The Niger River is the third largest river in Africa. It
serves as a main transportation route for several countries along the way. Its
fish provides food for many people in West Africa and its water is diverted for
irrigation. Lately the Niger is facing several serious environmental issues in
addition to some of the more traditional problems like pollution. Construction in Bamako and other larger
cities along the river have created a pressing need for quality sand used in
building. Almost every modern building in this part of the world is built with
cement. Whether it’s a 20-story office building or a private home they all are
built out of form cement and cement is mixed with sand. The sand comes from the
riverbanks as well as out of the river itself. Dredging lowers the shoreline
which in turn causes erosion and loss a farmland and fish habitat.
The other big issue, strangely enough is tourism. The
traditional boats called pirogues are either moved by pushing with long poles
or with clunky, laboring motors. Either way they move very slowly. Lately
tourists and the more affluent Malian have taken up speed boating and jet
skis. Not only does the wake from
these fast moving machines erode the riverbanks they also drive the fish away.
I spoke with one fisherman who told me whenever there are lots of those fast
boats on the river his catch is greatly reduced. He said it usually takes a few
days after the boats have gone for the fish to return. When your only source of
income and a big part of your diet comes from fish, speedboats become a serious
problem.
I’ll be headed up north outside Ségou soon so you should be
seeing more of the river and the people living on its banks.