Gbetsele dam to dry up if…

The only dam at Gbetsele, a suburb of the Tema Metropolis near Michel camp, is under threat to dry up if immediate measures are not taken to maintain it. The dam, which was constructed during the military regime of General I.K. Acheampong and handed over to the Armed Forces at Michel Camp, is used for growing food crops and rearing farm animals.

Originally, the dam covers a total land area of approximately one and half square kilometres. It is bordered in the North by Gbetsele Township, in the South by Ashaiman-Lebanon, in the East by Kakasunaka and Michel Camp Township and in the West by Zenu, all in the Greater Accra Region.

The dam serves as drinking water for cattle and other livestock bred by the Army and also for fish farming. Additionally, the dam provides water for developers who are putting up buildings in the surrounding areas. Interestingly, Water Health, a non-governmental organisation, gets water from the dam, which it distills to serve people living at Zenu and Atadeka at a subsidised rate.

Despite its benefits, the dam has seen no rehabilitation for a very long time. Although portions of the land which some individuals use for farming is supposed to belong to the military, it had abandoned it. Thus, the dam provides employment for over 100 vegetable farmers, their source of livelihood is being threatened as they no longer get adequate water to feed their plants. “We had contracted loans from banks to grow this crops and it is now clear that we are losing because there's no water in the dam to water our crops,” a farmer told Public Agenda in an interaction on his farm.

Water cannot pass through to the canals due to lack of water at the dam, some farmers lamented. Although there has not been sufficient rainfall in the Greater Accra Region this year, putting in place proper measures would sustain the dam to continue to aid its dependents.

Environmental scientists have proved that less evaporation takes place when trees are allowed to grow along water bodies. This facilitates increased rainfall. Instead of the military growing trees along the Gbetsele dam, as well as the dredging of the facility to sustain it, they have left it unattended to, thereby causing it to dry up rapidly.

The military must wake up and show leadership by doing proper maintenance on the dam to see it thrive and continue to give relief to its dependents.