The Ghana Water Company limited (GWCL), has lamented effects of illegal mining activities on its production capacity, as it currently produces forty percent below its national production capacity.
According to the company, almost all of its major treatment plants across the country have been shut down.
Speaking to Citi News, the Head of Corporate Communications at the Ghana Water Company, Stanley Martey, explained that their production has been particularly hit severely in the Eastern and Western Regions.
“…Our major treatment plants have been affected in almost every region. Notably from Upper East, Upper West, Northern, Brong Ahafo, Ashanti Region, Greater Accra, Volta, the Eastern Region is worse, Western Region is terrible and Central Region is also faced with similar challenges. So almost every major treatment plant that we have in the country is somehow being affected.”
Mr. Martey further noted that, some of their plants are producing below 40% capacity.
“Averagely in the country, we are producing about 60 percent of the capacity of our treatment plants. There are some treatment plants that are producing below 40%, some are around 60% and some are slightly above 60%, so I will say averagely 60%. It is not the best, it is not cost efficient, but we still have to supply water to our people so we are doing all that we can to ensure that our people have access to water. But with some of the treatment plants, it’s not cost effective at all to be treating water at this time,” he added.
Some water treatment plants in neighbouring Ivory Coast have been shut down following activities of illegal miners in Ghana, which they claim is affecting water bodies in that country.
According to the Minister of Environment, Science and Innovation, Professor Kwabena Frimpong Boateng, he was confronted with the situation when he went to Ivory Coast for a conference.
“I was in Abidjan from Wednesday to Saturday for a conference and I was confronted with galamsey almost immediately on the effects that the galamsey in Ghana is having on Ivory Coast because River Bia enters Ivory Coast almost at the lower thirds. And Tano enters the Lagoon and it is polluting the Bia lagoon so they cannot even treat water in some of their treatment plants.”
“So they [Ivorians] took advantage of my presence to organize a press conference. I met the Minister for Environment and the Mining Minister and they asked me to speak to their people. I made it clear to them that we are very serious to stop galamsey and I was able to convince them that indeed we are serious. The good thing is that, they always made reference to the good relationship between Ghana and Ivory Coast and especially between Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo and the President of Ivory Coast,” Prof. Boateng added.
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(Via: CitiFM Online Ghana)
