Glaciers, Nature, Water, and Local Community in Mount Kenya (International Perspectives in Geography, 17)

This book describes the challenges for the natural environments and local communities in the future. Among the high mountains of Africa, only Kilimanjaro, Mount Kenya, and the Rwenzori Mountains are still capped with glaciers. The retreating rate of these glaciers has accelerated, and they are expected to disappear in the near future. In the area around Mount Kenya, the precipitation is generally low, such that rainfall cannot stably supply water for farmlands and daily life. It has been revealed that the glacial meltwater has produced springs at the foot of the mountain. It is therefore important to characterize the condition of water sources near Mount Kenya for use by local people. This book discusses the relationships between the actual state of the climate and glacier shrinkage around Mount Kenya, the surrounding vegetation, soil, and water environments, and the lives of the foothill region inhabitants confronting the glacier shrinkage. This book is valuable in the contemporary age, when the assurance of a sustainable relationship between nature and mankind is critical. Preface Contents Editors and Contributors Glaciology: Mass Balance of Very Small Glaciers on Mount Kenya During 2016–2018 1 Introduction 2 Study Area 3 Methods 3.1 Generation of DSMs and Orthorectified Images from Pleiades Satellite and Cessna Aerial Images 3.2 Accuracy of the Cessna DSM in 2018 4 Extraction of Glaciers on Mount Kenya 5 Mass Balance of Glaciers on Mount Kenya 6 Disappearing Glaciers References Climatology: Seasonal Changes of Rainfall Around Mount Kenya and Its Relation to Atmospheric Circulation 1 Introduction 2 Rainfall Distribution and Its Seasonal Changes Around Mount Kenya 3 Relationship Between Seasonal Changes in Rainfall and the Atmospheric Circulation Field 4 Seasonal Changes in Rainfall in the Context of the EWdNSc Area Movement 5 Summary References Hydrology I: Impact of Glacier Shrinkage on the Water Cycle of Mount Kenya 1 Introduction 2 Overview of the Survey Area 2.1 Alpine Zone (Elevation >4000 m) 2.2 Moorland Zone (3200–4000 m) 2.3 Forest Zone (2300–3200 m) 2.4 Mountain Foot Zone (