Water Resource Management and Sustainability in Kipkelion West Sub-County, Kenya
Chepngetich Doreen *
Department of Environmental Studies, University of Kabianga, Kenya.
Sitienei Anne
Department of Environmental Studies, University of Kabianga, Kenya.
Kiplagat Andrew
Department of Environmental Monitoring, Planning and Management, University of Eldoret, Kenya.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Indisputably, water is an important resource. On the other hand, sustainable water resource management forms part of the key global development concerns. The present study, therefore, sought to establish sustainable measures used in the management of water resources in Kipkelion West Sub-County, Kenya. The descriptive research design was used in this study. A total of 394 households were surveyed together with interviewing 10 key informants within Kipkelion West Sub-County. The descriptive research design was used in this study. Findings from the present study revealed that for, household use, most residents sourced their water from rivers and streams at 35%, rainwater collection at 25%, springs at 22%, piped water at 11%, water vendors and boreholes at 3% and finally ponds and dams sharing 1%. In addition, most households do not incur any direct financial charges when sourcing for water. It was further pinpointed that negative indicators affected the sustainability of the water resources in Kipkelion West Sub-County and the manner in which the residents manage the available resources. Taken together, stakeholders in water resource management work independent of each other with occasional collective efforts.
Keywords: Water, consumption, management, sustainability.