TARKWA, Ghana, Dec. 20 (Xinhua) — "In the abundance of water, the fool is thirsty", so says a song by legendary musician Bob Marley.
But for Regina Fabile, 29, a native of Bonsaso within the Tarkwa-Nsuaem Municipal Area in the Western Region, 301 km from the national capital, Accra, it is not easy to find fresh drinking water despite in the vicinity of a river.
She explained that the nature of the water had over the years deteriorated to the point that even washing with it had become a problem to many.
According to her, young people, including her own brothers who engage in a poorly regulated artisanal mining as well as poorly regulated mining by multinational firms, have led to heavy contamination of the previously fresh water source.
"From my childhood, this has been our source of water for everything we needed water for in the house, whether for cooking, drinking, washing, or bathing.
However, potable water is one of the down-sides in especially the rural communities outside the municipal capital, where irresponsible environmental practices by mining firms and illegal mining are killing fresh water bodies.
And beside the negative effect of the poorly regulated small-scale and large-scale mining along the river, Bonsaso refuse dumps, household toilets and bathrooms are also located along the banks of the river.
He appealed to the municipal authorities to come to their aid to repair the solar pump for them to alleviate the suffering women and children go through to access water.
The project seeks to mobilize local government authorities and the communities to develop their own roadmaps towards managing water resources sustainably.
The people of Mile 10.5 , Domeabra, Nyamebekyere and Israel have decided to mobilize resources through the tokens community members pay for the water to be used to maintain and/or repair the boreholes.