A number of youth organisations, advocacy non-governmental organisations advocacy and faith-based community organisations, concerned with the protection of the country’s forest reserves, have called on government and regulatory agencies to be proactive in preventing pollution of rivers by mining companies.
In a release dated March 19, 2010 and signed by advocacy NGOs including Wacam, Youth for Action Ghana (YAG), Centre for Environmental Impact Analysis (CEIA), Dialogue and Advocacy for Good Governance (DAGG), Concerned Citizens’ association of Prestea among others they said: “We thus call on Regulatory agencies to be proactive in preventing pollution of rivers by mining operations and to provide timely information on pollution of water bodies to affected communities.
Other signatories to the press release are Centre for Labour Rights and Community Services (CLARCS), Voices of Tomorrow Leaders Foundation (VOTOLEAF), Center for Public Interest Law (CEPIL) and Concerned Farmers’ Association of Teberebie.
The statement was issued in respect of today which marks the celebration of World Water Day.
According to the groups, the theme for the celebration of this year’s World Water Day “Clean Water for a Healthy World” aptly reflects the relationship between clean water and the health status of many people who rely on natural water resource to meet their biological, cultural, recreational and household needs”.
The statement added: “Water availability is one of the important issues with health implications that confront Africa in particular and the world in general. The fourth assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) states that twelve countries would be limited to 1,000 to 1,700 m3/person/year, and the population at risk could be up to 460 million mainly in West Africa”.
“Surface mining including artisanal mining affects water availability to people through the use of large volumes of fresh water for processing as well as water pollution from discharged mine effluent and seepage from tailings and waste rock impoundments” the advocacy organisations expressed.
The statement noted that “Increasingly, human activities such as mining threaten the water sources on which human beings depend. James Lyon describes Water as “mining’s most common casualty”. (James Lyon, interview, Mineral Policy Centre, Washington DC)”.
…Gold mining can deplete surface and groundwater supplies through dewatering,” the statement noted.
According to the press statement, the rate at which mining operations are polluting water bodies in Ghana is a source of serious concern and worry.
“The multinational mining companies in Ghana including Goldfields Ghana Limited, Golden Star Resources (Prestea/Bogoso) mine, Golden Star Resources (Akyempim) mine, Newmont Ghana Gold Limited, AngloGold Ashanti Obuasi mine, AngloGold Ashanti Iduapriem Limited and the defunct Teberebie Goldfields Limited had officially been reported to have spilled large quantities of cyanide into rivers that serve the needs of mining communities.
…A research commissioned by Wacam on water quality of rivers in mining communities of Obuasi and Tarkwa areas revealed that 250 rivers had been polluted by cyanide and heavy metals,” the release said.
The negative effects of mining, in the estimation of the advocacy organisations was depriving mining communities of access to clean water and this has implication for the health status of mining communities “since the ingestion of cyanide and heavy metals in rivers for long periods could lead to many serious health problems for people living in mining communities”.
“We recognise that access to clean water is a human right and the pollution of rivers by mining operations constitutes a violation of the rights of the mining communities to clean water and environment,” the press statement said.
Forest Reserves serve as the Watersheds for many rivers and we call on government not to allow mining in Forest Reserves. We call on government to demonstrate its commitment to the ideals of the theme of the 2010 Water Day celebration, “Clean Water for a Healthy World” by revoking the Mining Lease granted Newmont to mine in Ajenua Bepo Forest Reserve. Ghana should not make the celebration of the Water Day, rhetoric and a celebration with no political commitment to protect our water resources.