The Parliamentary Select Committee on Water Resources, Works and Housing is to be apprised by the Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) on the circumstances leading to the acute water shortage that has hit the Nsawam community and its environs.
Despite the belief that the dry season has led to the situation, it is presumed that human activities along the edges of the Densu River, the main source of water supply to the Nsawam Head Works, had largely contributed to siltation in the river and the subsequent scarcity of water.
The maximum capacity of the head works is 17 meters, but currently the water level has gone below its minimum of two meters.
This situation has led to the worrying sight of people carrying different receptacles in search of water in the nook and cranny of the community, affecting work, trading, school attendance and general social life.
But officials of the GWCL told the Committee which was on a fact finding mission to Nsawam on Tuesday that although the Company was doing all it could to ameliorate the situation, the short fall in the volume of water was part naturally caused and part human made.
Mr Stanley Martey, Communications Manager of the GWCL explained that the activities of illegal miners upstream had stalled the flow of water to the part of the Densu River that flowed through the water works.
He said the GWCL was making serious efforts through the adoption of several interventions, including the dredging of the river and damming the catchment areas close to the river to impound and retain rain water for constant supply of water to the head works, which has not been operating at full capacity because of the disastrously low water level.
Additionally, the GWCL in the short term was looking at geophysical studies to explore the possible of harnessing ground water to feed into the system and also recommended sub-basin water transfer from the Weija dam and the Volta Lake to feed the Densu at intake point of the water head works at Nsawam, Mr Martey added.
Mr Martey told the Select Committee that the GWCL was not only facing that problem at the Nsawam Heads works but at other parts of the country due to illegal activities on water bodies.
He urged Parliament to look at ways of empowering communities with legislation to protect the country’s water bodies.
In the interim, the GWCL and the Nsawam/Adoagyiri Municipal Assembly have been supplying areas worst affected by the crisis with tanker water, as well as health facilities, the Nsawam Prisons and educational institutions.
Mr Frank Annor Dompreh, MP for the areas and the National Security were also assisting with relief water supply.
Mr David Tetteh Asumeng, MP for Shai Osudoku and Chairman of the Committee said Parliament expected the GWCL and other water agencies to do all they could to improve the situation for the people.
He directed the Company to be ready to brief the Committee on Thursday, February 18, 2016.
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