Illegal miners pollute Black Volta
Illegal gold miners operating along the banks of the Black Volta at Tangasie in the Nadowli-Kaleo District in the Upper West Region fled into the bush when a team of police and officials of the Nadowli-Kaleo District Assembly trooped into the area.
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The illegal operators, including schoolchildren and foreigners, were operating on the land acquired by the Azumah Resource Limited, an Australian-based company prospecting for gold.
Their operations have degraded the land and polluted the Black Volta with chemicals.
The Nadowli-Kaleo District Chief Executive, Mr John Bosco Bomansaan, who led the team, noted that the crushing of ore by the galamsey operators was grossly degrading the land and damaging the river which was also a major source of water for the Bui Hydro Dam. He noted that it was causing havoc to the environment and loss of revenue to the state.
Mr Bomansaan explained that several attempts to halt the activities of the illegal miners had proved futile, since they quickly escaped before they could get to the scene.
He said several calls on the people and their accomplices who came from neighbouring Burkina Faso to stop their activities had not been successful.
The DCE, who said the situation had assumed a different dimension with its negative impact such as cross-border crimes and environmental degradation, expressed concern about the high spate of school dropouts among the children.
He appealed to all stakeholders to join in the fight to halt the trend before it got out of hand.
