ENVIRONMENT-MALAWI: Cyclone Delfina Underscores Existing Damage

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Anderson Fumulani

LILONGWE, Apr 25 2003 (IPS) - -The arrival of Cyclone Delfina may bring a temporary end to water shortage woes in Malawi but electricity black-outs and environmental degradation remain a major problem as the flooding rain water continues to cause havoc.

Heavy rains and the flooding continue to threaten several bridges on the country’s main road network linking the commercial city, Blantyre and Lilongwe, the administrative capital. According to government sources floods have so far killed four people this year, swept away crops and grave-yards, livestock and left several thousand people homeless and houses submerged in water.

In Balaka, some 120 km north of Blantyre, the railwayline linking Nacala Port – where most of the country’s major food supplies are imported – from was washed away.

Meteorological experts warn that Cyclone Delfina – associated with strong winds and heavy rains spotted in the southern parts of the country – will continue to cause flooding and damage to infrastructure.

Donald Kamdonyo, Director of Meteorological Department says Cyclone Delfina, located in Thyolo district and moving south-eastwards, was enhancing the inflow of moist Congo Air and that this would result in heavy rains.

"We expect Delfina to die down into a low pressure area within two days or so but the low pressure area that it will leave behind will continue to bring rains over Malawi for several days to come.

"The predicted rains are likely to cause flooding and water logging in some areas of the country due to heavy siltation in rivers and other waterways, but mid season dry spells should be expected," Kamdonyo said.

"This forecast takes into consideration the fact that tropical cyclones which develop in the Indian Ocean can have either adverse or favourable effects on Malawi rainfall," he said.

The heavy rains are also causing havoc with the electricity lines. But even before the cyclone came to town and for the past two months, Malawians were being subjected to electricity black-outs or waking up to dry water taps in their homes. Industries have reportedly had to shut down operations or use generators running on diesel power for days on end.

The paradox of Malawi’s frequent power cuts is that electricity reaches a dismal population of just over 600,000 countrywide accounting for six percent of the 11.2 million population but even that little is being rationed to keep essential services like hospitals and state security functioning.

The state run Electricity Supply Commission of Malawi (ESCOM) is the country’s single power provider. ESCOM generates a maximum of 240 megawatts through turbine machines generated by running river water. But even that amount was recently reduced to as low as 64 megawatts when the turbine pipes burst after being affected trash and silt from flooding heavy rains.

According to ESCOM a restoration programme is underway and the first machine is expected to be ready for generating onto the power grid in the next few weeks.

Heavy rains and flooding have recently destroyed road infrastructure, communications network and power supply in Malawi adding to the many challenges the country is currently undergoing.

Lucius Chikuni, Commissioner for Relief and Disaster Preparedness, said after a helicopter fly-over to assess the extent of flooding damage that: "I must say I’ve never seen anything like it in my life time. "We must look at the Cyclone Delfina, it has stripped off all the valley areas of green vegetation. But environmental degradation has something to do with it. We must to do something to reverse the situation," he warned.

Government sources recently reported that the country’s entire rural population and 90 percent of the semi-urban dwellers use fuel from charcoal. An estimated 800,000 people trade in charcoal wantonly cutting down indigenous trees and making way for massive soil erosion.

A World Bank study on Malawi reported that charcoal consumption in 2001 was 7.5 million tonnes per annum exceeding the sustainable supply by 3.7 million tonnes and destroying 50-75 hectares of natural forests.

"The social costs attributed to deforestation in 1994 were 55 million United States dollars, 2.7 percent of GDP [Gross Domestic Product], with soil erosion estimated at 165 million dollars, or 8.1 percent of GDP," said the report.

The Government of Malawi report to the World Summit for Sustainable Development (WSSD) in 2002 said: "There has been an estimated 56.8 percent decline in forest cover in the 25 years preceding 1998. The decline has been 2.5 million hectares, a drop from 4.4 million hectares to 1.9 million hectare. In 1975, about 47 percent of Malawi was classed as forest. Presently only 28 percent is forest," the report said. (ENDS/IPS/AF/SA/EN/AF/SM/03)

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