The Weija Dam is facing serious threats from the effects of encroachment.

The encroachers have built close to the dam, the intake plant and the headworks.

This came to light when the Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing, Albert Abongo, paid a familiarization tour to the dam site on Friday.

The visit was to afford the new minister the opportunity to acquaint himself with the condition of the dam.

Consequently, he said the ministry would embark on an exercise to educate the communities living near the dam on the need to protect it and to desist from building too close to the dam.

Mr Kweku Botwe, acting director of the Ghana Water Company, told the minister that the encroachers were posing serious threat to the Weija dam and as a result, the company was constructing a fence wall around it.

He said the 54-kilometre wall, which is 23 per cent complete, will cost the company GH¢6.4 million and is expected to solve the problem of encroachment.

The production manager at the Weija head works, Michael Amuakwa, said the residents could be affected seriously in case of spillage, particularly by chlorine gas, due to their proximity to the treatment plant.

He said the plant is a strategic asset that should not have people living close to it, and cited the example of Israel where military personnel protect their water treatment plants.

Mr Amuakwa said the plant produced 50 million gallons of water daily and said this production would increase to 55 million gallons in June when rehabilitation: works on the plant are completed.

He dismissed claims that the plant pumped untreated water to its consumers and noted that the situation was due to the tampering of the GWCL pipelines which caused dirt to enter the lines.