—Geological and Natural Heritage

The Baringo Great Rift Valley Geopark

The Baringo Great Rift Valley (BGRV) Geopark is part of the vast Afro-Arabian Rift system that extends for approximately 6000km from the Gulf of the Suez, in the Middle East through the Red Sea to Mozambique. The proposed Baringo Great Rift Valley Geopark in Kenya is part of the East Africa Rift System (EARS); its geologic structure is characterized by steep-fault scarps, deep gorges, step-faulted blocks, cliffs, escarpments, box faults, lakes system, cinder cones and craters on the rift floor, gushing geysers, and hot springs; to name a few. Additionally, there are volcanic, sedimentary, and metamorphic rocks; the older Proterozoic metamorphic rocks occur in a small region in the north, while the larger part of the geopark is covered by volcanic rocks.

The region is characterized by faults such as the Saimo Fault, which delineates Tugen Hills in the west, while on the eastern part there are series of fault scarps forming the Laikipia Rift Border Fault. Baringo- Bogoria Basin (BBB) lies west of the Saimo Fault in the rift floor and is 50km long and 20 km wide.

The geopark has rich geothermal resources that are being exploited for purposes of energy production and indicated oil deposits and economic resources like extremophiles, natural spas diatomite, ruby, vermiculite, fluorite, bentonite, carbon dioxide, sand, and ballast.