A letter to the IGP

Dear Mr. IGP The illegal mining called galamsey has resulted in serious degradation of vegetation, and lands and pollutes major water bodies this unwelcome issue of land and water pollution in Ghana is of great concern due to the alarming rate at which our beloved arable lands for farming and drinking water for our communities are being destroyed by this irresponsible activities. Galamsey does not only pollute rivers and other water bodies but also leaves death traps for themselves and other farmers around within the mining communities and their activities contribute to serious hunger because vast farmlandS are being destroyed. Not quite long we all saw a video that went viral of a cocoa farmer whose farm had flooded to his waist level and if this menace is not curbed, Ghana will experience serious hunger on top of the economic hardship. Agriculture is one of the major economic activities in the Obuasi district and employs about 85.5% of the people, most of whom are subsistence farmers. Plantain, cassava, cocoyam, rice, cocoa, and oil palm are the major food and cash crops produced in the district. Thanks to the Anglogold Ashanti programme termed Obuasi Goes Agro (OGA). Galamsey operations are tremendously undermining the lands and endangering the livelihoods of farmers in Obuasi and its environs. Galamsey is a threat to agricultural lands because it affects farmlands and this accounts for food insecurity, especially at the household level. The galamsey operations include deforestation leading to soil erosion, destruction of agricultural lands, and pollution of water bodies. Agricultural lands decline as many more farmlands are being exposed bare without the steps required. Land degradation has caused the removal of top soils, vegetation, and trees with the use of heavy machines for mining gold deposits. This has run down the nutrients of the soil and reduced its fertility for agricultural purposes. Available lands are contaminated by galamsey activities. Large areas of land used for cultivation are polluted through galamsey operations. The cultivation of fruit and vegetables such as local crops on polluted lands poses a threat to people’s health. Galamsey has long-term effects on the soil declining the sustainability of land for agriculture activities such as food production. Galamsey operations’ benefits to society are enhanced if galamsey operators contribute to the development of much-needed infrastructure and help communities through employment and the provision of healthcare and education, all the while safeguarding the environment. That is transforming natural resource exploitation and wealth into poverty alleviation. Improper disposal of mine wastes can pollute the entire environment (water, soil, air) in communities around the mining sites. Communities may become dependent on the benefit from the galamsey project, and they can turn into “ghost towns” if they have no alternative source of income. There is a risk that costs and benefits arising from galamsey operations are shared unevenly. Although local communities bear the negative social and environmental impacts of galamsey activities, they receive little of the revenue. Indigenous peoples and local communities depend on their environment for their livelihoods, through agriculture or fishing, and therefore become particularly vulnerable to environmental damage. The poor, lacking the necessary skills and education, often fail to benefit from jobs created by the galamsey operators in many cases, employees are brought in from outside of the communities hosting the mines. Indigenous peoples are particularly vulnerable since they have a strong connection to their land, and their unique way of life can be destroyed if they are displaced by the galamsey operation. Galamsey operations are increasingly threatening agriculture production through the destruction of lands in the area. Different kinds of crops such as cocoa, plantain, cassava, maize, cocoyam, and rice on the land are destroyed carelessly by galamsey operations which have brought up prices of foods since farm labours are hard to be hired because they have shifted their work abilities to galamsey operations. The uncovered pits of the operations are now trapped for the death of unknown people and also breeding places for mosquitoes in the area. Moreover, the water bodies which serve as drinking water have been polluted by the galamsey operations; therefore, have resulted in a high rate of cholera in the area. However, part of the money negotiated was not paid to farmers, and that they regretted giving out their lands for galamsey operations but the few farmers who received full monies used to build and cater for their wards in school. Furthermore, the operations have persuaded children of school-going age to join mainly to chase quick money. In Obuasi, Anglogold Ashanti has vast farmlands and had involved the communities folks and assisted them with agriculture programs which had yielded good results. But today foreigners have invaded AGA farms and seriously destroyed crops and the farmlands. These boys are so stubborn, fearless, and very selfish in their search for gold. They use a gold finder to search for gold nuggets so wherever the finder directs them, that is where they did for the nuggets, so if it directs them through a garden eggs lane, they do not care then they start digging. The army that used to arrest them is now giving up so the destruction of crops and arable lands is raging unabated. What makes these boys who are not even from the communities and don’t even speak any Akan language so stubborn and why is the army giving up? The reason is, anytime the army arrests them and sends them to the Obuasi Police Station, that becomes festive for the Obuasi police. The Police will charge these boys GHC 25, 000 each and they set them free and come back to continue their activities so there is no stopping. Please Mr. IGP keep your boys in check because they are contributing so much to the destruction of farmlands, and soon-to-come hunger. From a concerned citizen.