GARID Flags Filling Station Sitting 'Directly on Water Body' at Oyarifa

The Greater Accra Resilient and Integrated Development (GARID) programme identified a filling station in Oyarifa sitting "directly on the water body," describing the development as one of the human activities contributing to recurrent flooding in parts of the Greater Accra Region. This disclosure was made by the National Coordinator of GARID, Dr. Kwadwo Oheme Sarfo, during a national press briefing at the Jubilee House on recent floods that affected seven regions, with Greater Accra, the Central, and Volta regions recording the worst impact. Dr. Sarfo stated, "The development that you see here is a filling station and it is sitting directly on the water body. Just a little channel has been allowed to pass under it to take the water. So when there's going to be excess water, it will have to flow backwards and spill into the communities that are upstream."

According to Dr. Sarfo, the filling station has constrained the natural flow of stormwater by leaving only a narrow passage beneath the structure for water to pass. He explained that this obstruction forces excess runoff to reverse direction instead of flowing naturally downstream, increasing the likelihood of flooding in upstream communities during heavy rains. The Oyarifa facility formed part of a broader pattern of developments that have encroached on waterways and wetlands across the capital. The revelation is expected to trigger questions over Ghana's development approval regime, as filling stations are required to undergo environmental, spatial planning, and other statutory approval processes before construction.