Algae growth on Jomoro shores threatening tourism

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has commenced studies to identify the real source of some nutrient enrichment that might have been deposited into the sea along the western coast.

Some cotton-like matter known as Algal Bloom has appeared on the surface of the sea along the coast of the Nzema East District to Jomoro in the Western region.

An algal bloom is a rapid increase or accumulation in the population of algae in an aquatic system.

This situation is disturbing the operations of the fishermen in the area as well as the tourism industry as many tourists who visit the forts and castles in the area cannot stay because the algae emits some bad stench.

But the agency says the algae is a trans-boundary problem that environmental officials in Ghana and Ivory Coast are working to find solutions to.

Strolling the green beach
Kwaku Owusu Peprah strolled along the Jomoro beaches and came through with the following report

Am here at Ellure standing at the edge of a cliff overlooking the ocean, and as far as my eyes can reach, the color of the sea has turned green and the white sandy beach has been covered with raga making it all green like a soccer field. Raga, which the experts call Algal Bloom, is a rapid increase or accumulation in the population of algae in an aquatic system.

But the locals, who are mostly fishermen, think the algae accumulation is as a result of some chemical waste deposited into the sea from neighboring Cote D'Ivoire. Algal blooms are often green, but they can also be other colors such as yellow-brown or red, depending on the species of algae. As I strolled along on the green beach I met the acting coordinator of the Amenzory Project, Cynthia Cudjoe. The project is aimed at ensuring the algae development is minimized.

“Tourists come here but they can't swim or surf so they go away. The beach resorts here are loosing a lot of money. The main livelihood of the people here is fishing but because of the bloom they can't fish anymore. This has been so for the past six months,” she said.

The fishermen here say they have not been able to go fishing for the past six months. They say their nets only collect algae whenever they are cast.

Whenever we cast the net, it does not cash fish. For the past few months, its getting worst and the smell from the see is terrible. We cannot cope any longer; we can't even feed our children. We don't even know where this thing came from. But government should do something about it immediately.

Zoil Service Limited, a subsidiary of Zoomlion, has been cleaning the beaches here from Axim in the Nzema East Municipality to Effasu in Jomoro District. But the intensity of the algal deposit has overwhelmed the personnel of Zoil. Officials of the EPA say they have been studying the perennial problem the agency confirms that this algae has no natural toxins and its therefore not harmful to marine or human life.

Story by Kwaku Owusu Preprah, Takoradi/Myjoyonline.com/Ghana