KASESE – As Uganda joins the rest of the world to celebrate World Environment Day, Kasese District is grappling with a looming environmental crisis. Major rivers, including Mubuku, Nyamwamba, Nyamugasane, and Lubiriha rivers, have been severely degraded by unregulated sand mining, leaving surrounding communities vulnerable to devastating floods.
Years of intensive sand extraction have eroded vital river banks, significantly increasing the risk of flooding in low-lying areas such as Karusandara on the Mubuku River, along with Kyondo, Kanyangeya and Kihara Road near the Nyamwamba River, have been identified as high-risk zones where the landscape has been “eaten up” by mining activities.
In response, the District Disaster Management Committee has officially launched operations to crack down on illegal miners. Kikusa Mustafa, the committee chairperson, emphasized that the goal is not to ban the trade but to ensure it is regulated to avoid further exploitation.
To mitigate the damage, the district leadership is focusing on both enforcement and restoration. Muhindi Eliphaz Bukombi, the Kasese LCV Chairperson called on the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) to enforce the 100 metres rule away from the river if someone wants to carry out any activity near the river so that river banks aren’t tempered with.
As a practical restoration measure, Mustafa announced a district-wide agenda to plant more bamboo trees along the river banks to stabilize the soil and prevent further erosion.
Despite the relentless situation at the river banks, there is a growing success story on the banks of the Nyamwamba River. In Kanyangeya Cell, Nyamwamba division, sand miners have transitioned into environmental stewards.
Mwesige Patrick, the team leader of local sand miners, revealed that in partnership with world-wide fund (WWF), they have established massive tree nursery beds aimed at conserving the evironment and income generation so that sand miners don’t solely depend on sand mining.
By diversifying into stone-crafting and nursery management, these miners are reducing their total reliance on sand extraction and because of this, they ask NEMA to organise sensitisation meetings with them before they resort to arrest and prosecution.
While NEMA moves forward with plans to regulate and issue licenses to prevent river valley exploitation, the mining community is calling for more than just oversight.
Mwesige and his team have urged the government to provide skilling and funding for alternative projects. They believe that with proper investment, miners can transition into sustainable livelihoods that do not threaten the river banks.
As World Environment Day highlights the need for ecosystem restoration, Kasese stands at a crossroads: between the immediate economic demand for sand and the urgent need to protect its rivers from a watery future.
