Geology and soil

Along the coasts are cretaceous—Eocene marine sands with thin pebbly sands and some limestone. The District consists of upper and lower Birimian rocks and intrusive Tarkwaian rocks. These rocks have metalogenetic materials (metals), which include precious metals, light metals and base metals such as talc and diamonds.

The lower slope of the soil in the District is predominantly sandy loam while the upper slope is predominantly clay loam. The soils contain greater quantities of plant nutrients and, therefore, can support tree crops such as citrus and oil palm which thrive well in the area. Also, vegetables such as garden eggs, okro and tomatoes thrive well while other crops like cassava, plantain and maize also thrive in the soils within the District. Due to the nearness to the sea, the soil is predominantly saline.

Relief and Drainage

The Ekumfi District is basically a low-lying area with loose quaternary sands. The area has an elevation lower than 60m above sea level. The rivers Narkwa and Emissa drain into the sea via the Narkwa and Emissa lagoons at Narkwa and Emissano respectively.

Climate

The Ekumfi District with its proximity to the Atlantic Ocean has mild temperatures, which range between 22oC and 34oC. It has a relative humidity of about 70 per cent (Dickson and Benneh, 2001). The District experiences double maxima rainfall with peaks in May—June and October. Annual total rainfall ranges between 90cm and 110cm in the coastal savanna areas and between 110cm and 160cm in the interior close to the margin of the forest zone. The periods December—February and July to early September are much drier than the rest of the year.

 Vegetation

The vegetation of Ekumfi District consists of dense shrub tangle and grass, which grow to an average height of 4.5m. It is believed that the District was once forested, but has been systematically destroyed through centuries of bad environmental practices such as bush fires and deforestation, among others. However, pockets of relatively dense forest can be found around fetish groves and isolated areas.