Sand being collected from the Odaw River
The Operations Manager of Dredge Masters Limited (DML), Sena Kofi Adiepena, has said the dredging of two major waterways in Accra, namely the Odaw River and the Korle Lagoon, is helping to prevent massive floods this year.
Speaking to journalists during a visit to the Korle Lagoon and Odaw River yesterday, Mr. Adiepena said they are proactively executing various dredging operations under the Accra Sanitary Sewer Storm Water Drainage Alleviation Project (ASDAP) and this has benefitted the Odaw River and Korle Lagoon and brought the flooding in the area to manageable levels.
“The Odaw River and Korle Lagoon have been well dredged in anticipation of the rains which invariably flood the city,” he said, adding that “we have resolved to halt future flooding by ensuring the dredging of the two water bodies are constantly done.”
He said, “We have been able to meet our target as far as dredging of the Odaw and Korle Lagoon to their design levels to avoid more flooding in the capital.”
He said when the Minister for Works and Housing, Francis Asenso-Boakye visited the dredging sites, he tasked them to work assiduously to ensure flooding was reduced and since then, a lot of work has been done particularly on the Korle Lagoon which is downstream, as well as ongoing works on the Odaw River which is upstream.
Mr. Adiepena emphasised that the successful dredging of the two major water bodies is the reason there has been less flooding in the areas in recent times in spite of the rains.
“The Korle was able to control the outflow from the Odaw into the downstream. It rained heavily recently but our scope didn’t see flooding. We have ensured that we don’t experience any flooding along this stretch and we are hopeful that unless the rains exceed the capacity of the drainage system we are not expecting floods,” he added.
Mr. Adiepena said the dredging works have been fraught with some challenges, including encroachment and the continuous disposal of waste into the lagoon by recalcitrant encroachers.
At Caprice, where the drain had been heavily choked, journalists saw dredging machines desilting the drains.
This dredging campaign has over the years resulted in an improved sanitary and drainage conditions of the Odaw River and Korle Lagoon and by extension, Accra.
By Nii Adjei Mensahfio