The Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources has identified 34 Forest reserves which are under serious threat of depletion as a result of illegal mining activities. According to the Ministry, 4,726.2 hectors of Ghana’s total forest cover would seriously be affected as a result of this phenomenon.
The Chief Executive Officer of the Forestry Commission, Mr. John Allottey, revealed this at a news conference, organised by the Ministry of Information in Accra on Tuesday, this week.
Mr. Allottey mentioned some of the forests that had come under threat as Anhiawso East, Afao Hills, Tano Anhwia, Nano Nimire and Upper Wassaw – all in the Western Region.
In the Ashanti Region, the Bosomtwe Range, Offin Shelterbelt, Tano Offin (South) are some of the areas that are under threat due to illegal mining.
Mr. Allottey further told the journalists that aside illegal mining (Galamsey), other activities that threatened the forest cover included expansion of farmlands, illegal logging, chain saw operations, overgrazing, infrastructural development, and human settlements.
The phenomenon of forest degradation is no more news. Indeed, just yesterday, The Chronicle expressed concern over the apparent lip service we are paying to the fight against illegal mining in the country. Now the chickens have come home to roost – as large as 4,726.2 hectors of our forests have been destroyed by the illegal miners with careless abandon.
As a result of the unrestrained assault on our forests by illegal miners, most rivers/creeks our rural folks depend on as their main source of drinking water have started drying up during the dry season. In Kumasi, Cape Coast and Sekondi-Takoradi, the Ghana Water Company sometimes struggles to get raw water to treat for onward distribution to the general public.
Accra is somehow safe, because the catchment area of the Volta River, where water is sourced for treatment, is free from the illegal mining activities. As we have always pointed out in this column, we, as a country, will be laughing at the wrong side of our mouths if we fail to tackle the galamsey issue with the seriousness it deserves.
In fact, the destruction of our forests is exposing us to climatic conditions and the harsh weather conditions we are experiencing of late is one of them. Surprisingly, the youth, who are mostly behind these illegal mining activities, do not care a hoot about this reality. Indeed, a video is currently circulating on social media where some youth have felled trees in a forest area, in search of gold.
This bad attitude of destroying the forests and water bodies will go a long way to affect us and generations yet unborn.
The Chronicle, therefore, supports the Attorney General, Godfred Dame, for the bold stance he and his office has taken to prosecute those engaged in illegal mining.
The Ghanaian Times, on Tuesday this week, quoted Mr. Dame as saying that the office of the Attorney-General and Department of Justice were currently conducting criminal prosecutions against 727 persons who engaged in illegal mining activities across the country.
The Minister, however, enumerated challenges impeding the speedy prosecution of the alleged illegal miners as lack of interpreters in cases involving foreign nationals, and unwillingness of witnesses to give testimonies in courts for fear of being threatened by the accused persons who live in the same communities with them.
In our opinion, it is a great move being made by Mr. Godfred Dame to sanitise the situation, and we urge the Chief Justice to establish special courts for illegal miners to expedite their prosecution. If these illegal miners are arrested, prosecuted, and jailed for destroying our water bodies, it will serve as a deterrent to others.
