By Bisola Adeyemo
Some residents living by the bank of the Osun River have notified the Osun State government to save the River from contamination and pollution causing by human activities.
They disclosed that the pollution of the river was as a result of illegal mining activities in some parts of the State.
They alleged that the miners dumped the waste products from their mines into tributaries of the river.
The mining activity, daily post learned that the releases debris into the river turns its color to brown all year.
It was also gathered that some persons have turned the bank of the river to a dump site, while some others have started to farm and operate poultries along its bank.
“The end products of farming and poultry are then dumped into the river since there is no provision for waste disposal”, said Gbenga Bamidele a community leader.
“Some of these wastes end up blocking the river system. The bed become swollen and the course of the river is changed because it is now narrowed.
“If you navigate the river in Osogbo, you will observe that it does not flow freely again. Free flow only occurs during the peak of the rainy season, especially towards the Osun Osogbo festival. Who knows if the gods caused this to be so because a full river is needed for the festival to hold.
“Aquatic life too have been affected. The drying up of water during the dry season is encouraging the growth of vegetation which suffocates fishes and other living things in the river.
“Also, the contamination is creating difficulties for residents of communities that depend on the river for sustenance.
“Fishermen often have a hard time making a catch. They just lay nets all day and night and little is caught because some portion of the river is almost dried up. You can walk on it like dry land,” he said.
He called on the state government and agencies in charge of water resources to intervene before the situation became another disaster.
Recall that DAILY POST had reported the activities of illegal dredgers.
In August, 2019, Osun River overflowed its bank which flooded many homes and destroyed properties worth millions of Naira.
The state government had intervened by dredging and expanding the Osun River at several points.