The ecological study focusing on Likangala River was conducted during the recent (2012) Lake Chilwa recession and aimed at identifying the important pools and the impact of indigenous ecological knowledge on the use and management of the aquatic biodiversity in the pools. An extensive georeferencing of the pools, field observations, and measurement of the pool depths was conducted to locate and map the deep pools along the river. Garmin Etrex Venture HC, GPS, and georeferencing were used to obtain the points and locate the place. Oral interviews with local leaders were conducted to understand the use and management of the pools by communities. The study showed that Likangala River has 17 pools with depths ranging from 1.85 m to 3.6 m. The pools act as habitats and feeding and spawning ground for various aquatic biodiversity. The study further found that some important deep pools have apparently become shallower during the past few years due to increased silt deposition from the upper part of the catchment. The study shows that deep pools are very important during Lake Chilwa recession and recommends the participatory fisheries management as the best way of sustaining the aquatic biodiversity and endangered species in Lake Chilwa basin.

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This paper examines the linkage between resource scarcity and conflict during the 2012 Lake Chilwa water level recession. Ecosystem degradation and resource scarcity negatively affect many poor people dependent on aquatic systems such as river floodplains and wetlands. The need to identify and implement innovative measures to manage the scarce resources in these systems has sometimes resulted in conflicts among the various resource users such as fishers, farmers and political groups. However, the direct causal links between resource scarcity and conflict are contested and the evidence base is weak. Using empirical evidence from focus group discussions and in-depth interviews conducted at Chisi Island of Lake Chilwa as a case study, we define the governance groups (vertical and horizontal) and the direct causal links between environmental scarcity and conflict during the 2012 lake recession. We argue that the actual risk of increasing conflicts caused by resource scarcity will depend on the level of vulnerability of populations, ecosystems, economies and institutions in the context of authority, legitimacy and capacities to effectively manage resource scarcity.

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