Ghana loses about $800 million annually for improper handling of liquid waste which could be converted into biogas to serve more useful purposes, Mr. Daniel Osei-Bonsu, Vice President of the Biogas Association of Ghana has said.
He added that the practice of dumping liguid waste into the sea, causes a lot of financial loss to the country while exposing people to varied infections and diseases.
Speaking to the Goldstreet Business in an interview on the sidelines of the 4th Ghana Energy Renewable Fair in Accra on Wednesday, Mr. Osei-Bonsu said it was about time Ghana takes a critical look at how it handles its liquid waste.
Change in waste disposal policy
He has therefore called for a change in the liquid waste disposal policy to abolish the use of septic tanks for waste collections in homes which are later dumped into the sea.
This he believes would help save money as treated decomposed waste could be converted to biogas and used for other useful purposes.
“Let’s stop the septic tanks, and demand that houses are built with an onsite waste treatment technology to ensure that all liquid waste generated in homes are decomposed and used for other purposes,” he said
He stated that keeping toilets in the house in its self was a big liability
Health Risks
He noted that the human toilets have a lot of health risk when its not treated and comes back into contact with people.
“When we dump the toilets into the sea, the fishes will eat them and we will go and bring the toilets back into our homes when we buy fishes,”
Energy Renewable Fair
About 35 companies in the energy sector participated in the fair which sought to explore the role of the renewable energy sector in powering development at the district level. It was also a platform for these institutions to display their products and services to consumers and the general public as well as attract investors.
Companies that participated include the Electricity Company of Ghana, Bui Power, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, Global Lightening center, Green Sola Africa, NEDCO and GRIDCO.
By Linda Naa Deide Aryeetey
