My Ghana Electronic Desk

Rwanda Named Global Host of World Environment Day 2010 Rwanda, the East African country that is embracing a transition to a Green Economy, will be the global host of World Environment Day 2010, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) announced Wednesday in Nairobi, Kenya. World Environment Day (WED), which aims to be the biggest global celebration for positive environmental action, is coordinated by UNEP every year on 5 June. This year’s theme is ‘Many Species. One Planet. One Future.’ – a message focusing on the central importance to humanity of the globe’s wealth of species and ecosystems. The WED theme also supports this year’s UN International Year of Biodiversity. Rwanda’s combination of environmental richness, including rare and economically-important species such as the mountain gorilla, allied to newly evolving and pioneering green policies is among the reasons why UNEP welcomed its offer to be the global 2010 host. While the country faces many challenges ranging f

NHIS, Talk Tax To Finance Water and Sanitation EDMUND SMITH-ASANTE – ENVIRONMENTAL JOURNALIST The Government of Ghana has been urged to use 25% of the talk tax levied on mobile phone subscribers and 5% of the National Health Insurance levy to finance water, sanitation and hygiene services in the country. Making the call as part of recommendations to sustainably finance water and sanitation services in the country, the Foundation for Grassroots Initiatives in Africa (Grassroots Africa) and the Ghana Coalition of NGOs in the Water and Sanitation sector (CONIWAS), opined that such step is necessary because water, sanitation and hygiene services are pivotal to the development of all other sectors. They also bemoaned that according to the Ghana Statistical Service report of 2008, sanitation coverage in Ghana is only about 11.3%, while the Community Water and Sanitation Agency (CWSA), state that the national average coverage rate for rural communities and small towns was only 57.1% in 2008 a

Bottled and Sachet Water a Threat to Right to Water EDMUND SMITH-ASANTE – ENVIRONMENTAL JOURNALIST The Coalition of NGOs in the Water and Sanitation sector (CONIWAS), has lamented that the advent of bottled and sachet water in Ghana has dealt a heavy blow to the basic human right to water. According to CONIWAS, “The infiltration of bottled and sachet water into our market has become the biggest threat to the realisation of the right to water in Ghana, as it has successfully diverted people’s attention away from more affordable sources to more expensive and unsustainable bottled and sachet water, which costs 500 times (in the case of sachet water) and 1,600 times (in the case of bottled water) higher than other improved sources such as taps, with little or no improvement in the quality.” The group, which made these statements at a press conference in Accra Wednesday on Sustainable Financing of Water and Sanitation Services in Ghana organised by the Foundation For Grassroots Initiatives

CONIWAS Supports 20% Tax On Bottled and Sachet Water Calls for total ban on thin plastics EDMUND SMITH-ASANTE – ENVIRONMENTAL JOURNALIST Contrary to public outcry on the imposition of a 20% ad valorem tax approved by Parliament on sachet and bottled water in the country, the Ghana Coalition of NGOs in the Water and Sanitation sector (CONIWAS), has lauded the move and declared its support for its implementation. The Coalition has however asked government to rather impose the tax on the water and not on the packaging used for it. Making this stunning statement at a press conference in Accra on Wednesday, the Vice Chair of CONIWAS, Mrs. Hawa Nibi Amenga-Etego said “Government should focus the 20% ad valorem tax on the water rather than the packaging material as we are currently made to understand.” Stating that packaging used for sachet water must not be singled out for ban as some are championing, the Coalition said “Our position on thin plastics or what is commonly referred to as one-of

Provision of Adequately Treated Water... GHAPOHA Undermining GWCL’s Operations EDMUND SMITH-ASANTE – ENVIRONMENTAL JOURNALIST The Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL), has come under a barrage of attacks from Ghanaians, who have accused the company of consistently providing unwholesome instead of potable water to them through their taps. While this has largely accounted for the sachet water (pure water) and bottled water revolution in Ghana with its attendant environmental pollution, the water company has on several occasions attributed its predicament to illegal connections to its pipes by some consumers, which has resulted in dirt particles and foreign materials getting into the treated water. The company has also ascribed the problem to pollution of its water sources, which has also required that more chemicals are used in water treatment at very high cost to them and thus the difficulty in providing adequately treated water to consumers. However, in spite of the widely publicised and

WRITTEN BY EDMUND SMITH-ASANTE Mining giant Newmont Ghana Gold Limited (NGGL), has been slapped with a GH¢ 7 million penalty by the government, after investigations into what the company labeled as an overflow of process solution, which occurred at its Ahafo mine last year in October. The overflow, which happened on October 8, 2009, generated a lot of interest and anxiety amongst industry players and stakeholders, which culminated in the setting up of investigations into the incident. First to conduct its investigations was regulatory body, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which at some point received flak for its complexity in the issue. However, the EPA, after its investigations into the incident came up with recommendations including a deterrent fine, which was upheld by a Ministerial Panel constituted to examine the EPA report and advise government accordingly. The EPA recommended that the company (NEWMONT) must be directed to pay a fine for violating certain provisions o