The Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) has resorted to rationing water to meet demand in the wake of the dry season which has led to a fall in water supply across the country.
The GWCL has described the move as water demand management to enable it to ensure equitable distribution of water to consumers across the country.
Speaking on Adom FM’s morning show, Dwaso Nsem Thursday, Head of Communications at the GWCL, Stanley Martey said environmental degradation and pollution of water bodies by illegal miners is to blame for the water shortage.
He cited how major river bodies like Pra, Black Volta, and others which are their major source of water the treat for consumption have been polluted.
“If we don’t stop the pollution of our river bodies, we can’t treat water for people to drink,” Mr Martey warned.
Aside from the pollution, he bemoaned how consumers use treated water to wash their cars, water their lawns as well as for other domestic chores.
These practices, Mr Martey stated, ease the pressure in the pipelines thereby causing low pressure and no flow in some areas, especially in hilly areas.
He asked consumers to ensure the judicious use of water by, among others, avoiding indiscriminate watering of lawns with treated water, moderating the use of treated water for car washing by resorting to the use of buckets, instead of hosing, shutting all taps when not in use, in their various homes and offices.
Mr Martey warned that Ghana will soon import water if the pollution by illegal mining, known in local parlance as galamsey is not stopped.
He assured the general public that the company, together with the Ministry of Sanitation and Water Resources, was working to improve water delivery in the country.
Listen to him in the audio below:
