Rising sea could swallow Mombasa in 20 years

• How climate change threatens coastal town’s 800,000 people and tourist wealth

The scientists do not offer a precise timeline when the worst of these effects will take hold.

But, according to the Kenya Meteorological Department, some of the dramatic changes will be seen in as few as 20 years.

According to the new book, Mombasa faces significant challenges due to the failure to enforce physical planning by-laws down the years, which has resulted in mushrooming of illegal structures and blocking of access roads.

It calls for swift action to ensure that the city is spared the worst effects of climate change, due to its economic and strategic importance.

Mombasa town clerk Tubmun Otieno told the Sunday Nation on Saturday a number of steps hade been taken to open blocked drainage pipes, which have long been blamed for floods in the area.

“It is true that the drainage system in Mombasa collapsed a long time ago. But we have recently taken a number of measures to address this. We have unclogged drainage pipes. It rained last night (Friday) but if you come to Mombasa, you will not see stagnant water,” he said.

Mr Otieno said the council was working with the urban planning department of the ministry of local government to develop a masterplan to improve the town’s drainage system.

But the town clerk admitted the city does not have a climate change policy or a budget for mitigation measures.

He said a climate change strategy should be formulated at the national level and then implemented in partnership with local authorities.

Dr Mariga shared those sentiments.

Scientists say human activities such as driving cars and using coal-powered plants to derive electricity contribute to global warming because they release carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. These gases act like a blanket which traps heat that would have normally exited into outer space, contributing to rising temperatures on earth.

The effect of the accompanying climate change is particularly acute in coastal areas, because of the rise in sea levels triggered, scientists say, by the melting of continental ice sheets and thermal expansion of water.

However, this is a gradual process, estimated to be happening at the rate of a few millimetres a year. Despite this slow rise, scientists project that the long-term impact may see entire islands such as Zanzibar disappear completely in 100 years.

Mombasa is the main sea port serving Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Congo, Southern Sudan and parts of Tanzania.

It is also one of the main magnets for tourists choosing to spend their holidays in the country. Mr Khalid Salim, head of public relations and corporate affairs at the Kenya Tourist Board (KTB), says 65 per cent of tourists visiting Kenya go to the Coast.