Weeds invade Western coastline

Fishermen and tour operators along the coast of  Western Region have once again appealed to the relevant state agencies to help  clear the coast of large deposits of aquatic weeds (pelagic sargassum).

In spite of numerous appeals to state agencies  to help curb the phenomenon which started over a decade ago, there seems to be no solution in sight. 

Apart from the stench that emanates from the rotting weeds,  they also cause skin irritation.

One of the fishermen, Mr Joe Tetteh, said those who fished in deep waters mostly lost their net or came back to the shore with weeds instead of fish.

According to the fishermen, this perennial occurrence  was costing them a lot of money and depriving them of  income,  especially during bumper seasons.

When The Mirror visited the coastal districts of Jomoro, Ellembelle, Ahanta West and the Nzema East municipalities, the weeds have taken over the   shoreline. 

 Those in the communities have been  left with no option than to walk through the weeds before accessing their canoes. The fishermen  said the situation could get worse soon.

 “As we speak, many of us here are thinking about what to do because it costs us more than ¢3,000 to ¢4,000  to buy  fuel, ice, food, pay crew and  interest on loan and other items for just one fishing expedition,” he said.

 Mr Tetteh explained that the current situation had forced many of them out of business as those  who engaged in what they call “waacha” (fishing  within a short distance from the coast) and tuna boats could not operate.

 “We went for loan from our fishmongers and the rural banks for the fishing season, but as we speak, the emergence of  weeds means that we are going to incur more debt,” he said.

The sad aspect, he said, was that their quest to keep the coast clean by engaging some young men to clean daily yielded no  result since they could not support them financially.

“We were getting assistance when Zoil of Zoomlion was engaged, but  now we are not in a position to sustain the clean-up,” he said.

The chief fisherman of Axim, Nana Kojo Eshun, said initially they blamed the oil companies for the weeds but were later told that it was a worldwide problem due to climate change.

 “I must say we are not in a position to know the cause of the weeds. All we need now is how best it can be contained, it is making our work very expensive,” he said.

 “Since the fishermen go fishing and return with sargassum instead of fish, the little we get is sold at a high cost so that we don’t make losses,” he said.

The chief fisherman appealed to the government to help the assemblies contain the situation. 

Aside the fisherfolks, resort operators along the coast from New Town to Shama are also  incurring additional cost to clean the beach daily to make it attractive for  tourists.