This is despite an official directive ordering the company to halt all construction activities near the facility’s intake point.  

Mr. Mutawakilu, who led a team from GWL to inspect the affected area at Kpeve Tornu in the Afadzato South District, said the private developer’s defiance of the suspension order issued by the Volta Regional Coordinating Council had worsened the situation, forcing the treatment plant to shut down intermittently whenever it rains.   

He revealed that the construction activities, which include grading a nearby hill and dumping excavated soil near the water intake, had caused severe siltation and elevated turbidity levels far beyond what the plant can treat.   

The water’s turbidity, which is normally about five Nephelometric Turbidity Units (NTU), has sharply increased to around 140 NTU since the onset of the construction activities, making treatment extremely difficult and forcing periodic shutdowns of the plant.  

Mr  Mutawakilu noted that, “When it rains, the situation gets worse, and we are compelled to shut down the plant for three days to protect our pumps and filters from damage.”   He explained that Ghana Water Ltd. had exhausted all administrative processes to stop the developer’s operations.   

“We wrote letters to the minister, and subsequently, myself and the Executive Secretary of the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission met the minister to discuss how this project can be halted to prevent further siltation of the intake,” he said.   

According to the MD, “the minister acted swiftly and directed the Volta Regional Minister to hold a stakeholder meeting, after which a letter was issued to suspend all activities within the buffer zone. But sadly, the contractor ignored the directive and continued construction.”  

The GWL Managing Director noted that the continuous violation of the stop-work order was not only undermining the authority of state institutions but also threatening the sustainability of a critical national asset that supplies water to thousands of people across Ho, South Dayi, and Afadzato South Districts.  

“The cost of replacing damaged pumps and filters is enormous, and with our existing revenue challenges as a company, we cannot afford to have a private developer destroy public infrastructure,” he said.   

Mr. Mutawakilu appealed to National Security to take immediate steps to stop the ongoing    construction activities and ensure that the affected area was reclaimed and restored to its natural state to protect the water source.  

The Kpeve Water Treatment Plant, which has an installed capacity of 18,181 cubic metres per day, plays a vital role in providing potable water to the Volta Region.   

However, the rising turbidity caused by soil erosion and siltation from the developer’s site is making it increasingly difficult to maintain consistent water supply.  

The developer has excavated large portions of a hill adjacent to the intake and dumped the loose topsoil into the water channel.   

Without vegetative cover, rainwater now carries sediment directly into the intake, making the water almost untreatable.  

Mr. Mutawakilu said when it rained, runoff from the bare soil caused massive siltation and elevated turbidity beyond treatability.     

The plant does not have coagulant dosing systems or sedimentation tanks to handle such high turbidity, so it becomes impossible to operate safely.  

Mr. Mutawakilu cautioned that if the encroachment persisted, the company might not be able to produce water at all during the rainy season.    “We may be forced to suspend operations for longer periods if this continues.

 The consequences will be dire, residents will face water shortages, and our infrastructure could suffer irreversible damage,” he warned.  

He added that the encroachment also jeopardized future plans for expansion of the treatment facility, and that “this intake serves as a key source for our future projects. Once human activity takes over the buffer zone, it will become difficult to expand or upgrade the plant. We must stop this before it’s too late.”  

The Volta Regional Coordinating Council, acting on the directive of the Regional Minister, had earlier issued a letter dated October 10, 2025, suspending all construction activities by BSK City Developers at Kpeve Tornu.   

The decision followed Ghana Water Limited’s suspension of water production at the plant after detecting unusually high turbidity levels linked to the developer’s operations.  

The RCC explained that the order was intended to protect the integrity of the water source and avert a potential water supply crisis in the South Dayi and Afadzato South Districts, as well as the Ho Municipality.   

It also cautioned that any development within the buffer zone of the dam posed severe environmental risks and could lead to long-term pollution of the intake.  

Despite the directive, the developer has reportedly continued construction activities, aggravating the situation and putting the safety of the water source at greater risk.  

Mr. Mutawakilu reaffirmed GWL’s commitment to ensuring safe and sustainable water supply but stressed that protecting the country’s water infrastructure requires urgent, coordinated action.   

He said, “We cannot sit back and watch one person’s private interest compromise the safety and wellbeing of thousands. We need the full weight of the law and state institutions to restore order at Kpeve and prevent future encroachments on our water resources.”