Abstract:
Climate change is a contentious topic. There is evidence of climatic shifts globally.
The change in climate over time is natural and expected. However, industrialization
during the past century may have influenced variations exceeding natural cyclic
change. This paper presents findings on research done to determine if there has
been a significant change in intensity and amount of rainfall received in Eldoret
town occasioned by recent flooding and to stimulate further research. Engineers have a duty in the determination of peak storm discharge for sizing of
hydrologic structures for safe conveyance of discharge. Hydrologic design use
either empirical or deterministic methods based on historical data. Based on the
recent weather patterns, the question is whether the historical data can still be used
as a basis for providing accurate possible future events for hydrologic design. Different analytical methods were formulated to investigate different rainfall
indices for 50 years using data from Eldoret Meteorological Station. Results are
indicative of decreasing but more intense rainfall events with variations exceeding
natural climatic cycles previously experienced. Could this be climate change?
Despite the localized nature of this research, it is indicative of the global change in
rainfall trends being experienced.
