Vegetable Tanning in Bolgatanga: Challenges and the Way Forward

The research is a case study in Bolgatanga which used the qualitative design. The Researcher depended on semi-structured interviews, observations and focus group discussions to extract data from leather tanners sampled from three tanning communities in the Bolgatanga municipality, namely; Yikene, Tanzui and Nawomaya all in the Upper East Region of Ghana. 60 respondents who were purposively selected from the above communities constituted the sample. The study attempted to unveil the causes of the characteristic offensive odour associated with leather from these communities. The researcher therefore studied the tanning materials, tools and methods used in processing leather from the above mentioned communities in order to uncover the source of the problem. The study revealed that even though the tanners used scientifically backed traditional methods to process their leathers, the re-using of some of the leather processing mixtures and inadequate rinsing regimes, were the main setbacks contributing to the offensive odor. Relevant recommendations were made to redress the shortcomings. Keywords: Bolgatanga Leather, Vegetable tanning, Hides and skins, Dyeing, Acacia nilotica

Accuracy Checks in the Production of Orthophotos

Orthophotos have been used extensively in many applications today. In an attempt to map the earth’s surface in a shortest possible time and provide information for monitoring and planning, Orthophotos have proved reliable as far as these are concerned. Orthophotos are one of the most important base layers of data for GIS systems. The use of Orthophotos in a GIS often implies seamless image data. The major advantage of Orthophotos is their ability to be produced in a short time to provide up-to-date information for urgent planning. They are also produced at a less expensive production price than line or vector maps. The need therefore for quick and reliable data for many rising applications has led to the development in this technology and hence finding ways to make it better in terms of its appearance (radiometric enhancements) and geometric accuracy.This paper looks at the creation of an Orthophoto and enumerates the factors that ensure the geometric accuracy of the Orthophoto. Users of Orthophotos must understand that to make measurements on an Orthophoto, oneneeds to know the quality of the underlying surface description since this affects the geometric accuracy of the Orthophoto. In this paperthe geometric accuracy  with which an orthophoto is produced is analysed.Accuracies during theorientation of the input image and scanning resolution of the scanned image and accuracy at DTMsstage are considered in this paper. Keywords: Orthophoto, geometric accuracy, orientation and DTM

Gurene Utilitarian Basketry Arts: A Critical Discourse

The Gurene people in the Upper East Region of Ghana have a variety of notable utilitarian basketry articles which are used in many cultural applications in the Gurene society. These category of basketry articles, even though very important in the day-to-day activities of the Gurene people, are not extensively researched into. This study sought to identify, describe and underpin the functions of these basketry articles, in order to underpin their socio-cultural relevance among the Gurene people. Ethnographic research design was used. 85 respondents were sampled for the study using snowball and purposive sampling techniques. Primary data was collected using observations, interviews and focus group discussions and analysed thematically, using NVivo 9 qualitative data analysis package. The findings showed that the basketry articles are employed in agricultural and culinary activities such as harvesting, carting of farm produce, storage of grains, rearing of livestock, winnowing, and food preparations. Also, some are utilised in burial and funeral rites, expended as architectural accoutrements, and applied as containers and carriers which are used in selling diverse items in the Gurene society.Keywords: Gurene basketry, baskets, ethnic artefacts, utilitarian basketry arts, fibre arts.DOI: 10.7176/ADS/80-03Publication date: January 31st 202

Crime Mapping and Analysis in the Dansoman Police Subdivision, Accra, Ghana - A Geographic Information Systems Approach

This work used Geographic Information Systems to create crime maps and analyze crime distribution within the Dansoman Police Subdivision in Accra, Ghana. It was done on a pilot basis and is intended to enable senior officers have a visual framework for prescribing action. Spatial data of 142 crime incidents namely Assault, Causing Damage, Defilement, Fraud, Rape, Robbery, Stealing and Unlawful Entry was analyzed using ArcGis®v10 software. A summary of the attribute table showed that Assault, Causing Damage and Unlawful Entry had the highest counts of 22 each while Rape and Stealing had the least counts of 12 each. Pin maps produced gave a graphical representation of crime locations against a backdrop of roads, existing police stations and district boundaries. Kernel density estimation maps showed the Mamprobi district had a high density of crime even though it was the smallest district. An average nearest neighbor spatial statistics analysis revealed that all incidents exhibited a random nature apart from Rape and Stealing which were statistically dispersed. None of the 8 crime types was found to be statistically clustered. The mean centers of the crimes were plotted and found to be within a 1 km radius.It is recommended that crime spatial data is collected over longer periods instead of a few months and should also include attribute data such as time, date and personal information of the perpetrators. The results of this analysis could be used as a predictive and tactical tool by the Ghana Police Service. Keywords: Geographic Information Systems, Spatial data, Shapefile, Kernel Density Estimation, Spatial Statistics.

Mastering the skills of Assemblage Art: Challenges of Sculpture Students of Bolgatanga Polytechnic

The study was an action research carried out by a team of lecturers at the Industrial Art Department of Bolgatanga Polytechnic, Ghana. The research, which made use of qualitative instruments such as questionnaires, interviews, observations and journal recordings, sorts to find out the root cause(s) of low interest in assemblage sculpture by second and third year students studying at the Department. Evidence from the study clearly showed that the students were challenged in many ways, which hindered their creativity and general performance. After varying the teaching approaches and taking “action” by introducing innovative measures, it was realized that there was an appreciable improvement in the academic performance and enthusiasm of the students towards the Assemblage course. The findings of the study depict examples of challenges that could be encountered by art students at the tertiary level, and steps that could be taken by lecturers to uncover the constraints and meliorate the situation. Keywords: Action research, Assemblage Sculpture, Junk Art, Teaching Assemblage Sculpture, Art Educatio

Chemical Analysis of Freshwater Bodies in the Kumasi Metropolis and Its Environs, Ghana

One of the main environmental problems facing the city of Kumasi the second largest city in Ghana over the years has been the pollution of water bodies arising from anthropogenic activities. This has become a potential health threat to the inhabitants of the city which was formerly referred to as the garden city of Ghana and its environs. The most affected are the surrounding rural areas that rely solely on the rivers for drinking, domestic and agricultural purposes. This study focused on the extent of chemical pollution of these water bodies through the determination physicochemical parameters such as pH, temperature, conductivity, total dissolved solids (TDS), Total suspended solids (TSS), alkalinity, Total hardness, nitrates, sulphates as well as heavy metals and biological contamination through the determination of total coliform and Escherichia coli. Eight samples were taken from three main rivers in the Kumasi metropolis namely Wiwi, Sisa and Subin. This data showed variations in the parameters in the samples as follows: pH, 6.67-7.50; temperature, 28-29°C; electrical conductivity (EC), 220-2120 mS/cm; TDS,10-1800 mg/l; alkalinity, 24-124 mg/l; total hardness, 25-365 mg/l; nitrates, b/d-0.47 mg/l; sulphate,0.352-40.30 ; phosphates, 5.2-30 mg/l; Pb, 6.620-6.797 mg/l; Fe. 14.81-45.65 mg/l; Mn, 0.726-4.7427 mg/l; Cd, 0.156-0.219 mg/l; Cr, 0.03-0.10 mg/l; Ni, 0.002-0.018 mg/l; Cu 0.113-2.258 mg/l and Zn 0.368-5.255 mg/l.  However, all the results obtained for the levels of the metals exceeded the EPA Maximum contaminant level (MCL) with the exception of the zinc where only one of the samples exceeded the MCL level. Keyword: environmental, chemical pollution, Maximum contaminant level, physicochemical parameters, Kumasi-Ghan

Geological and Structural Interpretation of Part of the Buem Formation, Ghana, Using Aerogeophysical Data

Airborne magnetic and radiometric datasets were processed to interpret the geology of part of the Buem formation and estimate the depth to basement of magnetic source in the area. The study was aimed at mapping lithology, delineating structural lineaments and their trends as well as estimating the depth to magnetic source bodies of the area. The data processing steps involved advance improved enhancement filters such as reduction to the pole, analytic signal and first vertical derivative, Tilt angle derivative and these helped delineate geological structures and lithology within the Buem formation. The radiometric datasets displaying the geochemical information on potassium, thorium and uranium concentrations within the study area proved valuable in delineating the Buem shales, sandstones, basalts and part of the Voltaian sediments that underlie the Buem formation of the area. Lineament analysis using the rose diagram showed that the area is dominated by north-south (NS) and east-west (EW) trending lineaments. Depths to the magnetic source bodies were estimated using Werner deconvolution method, indicating two depth source models. The depth of the magnetic body produced from the dike model ranged from 101.15 m to 1866.34 m and that of the contact model ranged from 100.36 m to 983.709 m. Keywords: Buem formation, aeromagnetic, radiometric, hydrothermal, alteration, mineralization

A Survey of the Benthic Macrofauna and Fish Species Assemblages in a Mangrove Habitat in Ghana

In order to enhance ecological knowledge for coastal and mangrove  ecosystem conservation in Ghana, the study documents the taxonomic groups of benthic macrofauna and fish assemblages in an urban mangrove swamp as its fundamental objective with emphasis on their composition, richness and diversity. This is because benthic and fish fauna of mangrove habitats are amongst the least studied biota in Ghana. Fish and benthos sampling was undertaken from five randomly selected pools within a mangrove stand during the wet and dry seasons using pole-seine net (7 m long and 1.5 m depth, with stretched mesh size of 5 mm) and an Ekman grab (15 cm × 15 cm dimensions), respectively. All samples were  preserved in 10% formalin for laboratory analysis. The results indicated a more diverse macrozoobenthic community in the wet (H¹ = 1.8) than dry season (H¹ = 1.5) . Overall, five out of a total of 13 genera found are intolerant to pollution and four moderately tolerant, while four comprising polychaetes and the midge Chironomus, are pollution tolerant. This suggests that the mangrove habitat is less polluted. A grand total of 917 fish specimens, belonging to 15 species and nine families, were encountered for both seasons (371 and 546 specimens for wet and dry seasons, respectively). The black-chinned tilapia, Sarotherodon  melanotheron, was the dominant fish species in the wet season, accounting for 54.2% of the total fish caught, whilst the grey mullets, Mugil babanensis and Mugil curema, were the dominant species in the dry season, with a combined total of 51.4% of the fish population. However, over 70% of these dominant fish species from both seasons were juveniles providing a strong justification for the observation that the mangrove habitats are nursery grounds for fish inhabiting adjacent riverine, estuarine and inshore marine habitats. Considering this relevance of mangroves and the ongoing conversion attempts of mangrove habitats to other land uses, a concerted mangroves conservation effort is strongly advocated

Revisiting the agro-climatic zones of Ghana: a re-classification in conformity with climate change and variability

The Ghana Meteorological Agency delineated Ghana’s geographical space into four agro-climatic zones namely the north, transition, forest and coastal zones. Since the demarcation in the 1960s, previous studies have rarely provided a more dis-aggregated agro-climatic zone map in tandem with contemporary climate change and variability. The continued use of this age-old classified zones is a disservice to the public. In this study, therefore, we evaluated the existing agro-climatic zone map of Ghana and reconstructed it to a more appropriate and dis-aggregated map that reflect current climate change and variability impact. This was achieved by quantifying the contrast in rainfall and temperature amount over a 30 year period for different climate windows and mapped out areas with similar rainfall and temperature regimes. Our findings revealed significant changes in the existing agro-climatic zones especially in terms of number, the boundary size and geographical orientation of the zones. The newly proposed map consist of five distinctive climate zones namely: the Sudan Savannah, Guinea Savannah, Transition, Forest and Coastal zones. The Sudan and Guinea Savannah zones showed a southerly expansion. The transition zone shriveled in size as the Guinea Savannah zone took over most of it, notably in the southeast. The forest zone shrank in size with a northwest shift while the coastal belt grew to encompass the whole coast of Ghana. These changes are strong evidence of climate change and possible food production changes. These findings are useful to agriculture sector in planning their activities, the health sector in predicting specific diseases caused by changes in weather and climate, Ghana Meteorological Agency for weather forecasting purposes, and the National Disaster Management in identifying disaster prone zones