SAND WINNING IN RIVER NIGER:  DISASTER WAITING TO HAPPEN

A study by researchers from the Institute for Development Research, Mali, indicates that sand winning from the River Niger in Mali poses not only grave danger to agriculture but also ultimately holds dire environmental consequences.

By Sako ldrissa

            The Niger river-bed upstream is sinking as the years go by due to sand winning activities. Researches from the Institute for Development Research (IRD) have described the phenomenon as contrary to the established idea of siltation of the river.

            According to a researcher from IRD, the river is actually experiencing advancing dune ridges in the downstream of the internal delta area due to wind activity. On other hand, the phenomenon has not been observed in the upstream. Research work conducted, since 2007 by the hydrologists of IRD and their partners, shows that the upstream river bed is sinking and this is due to excessive winning of sand and gravel to serve as building materials especially for the rapid expansion of Bamako, the capital of Mali.

            According to Luc Ferry, Director of Research at IRD, 20 to 40 million cubic meters of sand are extracted from the river bed each year from Koulikoro through Bamako to Kabala. "This is enormous," explains Mr. Ferry who said this at a press briefing to exchange ideas on the Niger-Corte project. After three years of research the expert indicates that the “balance” of River Niger has been disturbed by "sand winners".

            Over sixty sand winning and storage sites can be counted along River Niger. The sub-sector employs about 15,000 people mostly "sand winners" who extract with their bare hands materials from the river bed. The researcher is of the view that the truncation of the river-bed should be several centimetres by now.

            “The reduction of arable land, destabilization of bridges and other facilities, a drop in the water level, depletion of fish resources are some of the effects of the massive and uncontrolled exploitation,” disclosed Mr. Ferry, who added that in years to come the construction of new facilities on River Niger could lead to an acceleration of the phenomenon.

            Extractions from the banks and overflow areas have an ecological and agricultural cost, noted Mr. Ferry, as they deplete fertile arable lands. From the hydrological point of view, explains the researcher, the sinking river bed, at equal flow-rate, leads to a drop in the water level.

            In the long run, overflows into the flood plains would be less frequent with serious consequences for agriculture, a reduction in the “recharge” of the ground water table and difficulty in access to pumping water during minimum flow periods. In terms of ecology, extraction of sand and gravel from the Niger River bed increases water turbidity and disturbs the fish population. It also has adverse effect on fisheries productivity. For the researcher, sand resources which are economically easy to exploit are not inexhaustible and the building industry will have to sooner or later bear in mind this fact.  – Third World Network Features.

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About the writer:  Sako Idrissa is a Journalist at "Les Echos", Bamako. Mali and this article is translated from French by Barbara Zida of Third World Network-Africa.

The above article is reproduced from African Agenda, Issue Vol. 14 No. 3, 2011.

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