Liberians have been warned by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) not to eat any fish or shrimps from the Mesurado River in the capital, Monrovia, which has over the years become seriously polluted.
This is so because EPA authorities say fish and other species from this River have proven to be poisonous and they are warning the public that they are not good for human consumption.
EPA Executive Director Nathaniel Blama
Mesurado River lies between Central Monrovia and the Bushrod Island suburb, with the Gabriel Tucker Bridge linking the two area, and this river is where Liberia’s historic Providence Island sits—the patch of land on which freed slaves from America settled back in the 1800s.
Some residents from densely populated slum community of West Point and other settlement situated on the Shores of the Mesurado River, are seen fishing in this River on a daily basis.
Appearing before the full plenary of the House of Representatives on Thursday, EPA’s Executive Director, Nathaniel Blama said that the river is polluted from garbage and other waste dumped into it by Residents over a long period of time.
According to him, due to the pollution of the river, species from there are very poisonous and are therefore not good for consumption.
“We just want to make the public aware of this because we have tested fishes from the water tissue by tissue and they have poison,” the EPA boss added.
The EPA Executive Director that there are some people who will intentionally dump elements such as chemicals, consequently endangering the lives of living things in the river and by extension creating harm to human lives.
He stressed that until the Mesurado River can be cleaned-up, anyone eating fish or anything from it will be doing so at his or her own risk.
Mr. Blama indicated that the EPA is seeking the aid of a group from Ivory Coast to have the river cleared of garbage and other pollutants and put it in good condition.
The EPA boss also called on Liberians and other nationals who are in the habit of misusing the Mesurado River to stop immediately.
Mr. Blama said that Liberians have turned their backs on all the important usage of the river, thus using it as dump site and have placed open pits latrines over it.
This, the EPA Executive Director said is doing more harm to the country and its people. Report by Mark N. Mengonfia