Due to growing human activities in its watershed, Lake Victoria, the second biggest source of fresh water in the world, becomes progressively enriched with nutrients and is now considered as eutrophic.
One of the main consequences of eutrophication is the proliferation of macroalgae and/or photosynthetic microorganisms. These blooms disturb the functioning of the ecosystem as well as its uses, such as water supply and recreative activities, in particular when the bloom-forming species are toxic.
Funded by the French Facility for Global Environment (FFEM) and co-funded by the French Development Agency (AFD), French and African research teams worked for the past 4 years on the assessment of the water quality and the vulnerability of three lakes used for drinking water production in three African countries (WaSAf programme). In Uganda, these studies have been performed on Murchison Bay and Napoleon Gulf.
