Springs as refreshing as their name

Mzima Springs! The name is just as refreshing as a drink from their cool clear waters — or a sight of the springs themselves.

This natural wonder, deep inside Tsavo West National Park in Taita Taveta County, occupies a depression carved out thousands of years ago by volcanic activity, which left in its wake five almost identical hills.

Baptised The Five Sisters, they protectively ring the springs as though keeping watch over their sibling in a baby cot.

Lush vegetation and tall trees shroud the location, contrasting markedly with the vast, brown shrub land that surrounds it.

But Mzima Springs is more than just an engrossing geographic phenomenon; it is the source of life-giving, fresh water that quenches the thirst and sustains lives of millions of people in Mombasa hundreds of kilometres away.

Pumped from deep underground by a force that only Mother Nature can marshal, the fresh clear water bursts to the surface among huge volcanic boulders with a roar that drowns every other sound.

There are several springs, with the water collecting into one large dam before it starts to flow downstream.

One of the biggest springs was routed into a large underground pipe to flow with gravity down to Mombasa. It is ringed by a stone wall and a wire fence with a locked gate.

Because they fall within the park — a protected area — the springs are guarded day and night by Kenya Wildlife Service rangers.

They also provide security as the area teems with wildlife that come to quench their thirst or stalk thirsty prey.

The most common animals are crocodiles and hippopotami. A number of crocs can usually be seen basking lazily on the banks of the dam as they wait for prey.

“The crocodiles are all over this place that is why we have to accompany visitors to ensure they are safe,” a KWS rangers explained.

The fresh waters of the dam also teem with fresh-water fish, the most common being the Tilapia. A glass walled viewing area that extends into the water at the end of a jetty gives visitors a chance to see the fish at close quarters.

Statistics from the Coast Water Services Board indicate that Mzima Springs churns out 35 million litres of water a day, of which 28 million litres is supplied to Mombasa with the remaining seven million litres shared between local residents and the towns of Voi, Mariakani and Mazeras.

Baricho Water Works meets the balance of supplies to the Coast with 71 million litres daily, out of which 54 million litres is supplied to North Coast, Kilifi and Mtwapa and the remaining 17 million litres to Malindi and Watamu.

But even as the seaside populations quench their thirst with water from Mzima Springs, residents of Taita Taveta County remain a thirsty lot.

Mr Gabriel Nyambu, the Taita Council of Elders chairman summed up the region’s bitterness regarding water shortages: “Ever since the colonial government set up the Mzima Springs project in 1945, Mombasa has been getting millions of litres of water daily yet Taita Taveta  gets nothing.
“This is a great injustice. It is now time we got a second Mzima Springs project to supply water to people of Taita Taveta,” he said.

For the KWS, Mzima Springs is a vital national resource that deserves the maximum protection and preservation. According to the area KWS boss Mr Daniel Gitau, unharnessed waters from the springs flows out of the park to join the Athi River from Nairobi. Many miles downstream, the river’s name changes to the Sabaki, which flows into the Indian Ocean near Malindi.

The Sabaki supplies water to Baricho Water Works where it is treated and piped to Malindi town and the larger North Coast. Citing the importance of the Mzima Springs to the Coast, Mr Gitau asked them to suggest ways they could help to ensure the flow continued.

This could be in the way of supporting environmental conservation in the forests around Chyulu Hills – the prime catchment area for the springs – which is under siege from those cutting down trees for wood carvings and charcoal.

“There is an over-exploitation of the forest resources outside the park. So as the people in Mombasa enjoy the water from Mzima Springs, let them know there is need to conserve the source,” he said.