There is no formal protection.Ī new threat to Lake Natron is the proposed development of a soda ash plant on its shores. Although development plans include construction of a dike at the north end of the lake to contain the fresh water, the threat of dilution to this breeding ground may still be serious. Threats to the salinity balance from increased fresh water influxes will come from more projected logging in Natron watersheds and a planned hydroelectric power plant on the Ewaso Ng'iro across the border in Kenya. The area around the salt lake is not inhabitated but there is some herding and some seasonal cultivation. Salt marshes and freshwater wetlands around the edges of the lake do support a variety of plants. The alkali salt crust on the surface of the lake is also often colored red or pink by the salt-loving microorganisms that live there. The red pigment in the cyanobacteria produces the deep reds of the open water of the lake, and orange colors of the shallow parts of the lake. Salt-loving organisms include some cyanobacteria, tiny bacteria that grow in water and make their own food with photosynthesis as plants do. The color of the lake is characteristic of those where very high evaporation rates occur.Īs water evaporates during the dry season, salinity levels increase to the point that salt-loving microorganisms begin to thrive.
Temperatures in the lake can reach 50 degrees Celsius (120 degrees Fahrenheit), and depending on rainfall, the alkalinity can reach a pH of 9 to 10.5 (almost as alkaline as ammonia). The surrounding country is dry and receives irregular rainfall. The lake is fed by the Ewaso Ng'iro River but also by mineral-rich hot springs and is quite shallow, less than three meters (10 feet) deep, and varies in width depending on its water level, which changes due to high levels of evaporation, leaving high levels of salt and other minerals. Lake Natron is a salt lake located in northern Tanzania, close to the Kenyan border, in the eastern branch of Africa's Great Rift Valley.