Reports of acute water shortage in parts of Ghana are very disturbing. Within the last two weeks, communities including Tamale, Winneba, Ningo Prampram, Sekondi, and Nsawam have been in the media over a severe water crisis facing residents.
As Ghanaians, it is our wish that the crisis gets resolved quickly so that residents in these communities can go about their regular activities unhindered by concerns of where the next gallon or bucket of water for domestic and other uses is going to come from.
However, the reality is that these kinds of water shortages are going to be a regular feature in our lives for a long time to come. They may even get worse unless we begin to take deliberate steps to conserve water to ensure constant availability.
Nature has been kind to us as a people, and each year we are blessed with at least three months rainfall. But we have failed to take advantage of the millions of gallons of water that pours from the Heavens. A lot of the rainwater is allowed to run off into the sea without benefiting us in anyway.
We are told that the cause of the water shortage in the affected communities include the drying up of water bodies from which the Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) draws raw water for treatment and distribution. Other reasons are technical like repair works, damaged pipelines etc.
But the specific case of Nsawam where the Densu river has been allowed to silt and eventually dry up is avoidable. The water crisis in Takoradi has been partly attributed to the activities of illegal gold miners otherwise called galamsey who continue to wreak havoc on the environment as they prospect for minerals locked up in the belly of the earth and mostly under river beds.
We have allowed human activities to interfere with nature to the detriment of the survival of all living things. But it is still not late. We can stop the galamseyers and illegal loggers whose activities pose a threat to us. It takes commitment by the government, all relevant agencies and community members to tackle these problems.
And beyond tackling those who harm the environment, it is also important to seriously begin to emphasise the need for all Ghanaians and communities to conserve water in whichever way is possible. Communities should be encouraged to construct mini-dams and households must be urged to build water reservoirs to store rain water which they can use in the dry season.
Conserving water would also require us to jealously protect the various sources of water, the creeks, rivers, lakes, dams among other sources. It would also mean checking human activities that are inimical to the environment and destroy water bodies.
From the various forecast, it appears the days of long rainfall seasons are over. It is important we adjust and stop expecting rain to help fill up rivers and other water bodies. Historians keep reminding us that the next world war will be fought over water.
And we have no excuse for failing to prepare for the days when we will be experiencing serious droughts. We have been warned in advance, let the experts come out with policies and programs that will lead us to maximising the little rainfall to ensure we have constant water supply to communities.
We must also diversify our sources of water; construct more dug-outs and boreholes etc. Most importantly, let us protect the environment. But in the meantime we urge government to make available water tankers to supply water to communities facing the current shortage.
<<Print>>