The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
Jinja, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Several divers from the Uganda People’s Defense Forces-UPDF marine unit have been deployed to assess the extent of silting in Lake Victoria and River Nile; days after a floating island affected the operations of Nalubaale, Kiira and Bujjagali power dams.
The divers, who started their assignment on Tuesday evening, will also assess the threats of the current debris to aquatic life in the country’s major water bodies.
George Musinguzi, the UPDF Spokesperson in Busoga sub region, says they have teamed up with experts from the National Environment Management Authority and National Fisheries Resources Research institute-NAFIRRI to ensure that their operations are nondestructive to aquatic life.
He says there are several floating islands on Lake Victoria, which has prompted engineers to employ push boats that can easily enable their excavators to uproot them on the shores.
The Works and Transport Minister, Gen. Edward Katumba Wamala who inspected River Nile on Tuesday tasked NEMA officials to enforce the 200meter shoreline barrier all over the country’s water bodies, which he says will save government from related disasters.
“It seems like the lake is reclaiming its’ land that was taken by farmers and other developers, this is the right time for NEMA to ensure that, encroachers go off the shores,” he said.
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