Sikirat Shehu
Kwara State government, through the Ministry of Water Resources says it has scheduled a meeting with fish farmers working around the Asa Dam Waterworks this week over persistent damage to the water infrastructure.
The leadership of the ministry posits that the damage being done to the waterworks through the activities of the fish farmers may soon truncate water supply to most parts of Ilorin metropolis, if not curbed.
A statement by the Commissioner for Water Resources Wahab Femi Agbaje reads: “The activities of the Fish farmers over the years have affected the raw water supply to the treatment plant in Asa Dam works.
“Let it be on record that the Asa Dam reservoir is not meant for fishing activities. It is solely for raw water impoundment for all year round use for treatment for the people of Ilorin metropolis and surrounding settlements.
“However, fishing activities and discharge of the effluent from these activities have been the order of the day over the past years.
“The effluent discharge has now reached a situation whereby our treatment plant could not cope with it anymore as the sedimentation tanks are loaded after the coagulation processes.
“They are collapsing due to the load on the lamina plate, the filtration sand media are blocked, thereby reducing the rate of percolation. The treatment equipment components are being damaged.
“This requires a drastic measure to save the populace of Ilorin metropolis and surrounding settlements from erratic supply of water. So, we are having a meeting with the fish farmers to find lasting solution to this. Public interest is paramount at all times.”
