Abuakwa South MP has raised fresh alarm over the devastating impact of illegal mining on the Birim River, after a working visit revealed that turbidity levels have soared to about 50,000 NTU and the local water treatment plant has been shut down since August 2025.
The MP, accompanied by the District Manager of the Ghana Water Company Limited in Kibi, inspected the river to assess the damage caused by galamsey activities.
He described the once life-sustaining water body as heavily polluted and a growing threat to communities that depend on it for clean water.
“Standing beside the muddy waters, I witnessed the troubling state of a river that has sustained our communities for generations. Its destruction threatens our access to clean water and places a heavy burden on the people who depend on it,” he said in a Facebook post.
In response, the legislator announced that he is embarking on a live media tour of all galamsey sites across the constituency.
The tour, he explained, is aimed at exposing those he described as “nation wreckers,” bringing the full scale of the environmental destruction to public attention, and demanding accountability.
He called for urgent and coordinated action to halt illegal mining, protect the Birim River, and restore water treatment operations.
“We need urgent, coordinated action to stop illegal mining, protect the Birim and restore water treatment operations. Our communities deserve clean water, and future generations deserve a living river. The Birim is our lifeline. We cannot afford to lose it,” he stated.
The shutdown of the Kibi water treatment plant since August 2025 has heightened concerns about water security in the area, with the MP’s planned tour expected to intensify pressure for decisive intervention against galamsey along the Birim.
Also read:
