Illegal miner caught in the act

An illegal miner, Nana Agyepong, was on Sunday caught red-handed doing illegal mining, near a river at Hiawa in the Amenfi Central District of the Western Region.

The miner had diverted the water course of a nearby river and was using a generator and a water pumping machine for his operations.

The Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Mr John Peter Amewu, ordered the security taskforce to seize the generator.
 
The Minister cautioned him to stop the practice since it was polluting water bodies and degrading the environment and left him to go and never to return to the site.

The Minister and his two deputies as well as some officials of the Minerals Commission and the media were touring some mining sites in the Western Region.

This followed the expiration of the three-week ultimatum given by the Minister for all illegal miners to evacuate the mining sites with their equipment.

The team visited Domenase, Gwira-Tumantu, Hiawa and Tarkwa-Breman in the Nzema East Municipality, Amenfi Central and Preastea Huni-Valley Districts in the Western Region.

Illegal mining, otherwise known as galamsey, has ravaged the environment and polluted water bodies all over the country.

Some excavators were abandoned at some mining sites while others were parked in front of houses.

There were huge pockets of trenches all over the places visited.

Some miners have mined both sides of the road and too close to River Ankobra and cocoa farms.

Source: GNA