By Christine Naadu Lartey
Tema, Oct. 31, GNA — Industrial waste discharged into rivers flowing through Tema’s industrial enclave has severely polluted the Chemu Lagoon, killing fish and other aquatic life, Mr Benjamin Bampoe, Urban Roads Engineer of the Tema Metropolitan Assembly (TMA), has said.
Mr Bampoe said the pollution, compounded by siltation from nearby communities, had affected the lagoon’s ability to support aquatic life and contributed to drainage challenges in the area.
He disclosed this when officials of the TMA led a delegation of eight Danish politicians and parliamentarians to the lagoon as part of the delegation’s visit to Ghana to familiarise itself with development and security programmes.
He said four major rivers flowed through Tema’s industrial area into the lagoon before discharging into the sea.
According to him, industrial activities involving aluminium, cement, chemicals, oil and metal production contributed to the pollution through the discharge of untreated waste into the rivers.
“Because of all this waste combined, the lagoon can no longer support any fish or water life,” he said.
Mr Bampoe said the TMA was working with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to ensure that factories treated their wastewater before discharging it into the environment.
He stressed that industries must treat their waste at source, noting that attempting to clean the lagoon after the pollutants had entered the water system would not address the problem.
He said sand and mud washed from unpaved roads in nearby communities had also accumulated in the river channels, blocking them over the past 15 years, linking the blocked waterways to the flooding recorded on June 29 this year.
Mr Bampoe, who leads the climate team under the Strategic Sector Cooperation (SSC) programme, said the initiative was promoting nature-based drainage solutions and other green approaches to address flooding.
Mr Mathias Thuborg Madsen, Councillor for Cities, Water and Climate at the Embassy of Denmark, said Denmark would continue to support Ghana through the cooperation programme until 2030.
“We came to the Chemu Lagoon to discuss how we can work together,” he said.
He said the project brought together the City of Aarhus, Aarhus Vand, a Danish water utility company, Ghana Water Company Limited and the TMA.
Mr Madsen said industries were required by law to treat their wastewater before discharging it, adding that local assemblies were primarily responsible for domestic waste management.
He explained that industrial wastewater required specialised treatment and could damage conventional water treatment facilities if not properly managed.
He said the Danish team was also supporting efforts to address water losses from leaking pipelines, improve public water supply and develop affordable, nature-based drainage systems to reduce flooding in Tema.
GNA
Edited by Laudia Anyorkor Nunoo/Knneth Odeng Adade
Reporter: Christine Naadu Lartey, GNA