Mpanga-Site-Visit-Re.. - Cycad Specialist Group

Site Visit
When QL was invited to attend an IUCN workshop in Entebbe, he took the
opportunity of planning a visit to the Gorge to see the current situation with the
Cycads. Dr James Kalema made arrangements for the visit, but due to University
teaching commitments was unable to accompany the team and therefore detailed
his assistant, Dennis Kamoga to accompany them. The team, now consisting of
QL, PL, Dr Wendy Foden, Programme Officer (Climate Change) of IUCN Species
Programme and DK, set out for Mpanga from Kampala on the morning of 21 st
August and arrived at Kamwenge in the afternoon. A representative of the
contractor, Mr LPD Dayanandra had been waiting for the team and returned to the
Gorge with them in the late afternoon. The dam site was visited first (photo 2)
where the small scale of the dam wall was noted. The most shocking sight was the
large area of grassland occupied by cycads, that had been recently burnt by the
local owners of the eastern side of the Gorge (pers comm. Dayanandra – photo 3).
An attempt by the contractor to remove some of the bigger cycads from an island
within the impoundment area was evidently in progress (photo 4). The minimum
flow (during the dry season) along the river from the dam to the falls and down to
the powerhouse is set by two pipes in the dam wall of 450mm diametre each (one
shown marked in red in photo 5). A very brief visit (as it was getting dark) was
made to the powerhouse, a few kilometres down river, followed by a brief visit to
the contractor’s staff encampment on a ridge overlooking Lake George.
Photo 2. Mpanga Dam Wall