Kpeshie Lagoon reclamation linked to first-ever flooding at Tse Addo – ISD

The Greater Accra Regional Coordinating Council's risk assessment has found a connection between the reclamation of parts of Kpeshie Lagoon and the first major flooding in the Tse Addo area, according to the Information Services Department (ISD). The assessment discovered that transforming sections of the natural water retention basin into developed land had diminished the lagoon's ability to absorb and store surplus water during intense rainfall.

As a result, Greater Accra Regional Minister Linda Ohenewaa Akweley Ocloo announced that the Post Flood Mitigation Task Force demolished unauthorized structures built within the protected buffer zone of the lagoon on Sunday. The Minister pointed out that the lagoon had been partially reclaimed over the years through the removal of vegetation and filling of the wetland with materials to create land for development.

Previously a natural wetland filled with mangroves, the area was developed into hotels and commercial facilities after trees were cut down and portions of the lagoon filled. The government subsequently gave residents of the affected properties a 21-day notice to vacate the protected area to permit restoration and flood mitigation works.

The Task Force has enforced the directive by removing identified structures along the lagoon. Additionally, authorities are currently dredging Kpeshie Lagoon as part of the government's post-flood mitigation plan, alongside a broader program to restore waterways, retention basins, and wetlands across Greater Accra to enhance stormwater management and minimize the risk of flooding.