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The Effects of Pesticide use on Water Resources in Uganda

Terra MacMillan 0844265

Introduction
Ugandas abundance of rain, favourable climate and soil conditions have created the
perfect atmosphere for agricultural success in the country (Nannyonga et al., 2013). Of Ugandas
241,038 square kilometers approximately 109,914 Km2 (or roughly 45 percent of the total land)
is used for crop farming (Uganda, 2016) as seen in Figure 1 (page 2). Although the great quantity
of crop life creates advantages for the population there are also many negative socioeconomic
and environmental impacts. The development of such high quantities of quality produce relies
heavily on the use of pesticides (Wasswa, et al., 2011). The main concern in relation to the use of
pesticides is the residues that are left on the crops and soil which are then collected by rainwater
and deposited into drainage basins via runoff. The Lake Victoria basin in Uganda is the second
largest fresh-water body on Earth, but it is also identified as the region with the highest number
of activities involving pesticide use in the world. The Lake Victoria basin is the primary source
of fresh water in Uganda; however studies have shown that levels of pesticide contamination
have been rising in recent years.
Developing countries such as Uganda lack the water treatment plants necessary to
properly treat the subsequent contaminated water resulting in the consumption of pesticides and
other contaminants through direct ingestion of untreated water, or indirectly through
consumption of contaminated produce (Nannyonga, et al., 2013). The purpose of this essay is to
determine the impact of pesticide use on the quality of water available in Uganda, and to provide
practical solutions to potential problems that may arise.

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Figure 1: A Map of Land use in Uganda as of 2014 (RCRMD, 2015).

Biophysical Impacts
Effects on the Environment
To keep up with the vast demand for food throughout the world farmers have had to
introduce the use of pesticides to their crops (Kohler and Triebskorn, 2013). Species in Uganda
are most commonly affected by water that has been contaminated by effluent water flow from
crop lands to the Victoria Lake basin. Studies have shown that chemicals such as currently used
pesticides (CUPs) and persistent organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) have been detected in fish,
sediment and water samples derived from the Lake Victoria basin (Arinaitwe, et al., 2016). While
pesticides positively affect the crops ability to thrive, the implications the chemicals have on
wildlife are most often negative. As seen in Figure 2 (page 3) pesticide exposure most often
results in a decline of the population of the species in contact. When there is a decline in
population there is most often a loss of biodiversity of the species (Withgott et al., 2012).

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Figure 2: Documented and evidence based effects of pesticide use on various wildlife (documented- solid line, evidence baseddashed line) (Kohler and Triebskorn, 2013).

Socioeconomical Effects
Pesticides Effecting Water Security
As is common in most countries Uganda mainly relies on surface water as their primary
source for drinking water while it also supplements rain water for maintaining crop lands.
Ugandas largest source for surface water is the Lake Victoria basin. The Lake Victoria basin is
dependent on untreated runoff to replenish its volume and as most land is used for agricultural
purposes the runoff is most often contaminated with pesticides (Nannyonga et al., 2013).

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Being that Uganda is a developing country, it lacks the number of treatment plants
necessary to purify water to a level that is acceptable for drinking for all of the population
(Nayebare et al., 2014). Water treatment plants do exist in the country but are limited to urban
areas. In rural areas and slum communities water treatment consists of boiling at a household
level. While boiling improves the presence of microbial load and total organic carbon (TOC)
present it does little to reduce pesticide contaminants.
Ingestion of pesticides has the most severe effects to humans and other organisms even at
relatively low concentrations see Table 1 (pg. 5) (Kim, Kabir and Jahan, 2016). Prolonged
exposure to pesticides can result in; asthma, diabetes, Parkinsons disease and cancer. Samples
from the Victoria Lake basin have shown that pesticides such as PCBs exist in aquatic
environments in concentrations that may be harmful to humans (Arinaitwe et al., 2016).

Table 1: Lethal Dose, Lethal Concentration and Effects of Pesticide Toxicities (Lorenz, 2006).

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Pesticides Effecting Food Security

Given that pesticides were found to be present in water sources studies were performed to
determine if the contamination was also present in foods such as vegetables and fish that were
grown using the water (Nannyonga et al., 2013). Effects of consuming pesticides through food
sources are the same as those of consuming contaminated water. From Figure 3 (pg. 6) it can be
seen that carrots grown using water from the Victoria Lake basin were also contaminated with
the pesticides, however the concentrations found in the carrots reported are believed to be safe
for human consumption. It is estimated that the Victoria Lake basin provides 220,000 metric
tonnes of fish per year to the population of Uganda (Wasswa, 2011). However this number has
been declining in recent years due to increased agricultural activity causing pesticide pollution to
the fresh water body and to the fish through bioaccumulation. Studies have revealed levels of 16
organochloride residues from pesticides within lake samples ranging from non-detectable to

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15.95 g/kg. Of the pesticide residues found aldrin and dieldrin were the only two that pose a
threat to the freshwater ecosystem based on the threshold effect concentration. Vegetables and
fish being contaminated with pesticides poses an issue for the population of Uganda as locally
sourced produce is the primary food source for many rural areas in the country. Consumption of
pesticides even at low concentrations will have adverse effects on humans and thus should be
avoided. For some areas in Uganda food from contaminated sources is all that is available thus
leaving the population with low food security.

Figure 3: Levels of organochlorine pesticides in carrots from Kampala and Mukona Districts (Nannyonga et al., 2013).

Evaluation
Education of Farmers
Currently the most productive procedure to limit pesticide pollution in the Lake Victoria
basin is to educate farmers on proper pesticide handling and application (Okonya and Kroschel,
2015). Programs that promote safe pesticide use exist in the country but are currently limited to

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crops produced for export; no such programs exist for nonexport produce. Educational programs
are the simplest and most cost effective solution for addressing the contamination of the Lake
Victoria basin however the programs need to be extended to all aspects of agriculture for them to
have a positive effect on the environment. A more extensive education on proper pesticide
handling and storage, proper application frequency and proper use of personal protective
equipment would have advantages to both the environment and the population of Uganda.

Alternative Water Sources

Ugandas main supply of water is derived from surface water sources which, while they
are easily accessed, are often heavily contaminated with chemicals, microbial content and other
pollutants (Nayebare, et al., 2014). Treating surface water to the point of being potable is difficult
in developing countries as it is very costly. Deeper wells grant access to groundwater which is
much safer for consumption in terms of contamination and requires little treatment to be deemed
potable. The construction of wells for rural areas of Uganda would ensure a greater sense of
water security for the communities.

Alternative Pesticides
Another option to improving the overall water quality of the Lake Victoria Basin in
Uganda is to further enforce the international ban on organochloride pesticide use which would
force the country to seek alternative pesticides. Alternative pesticides have a reduced impact on
pollution of water. however they are more expensive than pesticides currently used in Uganda.
Because of the cost it would impose on farmers, switching to alternative pesticides is not a valid
solution to the issues surrounding the contamination of the Lake Victoria basin.

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Conclusion and Recommendations

In conclusion the effects of pesticide use in Uganda have serious impacts on the lives of
the population of their country by negatively affecting their water resources. The amount of
pesticide residues that end up in the surface water of the Lake Victoria basin through runoff put
the health and social aspects of the Ugandan people at risk. It is recommended that the Ugandan
government impose educational programs for all farmers on the proper use of pesticides
including but not limited to: proper personal protective equipment necessary, proper application
frequency and times of application, and proper application concentrations.

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References
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Lorenz, E., S., Potential health effects of pesticides PennState Extension, 2006,
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Okonya J., S., Kroschel J., 2015, A cross-sectional study of pesticide use and knowledge of
smallholder potato farmers in Uganda BioMed Research International, 2015, 9.

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