WRC intensifies efforts in regulating water use.

1st Dec 2021 | Source: GNA

As part of its mandate in regularizing activities of waters users, the Water Resources Commission(WRC), has intensified efforts in the provision of water use permits for abstraction in the white Volta Basin.

The water use permit is for the abstraction of water for aquaculture, commercial, agricultural, and irrigation purposes.

This is per the WRC Act 1996, Act 522 under the regulation of the use of water resources, which indicates that a person shall not divert, dam, store, abstract, or use water resources or construct or maintain any works for the use of water resources without authorization.

The effort is in line with the decentralization of Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) plans revised in 2015 with a basin board commissioned in 2018 to help in the conservation, development, and utilization of water resources.

The IWRM plan aimed to contribute to the provision of a sufficient supply of good, quality surface water and groundwater as needed for sustainable, balanced, and equitable use.

Also, to contribute to the mitigation of effects of floods, droughts as well as provide appropriate water management with efficient and transparent governance in the sector either at the local or district, or basin level.

Mr Andrew Asaviansa, Assistant Basin Officer in a presentation at a stakeholders meeting held in Bolgatanga in the Upper East Region noted interventions carried out by WRC with collaborative interventions from other stakeholders such as the Blue Deal in the harmonisation of the Kpasenkpe Sub-Basin IWRM plans highlighted the long and short term activities to be carried out.

He said the Bongo River Tree Restoration Project led by Tree-Aid Ghana, the Sustainable Land and Water Management Project (SWLMP), preparation of Water Security Plan for the Bongo and Bawku West Districts, and capacity building of Research, Technical Institutions, and young water managers in tertiary schools were but a few milestones achieved.

He however noted, heavy pollution due to indiscriminate dumping of liquid and solid waste, farming along buffer zones and within reservoir catchment, siltation of the river tributaries, sand winning including open defecation, greywater from adjoining communities car washing activities into the water resource remain a challenge.