A novel strain, designated No. 7(T), was isolated from a sediment sample collected from the alkaline, saline Lake Elmenteita located in the Kenyan Rift Valley. The optimal growth for the strain was found to be at temperature 30-35 °C, at pH 8.0-12.0 in the presence of 7.0-10.0 % (w/v) NaCl. The strain was observed to form a light green beige abundant aerial mycelium on Horikoshi 1 agar and to have morphological and chemotaxonomic characteristics typical of members of the genus Streptomyces. The peptidoglycan was found to contain LL-diaminopimelic acid as the diamino acid, with no diagnostic sugars identified. The predominant menaquinone was identified as MK-9(H6). The main polar lipids were identified as diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylinositol and an unknown phospholipid. Cellular fatty acids were found to consist of saturated branched-chain acids with iso-C(15:0), anteiso-C(15:0), iso-C(16:0) and anteiso-C(17:0) acids predominating. The type strain had a genomic DNA G+C content of 72.8 mol% and formed a distinct phyletic line within the genus Streptomyces. Based on the chemotaxonomic results, 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis and the low DNA-DNA hybridization value with the type strain of Streptomyces calidiresistens, it is proposed that strain No. 7(T) (= DSM 42118 = CECT 8549) represents a novel species, Streptomyces alkaliphilus. The INSDC accession number for the 16S rRNA gene sequence of strain No. 7(T) is KF976730.