Senate wants ministry to construct small captive dams in communities

The Upper Chamber of the National Assembly also mandated its Committee on Water Resources to develop implementation guidelines for the captive dam construction programme.

This followed a motion on “The Need to Construct Captive Dams in all Communities across the Country” sponsored by Sen. Barnabas Gemade (APC-Benue) and Sen. Stella Oduah (PDD-Anambra) during plenary on Tuesday.

Presenting the motion, Gemade said that the phenomenon of building captive dams had been extensively used in other countries to maintain good levels of ground table water, even where extensive irrigation from boreholes was adapted.

According to him, captive dams are used to ensure that water that flow over the complete length of streams is not given the free will to gather speed as it likes.

“Other advantage is improving on water supply sources to our villages,” he said.

Gemade said that the drilling of boreholes for ground water had increased tremendously in the last 10 years and the advent of the United Nations programme of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Sen. Gbenga Ashafa (APC- Lagos), seconding the motion, said that some of the identifiable causes of the problems along the Lake Chad were the construction of dams.

He said that if dams were to be built, the ecological implications must be looked into to prevent flooding.

Also contributing, Sen. Rabiu Kwankwaso (APC-Kano), said that there was need for government to set its priorities right.

“We have so many dams in the country and only a small number have been utilised,” Kwankwaso said.

Similarly, Sen. Atai Aidoko (PDP-Kogi), urged the ministry to conduct an environmental impact assessment of the communities before embarking on construction of the dams.

The motion was unanimously supported by the senators after the debate presided over by President of the Senate, Dr Bukola Saraki. (NAN)