The Chief Executive Officer of the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA), Professor Nana Ama Browne Klutse, says Ghana's worsening environmental challenges are not just about plastic but about the loss of traditional values that once protected the environment.

She said about three decades ago, Ghanaian “communities lived by strong traditional values that treated forests, water bodies and farmlands as sacred.”

Professor Ama Browne Klutse made these remarks while addressing a gathering of people during the grand durbar of the 2026 Ahobaa Kese Festival, celebrated by the people of Abeadze Dominase in the Central Region on Saturday, 29 August 2026.

The celebration also marked the 30th anniversary since the Paramount Chief of the area, Daasebre Kwebu Ewusi VII, ascended the throne as the Omanhen of the Abeadze Dominase Traditional Area.

The EPA CEO added that "Our forests, water bodies, farmlands and communal spaces were not just treated as resources. They were treated as a sacred inheritance to be safeguarded for future generations."

She observed that today, Ghana is confronted with plastic pollution, improper waste disposal, degradation of water bodies and the burden of single-use plastics because those values of stewardship, discipline and communal responsibility have been eroded.

She said the 30th anniversary should therefore not only be a celebration of the chief's reign but also "a call to revive those enduring values of stewardship, discipline, communal responsibility and respect for nature that defined our society in times past."

She disclosed that the national campaign to eliminate styrofoam and other harmful single-use materials was more than just law enforcement.

"The call to reduce and ultimately eliminate the use of styrofoam is not simply a regulatory intervention. It is a call to change attitudes, protect our environment, safeguard our drains and water bodies, improve public health and promote sustainable alternatives," she said.

She added that while the EPA continued to lead in environmental governance and pollution control, it recognised that lasting change required a cultural reawakening led by traditional authorities.

She commended the Paramount Chief for consistently demonstrating responsible stewardship throughout his reign, noting that his leadership shows how traditional norms can preserve natural heritage.    

The Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) has announced an impending ban on styrofoam and launched a nationwide public awareness campaign to prepare the country for it.

As part of the campaign to educate the public on the dangers polystyrene foam products pose to the environment, officials of the authority undertook a door-to-door sensitisation exercise at Abeadze Dominase ahead of the durbar.

The ceremony also featured the launch of the Abeadze Trust Fund, with Professor Nana Ama Browne Klutse, who chaired the durbar, donating GH₵10,000 as seed capital to support development in the traditional area.