By Hassan I Conteh
Sierra Leone lies on the Western coast of the Atlantic ocean in Africa.

The black West Africa country used to be known as a botanical destination of the freed slaves from American continent and Europe.

Sierra Lyoa as was orignially  named by a Portuguese explorer, Pedro da Sintra, was blessed then with fresh, pure and sweet drinking water from the ground.

Early history proves that the early settlers in Freetown (named as a place free for once enslaved Africans to America and Europe ) used to drink of even the water from some streams, rivers, swamp wells, land dug-out wells, found in the British colony then, Freetown.

The freed slaves, the Krios, were drinking the water and washing,  using it for drinking purposes at early Krios’ settlements beyond Freetown like Regent village, Kossoh Town, Waterloo.

But, as population swells up the British Crown colony, Freetown, Sierra Leone’s capital city, the waters on rivers, wells, streams became targeted by inhabitants and in-country migrants from villages.

The problem of water crisis confronted early settlers, or the Krios in Freetown and beyond as residents in Freetown started putting up buildings as shelters.

A group of would-be slaves called The Recaptives, who were made to return to Sierra Leone after they were seen at high seas to be taken to America or Europe to work as slaves. But since there was a ban on slavery and slave trade, these captives were lucky to be returned to Sierra Leone as freed persons.

These people, the Recaptives, added up to the number of the early settlers: the Blackpoor and The Maroons, as inhabitants in Freetown and its outskirt-towns like Kossoh Town, Regent, Waterloo (Ibo town, Cole Town in Waterloo).

The number of inhabitants in these places was said to have caused growing discomfort for other residents. Freetown and Waterloo, Regent started losing its naturalness and lush beauty.

Water catchments environments began to overwhelmed with visitors who often went down the streams to fetch water.

The civil war in Sierra Leone also added up to the growing problem that led to many water reservoirs and catchments to gradually dry up as people brush down the bush and trees to make temporary tents.

A number of refugees from Liberia due to Liberia civil war in the 1990s and Sierra Leonean evacuees within the country during  Sierra Leone civil war between 1992 and 2002.

Today, the situation has been further exacerbated by teeming human population in  urban Freetown and rural Regent, Kossoh Town and Waterloo.

Sierra Leone’s urban and rural people seriously battle to get access to fresh, and pure drinking water.

Most times residents in Freetownn outskirts would have to dig-up holes to drink from the ground water.

These wells they are digging up have become their only sources of water since government water  supply company, SALWACO, could not provide residents with easy, safe and accessible water supply at households.

Waterloo, which is found in Western Area Rural district, has few water catchment environments. These places are usually some swamply areas where there are plenty sources of pure water. But taking proper care of these swampy water sources environments still remain a growing and an unresolved challenge.  Sometimes it is only the community people that usually come together to preserve these water sources areas.

A water source place in Waterloo which is called  by the locals ‘Bofla Peninsula Watersie’ is found under a thicket of some cane-sticks.

It is a famous water reservoir which has been helping a  number of communities around to overcome heightening water crisis affecting Waterloonians.

It has been observed that greener cane-stick plants absorb quantity of cold, clean and safe drinkin water. Cane-stick forests usually grow by the swampy environments.

Their canopy top leaves often serve as  ‘cooling system’ for the water running  underneath the fibrous roots of the cane plants.

Bofla Water wells back off Peninsula Secondary School is losing its botanical freshness and beauty.

The place has become very exposed to the atmosphere as houses have been built around the stream area.

I spoke to two young boys who went to launder their things there.

They admitted the water, Bofla water, could be used for both drinking and cooking purposes by the community people.

”All type of people or both male and female sexes come here to either launder, bathe, get water for other uses, ” says, Amadu Bangura,  who lives in the community.

Like Bofla it is good to better preserve and protect our water reservoirs or catchments in communities to help save water for good use always for the benefit of everyone in the community we live.