The Combined Effect of Human Influence and Climate Variability on Water Bodies. A case study of receding Lake Chad in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Lake Chad is one of Africa’s largest fresh water resources, boarded by four countries (Cameroon, Chad, Niger and Nigeria) and supports the lives of over 30 Million people living around the lake shores. Over the past four decades, Lake Chad has suffered a deterious environmental degradation. Loss of the lakes water due to climate variation has led to increased pressure on the natural resource which in turn has affected the various activities of the people depending on the lakes water. Climate variation coupled with the unsustainable use of the resources is on the increase: this has however increased the pressure on the lakes water which has affected the aquatic and terrestrial ecosystem, quantity and quality of fresh water, grazing land, reduced fish stocks, siltation and loss of vegetation. Against this back drop, this review examined the emerging and future human risk posed by the diminishing water resource of Lake Chad. It also explored how human influence interacts with the effect of climate change to induce the rapid shrinkage of the lake. It however concluded that, the lakes water resource is getting increasingly vulnerable, this vulnerability is due to several factors such as: over-exploitation of natural resources, widespread poverty, poor infrastructure, high illiteracy rates, conflicts, and dependence of a large share of its economies on climate-sensitive sectors (mainly rain-fed agriculture). These factors, coupled with limited institutional and technological capabilities, have contributed to the region’s low adaptive capacity. The high physical sensitivity of the region to climate change has resulted in increased average temperatures and rainfall variability, both of which have severely affected food production, water resources, biodiversity, and human and livestock populations. Measures to protect the lake are not being implemented and hence strategic planning for protection and management of the lakes water needs to be put in place. Human activities need to be monitored and legislations set to checkmate the unsustainable use of the resources.