The Obuasi Airstrip is under threat following the return of illegal miners to reclaimed lands previously cleared around the area. Madam Faustilove Appiah Kannin, the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) for Obuasi West, explained to journalists that AngloGold Ashanti released 100 hectares of land to the community in 2018 for fish farming, poultry and other agricultural projects.
She said some parts of the land were later invaded by illegal miners, with the activity intensifying in 2023 prompting the Ashanti Regional Reclamation Committee to intensify enforcement operations.
The MCE appealed to the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources to formalise sections of the concession into a Community Mining Scheme for local youth to help stop the activities of illegal mining in the area.
She noted that efforts to drive miners away are short lived because they come back, and called for the area to be designated for regulated community mining to integrate miners into a legal framework and bring illegal mining to an end.
Meanwhile, the Ashanti Regional Reclamation Committee has recovered three previously demobilised excavators that illegal miners had secretly repaired and reactivated for illegal mining near the Obuasi Airport in the Municipality.
The recovery was made during a site inspection and assessment conducted by the Committee, which included representatives from National Security, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Minerals Commission, Minerals Development Fund (MDF) and National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO).
The purpose of the visit was to evaluate the extent of environmental degradation caused by persistent illegal mining ahead of a major land reclamation project.
Alhaji Abdullah Umaru Nje, the Ashanti Regional Deputy Security Coordinator, who led the exercise explained that the three excavators had been rendered inoperative the previous week during a joint operation by National Security and the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS).
He indicated that the operation resulted in the seizure of nine excavators and the demobilisation of three others through the removal of key engine components.
He said upon returning to the site for the reclamation assessment, the committee found operators actively working with the three demobilised machines after they had sourced replacement parts.
He noted that to prevent a recurrence, enforcement operations will be intensified with the immediate and complete removal of all machinery seized at illegal mining sites.
He said the inspection marks the initial step in a comprehensive land reclamation project being led by the Ashanti Regional Coordinating Council (ARCC).
Alhaji Nje urged small-scale miners across the region to work with their respective Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs) to obtain official land reclamation forms.
He emphasised that operators must undertake progressive reclamation alongside active mining to ensure that degraded lands are continuously restored for agricultural purposes.
