Farmers in seven out of 10 African mountain sites are seeing reduced fog, an important source of water for plants, revealed a new survey published in Nature Climate Change.
The seven regions include Kilimanjaro and Udzungwa in Tanzania, Kigezi in Uganda, Mount Kenya and Aberdare in Kenya, Nyungwe in Rwanda and Itombwe in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Reduced fog can be driven by increased temperatures, which, in turn, causes rising cloud base or overall reduced cloud incidence in mountain regions, the study highlighted. It also called for further investigation of the reported widespread reduction in fog.
Risks to livelihoods and economy from changing mountain water resources are low in Central Africa and moderate in East Africa, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change estimated.
The authors of the study explained that the intergovernmental body did not consider fog in their assessment.
Further, all 10 sites, including Bale (Ethiopia), Kibira (Burundi), and Bamboutos (Cameroon), saw fewer foggy days.
Nearly all sites experienced other climatic changes, including increased temperatures, changes in rainfall amount and distribution, an increase in extreme droughts, fewer hailstorms and increased wind strength during the rainy season.
With a population of 228 million people, the African mountain regions have the second highest population density in mountain regions of the world, after Asia.
Studies have shown that mountain regions need urgent adaptation measures due to rising temperatures and changing rainfall. “Yet knowledge of where and how climate change adaptation is happening in African mountain regions remains extremely limited,” the researchers wrote.
So the team conducted a survey of 1,500 farmers across 10 African mountain regions on the perceived climate change impacts and adaptation responses.
Farmers from nearly all sites reported climate change-related impacts such as reduced stream flow, crop yields and cow milk production, increased soil erosion, crop and livestock diseases and reduced human health.
Farmers in Kibira, Burundi reported an increase in malaria prevalence and influenza. In Aberdare, Kenya, farmers claimed more respiratory diseases, while waterborne diseases like cholera, typhoid, dysentery were reported in Udzungwa, Tanzania. These results require further investigation, the researchers wrote.
The survey showed that farmers in nearly all sites are adapting to the changing climate by changing planting dates, sowing seeds again if a batch doesn't germinate, changing to improved crop varieties, increasing use of soil conservation techniques, irrigation, fertiliser, pesticide and veterinary care. They are also diversifying into off-farm labour.
“Overall, results show that African mountain farmers respond to climate change impacts by using multiple adaptation responses, most of which focus on intensifying farming practice,” reads the study.
The researchers noted that most adaptation practices by farmers were more behavioural rather than technological, infrastructural or ecosystem-based.
As for early warning systems, the survey revealed that it was absent in most sites. However, in Mount Kenya, which has this system in place, respondents said they did not use them as the radio forecasts were not accurate. Early warning systems analyse and identify potential weather- and climate-related risks and hazards.
The study also identified three priority areas for climate change adaptation in mountain areas. These include providing improved access to credit, technical skills and markets, increased knowledge exchange among local farmers and extension services and developing better national policies and governance so they do not exacerbate rural landlessness, inequality and food insecurity.