Ashanti region’s water security is facing a growing threat as two of the main treatment plants supplying the Greater Kumasi metropolis are gradually being choked by silt and heavy pollution of plastics.

According to the management of the Ghana Water Limited (GWL), the Owabi Treatment Plant is already 75 per cent clogged with fine sand particles and plastics, while the Barekese dam, the largest treatment facility, has lost 40 per cent of its total water holding capacity to silt.

Officials fear that without urgent dredging and stronger protection of the water bodies, thousands of homes could face serious water shortages within the next two years as climate change worsens the situation.

The Owabi Treatment Plant supplies potable water to thousands of homes in the Greater Kumasi metropolis, processing about 3 million gallons of water daily.

However, the water resource feeding the facility is, in recent times, suffocating with heavy plastic pollution and fine sand particles.

The once-crystal-clear water resource is now a pale shadow of its former self, turning into a dirty and milky mixture.

The poor state of the water resource has compelled Ghana Water Limited to task workers to regularly clear up the waste.

Chief Manager at the Ashanti Production Region of Ghana Water Limited, Dr Hanson Mensah-Akutteh, said, “This is even more serious because the volume that is now left on the surface of the reservoir is just small, and this cannot even take us to a year if there is a serious climate variability."

At the Barekese dam, although the water appears clearer, it is heavily choked with sand, drastically reducing its water-holding capacity.

The water distribution company attributed the recent development to fast encroachment on the banks of the water resource, including settlement and farming activities.

Management warns that without immediate intervention, thousands of homes that depend on the two dams could struggle for potable drinking water in the coming years.

“People have degraded the forests. They’ve developed lands along the catchment area – the whole system is being weeded into the river course, and the river base is highly silted,” he said.

He warned that: “In the next two to three years, if there is a serious climate change of drought/dryness, Kumasi will be out of water”.

During a working visit to the sites, the Managing Director of Ghana Water, Adam Mutawakilu, bemoaned the state of the facility and assured urgent action to save the plants from total collapse.

“The Barekese dam has a gauge at the deep, middle, and top levels. Currently, we can’t extract water from the deeper part,” he added.

He indicated that: “There is at least revenue for the dredging, based on which we have requested commitment authorisation from the finance ministry. It is my hope that it will be approved on time so that we can kickstart the dredging”.

Meanwhile, a special national security task force is expected to be around the water bodies to safeguard them from any encroachment.