Eighty percent of the forest cover that is protecting the Barekese Dam has been destroyed, exposing the reservoir to evaporation, officials of the Ghana Water Company have observed.

Encroachment on the buffer zone of the dam is getting out of control.

This has led to disruption in water distribution to 80% of residents of Kumasi and its environs who source pipe-borne water from the dam.

“The forest cover that is supposed to protect the catchment area has been reduced by 80 percent. In other words, almost all the trees are gone, and the cover has turned into a bare land where farming activities are ongoing”, Ashanti Regional Chief Manager in-charge of Production, Dr Hanson Mensah-Akutteh said.

He indicated that the continuous reduction of water volume in the dam due to the activities of farmers and other encroachers is affecting supply.

Already, some areas like Asokwa, Kwadaso, and others have begun experiencing frequent water shortage.

The dam is badly silted, reducing the water volume by half of its original design.

“Even though we have a reservoir with a capacity of 64 million metre cube, almost half of that volume is currently occupied by silt. If this continues, a time will come when we will have a little volume of water to serve the people of Kumasi which if it’s not available, it means we cannot produce and nobody will get water. So, it’s very important that people who have encroached the buffer zones be forced to move”, Dr Mensah-Akutteh noted.

Though officials from the Ghana Water Company continue to plant trees to protect the dam, the farmers deforest the buffer zone to plant maize and other crops, exposing the dam.

As part of efforts to protect the dam from shrinking and pollution, the Ghana Water Company Limited is courting the support of chiefs within the catchment area to prevent farming along the buffer zones.

Whilst expressing their readiness to join hands and protect the dam, the chiefs also want the District Assembly to enforce the law that frowns on encroaching buffer zones.

“We agree that we are the custodians of lands, but we cannot sell lands that are within the buffer zones. The District Assembly should make sure such people are dealt with”, Nana Kusi Obuodom of Barekese suggested.

According to experts, riverbanks must remain forested to prevent silting and shrinking.

But with the encroachment of the Barekese dam buffer zone going on with impunity, it is just a matter of time for residents of Kumasi to face water scarcity.