To assess the effect of landuse landcover change on Manafwa watershed.
Abstract
A watershed is an area of land that drains all the streams and rainfall to a common outlet such as the outflow of a reservoir, mouth of a bay, or any point along a stream channel. Watersheds can be as small as a footprint or large enough to encompass all the land that drains water into rivers, lakes or even ocean (Poyer Denise, 2009). The world’s 230 watersheds have critical functions in providing water to ecosystems and human communities (GEF, 2019). In Canada, Lake Great Bear provides a unique and special attribute in ecological stance. The watershed is basically intact and primeval ecosystems that stand at the convergence of three of Canada’s fifteen ecological zones. For example, Lake Great Bear is very important to the population surrounding the lake as it provides it with socio-economic benefits like fishing (GIZ, 2015). However, the changes in land cover and land use often affect watersheds and the water in them (MOJA, 2008)
The study intends to assess the impact of human settlement on Manafwa watershed. Human settlement is accompanied with increase in economic activities which may result into destruction of the environment including water resources like watershed. In order to assess the impact, specific objectives which included; human settlement and its effect on bio-diversity and even human activities negatively affecting watershed in the region will be assessed using a journals and use of landsat imagery to produce maps showing the increase of human population around the watershed and its impact on the size of the watershed. Therefore, the researcher will make a conclusion from the obtained information.