Swamps

Swamps are muddy, wet lands covered by trees and bushes. The most common plants that grow in swamps are known as papyrus.

• Swamps are sources of raw materials such as clay for pottery and papyrus for crafts.
• Craft materials are a source of income.
•  They are fishing and hunting grounds for edible wild animals. Rural communities catch fish from swamps.
•  Swamps are habitats for aquatic animals. Animals such as snakes, crocodiles and other creatures live there.
•  They are areas used for scientific research. Scientists visit such areas to find new information about the management of swamps.
•  They have pasture for animal grazing. Swamps have trees and grass which animals feed on.
•  Some crops such as rice, sugar canes and yams are grown in swampy areas because they need a lot of water for their proper growth.

Problems associated with the development of various natural resources

Land

As people make use of land to carry out all their economic activities for survival, a number of problems arise. These include the following:

People in most parts of Uganda grow crops using poor farming methods such as overgrazing, over cultivation among others. This leads to soil exhaustion which affect food production. Some places, are densely populated. This causes a lot of population pressure on land as people settle on it resulting into land fragmentation. People usually destroy vegetation which exposes land to the effects of soil erosion. Grading of hills for purposes of construction has affected natural landscape which affects the tourist industry. Cultivating down slopes causes soil erosion leading to soil exhaustion. Once the soil loses its fertility, the yields become low.

Minerals

Problems that arise in the process of mining include:-

Shortage of capital to buy machinery to exploit the minerals. Machines used in mining are imported from abroad and they are very expensive. Some minerals are mined illegally and smuggled out of the country. Smuggling of minerals denies the country revenue in form of taxes. Poor infrastructure which leads to high transport costs of the minerals extracted. Some places which have minerals do not have good transport net work. There is a problem of pollution which harms living things and their natural habitats. For example Petroleum extraction leads to oil spills on land and in the water sources.

Water sources

As people make use of this very important resource, some problems are met. Some water sources are used as dumping grounds. Some people throw rubbish into lakes and rivers. Some industries pollute the water. Water pollution occurs when rubbish, chemicals or biological materials are added to water. The pollutants lower its quality which puts the health of people and animals in danger. Some water sources are contaminated when wastes are channeled before they are treated. There is over fishing which reduces the stock of fish. This means that soon there will be scarcity of fish. Some people pour poison in water as a quick method of catching a lot of fish. This poison kills other animals that live in water. People also lose their lives when they happen to eat such fish caught using poison.

Climate

As people use aspects of climate to meet their needs, a number of problems are faced:-

Some people carry out activities which cause rainfall scarcity. Drought is caused when people drain swamps, cut down trees massively and burn bushes. This practice interferes with the rain cycle leading to climate change. When swamps are drained, the rain cycle is interfered with leading to drought. Long periods of drought affect crop production and this result in of famine.

 Activity

Activity

1.   Visit some physical features in your local area and describe the problems they have caused to the people who live near them.

2.   Suggest some problems experienced by the people who live near rift valley and mountain' areas .

3.   In pairs, make a poster describing the dangers of living near mountains.