About 60 per cent of Ghana’s water bodies are polluted, a senior scientist at the CSIR-Water Research Institute (CSIR-WRI), Dr Franco Enobrenaco, has warned.

Dr Enobrenaco, of the Groundwater and Geoscience Division, said the situation was largely driven by illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey, which continues to contaminate the country’s rivers and groundwater.

He warned that the remaining 40 per cent of relatively unpolluted water bodies could also come under threat as the population grows and mining activities continue.

Speaking during a presentation at the CSIR-WRI Mid-Year Review 2026 on the theme, *“Can Ghana Heal Her Waters? Toward Sustainable Remediation of Polluted Water Bodies,”* he cautioned that Ghana could eventually be forced to import water if urgent measures were not taken to protect its water resources.

“If we have 100% and 60% of our water bodies polluted, the rest is 40%... We are going to import water. I know that some people are already importing water,” he said.

Dr Enobrenaco called for a two-pronged approach involving the reduction or elimination of illegal mining, the provision of alternative livelihoods for affected miners and strict enforcement of mining laws.

He said efforts to restore polluted water bodies would remain ineffective if the sources of pollution were not addressed.

He also urged authorities to adopt integrated remediation methods rather than relying on a single technology. According to him, polluted water poses serious risks to public health, agriculture, industry and energy generation, while treating contaminated water also comes at a significant economic cost.

Citing the restoration of the Thames River in the United Kingdom as evidence that polluted water bodies can be recovered, he said Ghana could restore its rivers through sustained, coordinated action involving government, researchers, communities and other stakeholders.