Plastic waste accumulating in Lake Malawi endangers over 1,000 unique fish species and disrupts fisheries and tourism, prompting local cleanup initiatives and calls for regional action from Malawi, Mozambique, and Tanzania.
In Cape Maclear, Malawi, plastic pollution is increasingly threatening the biodiversity of Lake Malawi, home to more than 1,000 species of fish found nowhere else on Earth, as debris smothers aquatic habitats and releases microplastics into the ecosystem, according to reports from Travel and Tour World and Mongabay.
Underwater Cleanup Efforts Underway in Cape Maclear
Local divers and volunteers in Cape Maclear have launched an underwater waste removal project to combat plastic accumulation along the lake’s shorelines and waters, targeting debris that harms the marine ecosystem and local economy through impacts on fisheries and tourism, as detailed by Travel and Tour World. The initiative, supported by the HEEED project, removes plastics and other litter to protect aquatic species and maintain ecosystem health, aligning with global efforts to reduce pollution in waterways.
As reported by Travel and Tour World, the HEEED project has made a significant impact in Cape Maclear but requires larger-scale initiatives, including potential partnerships with international organisations such as the Finnish firm Clewat for advanced floating waste collection systems.
Regional Sources and Historical Waste Challenges
Environmentalist Charles Mkoka attributed the lake’s underwater pollution to poor waste handling in upland areas of Malawi, Mozambique, and Tanzania, which share the lake’s shoreline, according to Mongabay. Malawi produces 75,000 metric tons of plastic waste annually, with 80 per cent single-use and non-recyclable, and more than 70 per cent discarded indiscriminately due to a lack of public recycling facilities, as stated in Malawi’s National Waste Management Strategy cited by Mongabay. Mozambique discards 100,000 metric tons of plastic waste annually into the environment, while Tanzania generated 315,000 metric tons in 2018, with 29,000 metric tons leaking into waterways, per IUCN data reported by Mongabay.
Studies Reveal Scale of Lake Shoreline Litter
A study of waste collected by volunteers on three Lake Malawi beaches covering 32 hectares tallied nearly 500,000 items of anthropogenic litter between 2015 and 2018, with 80 per cent plastic, according to Mongabay. The waste endangers human and animal health through microplastic release as it decomposes, entangles aquatic life, smothers habitats, and covers fish nurseries and courtship grounds, inhibiting reproduction, as noted by HEEED and Mongabay.
Government and Community Responses to Pollution Crisis
The Malawi Environment Protection Authority (MEPA) is engaging local universities to map underwater garbage hotspots in the lake to develop a cleanup strategy, according to Mongabay. Aubren Chirwa, MEPA’s environment information education manager, told Mongabay that fishers, divers, and tourists are reporting increasing waste. MEPA forms part of broader efforts, including a UN Sustainable Development Goals partnership aiming to reduce plastic pollution in Malawi’s waters by 50 per cent by 2025 through national audits, waste management strategies, and extended producer responsibility, as outlined by the UN SDGs partnerships page. In 2015, Malawi imposed one of Africa’s first bans on plastic bags amid global concerns over environmental damage, according to a Lilongwe Wildlife Centre report. Ripple Africa supports Beach Village Committees patrolling the lake to confiscate illegal fishing gear like sewn plastic mosquito nets and monofilament nets, which damage the ecosystem by catching small fish, as reported by Ripple Africa.
Fishers, divers, and tourists report rising waste levels in Lake Malawi, where plastic pollution from regional sources continues to threaten unique biodiversity, local livelihoods, and health, amid ongoing cleanup projects, mapping efforts, and sustainability initiatives by authorities and communities.
