Les Kaufman Co-Authors Article on Fisheries and Water Level Fluctuation

Prof. Les Kaufman, a Faculty Research Fellow at the Frederick S. Pardee Center for the Study of the Longer-Range Future, recently co-authored an article that will be published in the journal Ecohydrology.

The article, titled “Fisheries and Water Level Fluctuations in the World’s Largest Desert Lake,” explores how the fisheries of Lake Turkana in Kenya — which are essential to livelihoods in the region — will respond to changes in water levels. Water level fluctuations, particularly seasonal oscillations, have a significant impact on fisheries production in many African lakes. For Lake Turkana, the fishery is predicted to collapse with a 25-meter water level decline, resulting in severe habitat loss in the lake’s Turkwel Sector, home to the region’s highest human population densities, and in the North Sector, where inter-tribal conflict over resources is already common. The authors recommend immediate efforts to implement a water resource management plan to ensure the continued ecological functioning of the lake.

As a Pardee Center Faculty Research Fellow, Prof. Kaufman is researching the connections between climate change and human health impacts in India and Cambodia. Click here to learn more.