods have to travel long distances in search of portable water. Most often, people carry heavy or big gallons and containers to be able to fetch the water in larger quantities when the water is available and store.     

The Chinese government in an attempt to assist the Cameroon government with this problem of water scarcity in the area in the year 2018/2019 emerged with a project to bring water to Bambili from Bamenda main town but that did not solve the persisting problem of the area.

Thus the problem of water scarcity in bambili is a critical issue if not resolved today, the consequences on the ecosystem and the local population will be increasing as days goes by due to the inflow of students year in and out swelling the population of the area who will definitely be in need of portable water for consumption and other household uses like cleaning, bathing cooking and many other activities.

1.4 Research Question

1. Main Research Question
2. In which way has land affects water quantity and quality in bambili?
3. Specific Research Questions
4. What are the land use changes activities that have impacted water quantity and quality in bambili?
5. Which strategy can be put in place to remedy the impacts of land use changes on water quantity and quality in bambili?

1.5 Research Objectives

1. Main Research Objectives
2. To examine the impacts of land use changes on water quantity and quality in bambili.
3. Specific Research Objectives
4. To identify and categorize land use change activities, impacting water quality and quantity in bambili.
5. To propose strategies geared towards the reduction of the effects of land use changes on water quality and quantity in bambili.