Water pollution is the contamination of waterbodies such as rivers, lakes, streams, and the sea. Ghana is a country that has many rivers, streams, and a few but very important lakes. On the coast of this vast land lays the Atlantic Ocean.

According to UN, out of every four (4) Ghanaians, one (1) has no access to clean water. This statistics is really scaring because for a country which has access and many sources of water, providing clean water for its citizens should not really be a problem. I therefore delve in to unravel the reasons why this is so.

Per the stats given by UN, our last population censors conducted last year says that we about 35 Million Ghanaians in the country. 25% of 35 Million is close to 9 Million people. This means, close to 9 Million Ghanaians do not have access to clean water in the country. This is really astonishing.

Most waterbodies around the country have been polluted by chemicals used in illegal mining. This makes it very difficult and very expensive to treat the water for distribution and consumption in individual homes. Illegal mining (galamsey) can be attributed as the number one cause of water pollution in country. Once in a blue moon, the government will amass some army personnel and clamp down on these miners but after a while, the army leaves and the illegal miners go back to the rivers, destroying them in search of minerals they could sell to earn money. What pushes so many people into galamsey is lack of jobs and even if you secure a job, it pays less. Mining is a dangerous but very lucrative venture, many go in to make quick money because chance of getting a good paying job are scarce like the urine of a lizard.

Plastic pollution in smaller waterbodies around the country is generally minute very massive when it comes to bigger ones such as the sea. The Atlantic Ocean is the most plastic polluted waterbody in the country. The reason for this is that, there many public beaches along the coast and this attracts a lot of people during festive occasions. It is during these occasions that plastic waste is generated in tons and most of them end up in the water. This therefore leads to massive plastic pollution in the sea and the condition is no different from other countries in Africa.

I am confident that education and general psyching of the people is a way out of this menace. The government must do more to ensure that there is enough good paying jobs for the people, this would reduce interest in illegal mining. Enforcement of the regulation protecting plastic waste waterbodies is another way that can really help reduce water pollution in the country.

In my subsequent reports, I will bring all waterbodies in the country and give their current state so far water pollution is concerned so watch out for that.

Green Cheers From Ghana, and Happy Water Month !