Assessment of floods and their management practices in river Songwe catchment
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The University of Dodoma
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Dissertation (MSc Natural Resource Management)
Every year flooding of Songwe River has brought severe problems in the lower part of its catchment located in Kyela District. Frequently floods lead to loss of people's lives, destructions of infrastructures and properties. This study made an assessment of floods and their management practices in Songwe River Catchment particularly at Kabanga and Ndwanga villages which are found in Kyela District (Mbeya Region). The specific Objectives were to identify the main patterns of floods, detect the relationships between rainfall and water stages for a long-term period and assessment of the management practices and the roles of the government institutions in the reduction of the flood effect. The study used household survey and key informant interviews to collect data from 83 households and 9 key informants. The collected both primary and secondary data were analyzed through Hydrometeorological Data Screening, Flood Recurrence Interval Theory, Stochastic Hydrological Models and Statistical Parameters. From the findings of the study, an analysis of rainfall at Tenende Weather Station and water levels at Kasumulu Gauge Station helped to identify flood patterns. Particularly, the Songwe River catchment has been experiencing a uni-modal season of rains, where all precipitations fall in one season. The floods were grouped into three categories: floods with single peak; floods with several peaks and sprawled floods. Thus, the study results show that the villages of Kabanga and Ndwanga in Kyela District are affected by floods of different frequencies every year, latrines were flooded which led to an outbreak of waterborne diseases. The study recommends for the introduction and implementation of flood prediction practices, flood policy, and flood fight education.
Every year flooding of Songwe River has brought severe problems in the lower part of its catchment located in Kyela District. Frequently floods lead to loss of people's lives, destructions of infrastructures and properties. This study made an assessment of floods and their management practices in Songwe River Catchment particularly at Kabanga and Ndwanga villages which are found in Kyela District (Mbeya Region). The specific Objectives were to identify the main patterns of floods, detect the relationships between rainfall and water stages for a long-term period and assessment of the management practices and the roles of the government institutions in the reduction of the flood effect. The study used household survey and key informant interviews to collect data from 83 households and 9 key informants. The collected both primary and secondary data were analyzed through Hydrometeorological Data Screening, Flood Recurrence Interval Theory, Stochastic Hydrological Models and Statistical Parameters. From the findings of the study, an analysis of rainfall at Tenende Weather Station and water levels at Kasumulu Gauge Station helped to identify flood patterns. Particularly, the Songwe River catchment has been experiencing a uni-modal season of rains, where all precipitations fall in one season. The floods were grouped into three categories: floods with single peak; floods with several peaks and sprawled floods. Thus, the study results show that the villages of Kabanga and Ndwanga in Kyela District are affected by floods of different frequencies every year, latrines were flooded which led to an outbreak of waterborne diseases. The study recommends for the introduction and implementation of flood prediction practices, flood policy, and flood fight education.
Keywords
Songwe river, Land deterioration, Flood management, Flood, Water-borne diseases, Risk management, Climate change, Flooding, Songwe River Catchment, Flood prediction