About 20 acres of land degraded by illegal mining have been reclaimed at Nweneso No. 1 and No. 2 in the Atwima Kwanwoma District of the Ashanti Region following a two-week suspension of all mining activities ordered by National Security.
The directive, issued after an inspection of the area, required all miners to stop operations and begin reclaiming degraded lands as part of efforts to restore the environment.
Some miners have since complied by filling abandoned pits and rehabilitating portions of the affected land for tree planting and other vegetation.
To assess compliance, the Atwima Kwanwoma District Security Council (DISEC), officials from the Environmental Department and members of the media toured the mining sites and observed what they described as significant progress in the reclamation exercise.
Chairman of the District Committee overseeing the reclamation of abandoned galamsey pits, Kingston Opoku Bediako, said the exercise would continue until all degraded lands in the district are restored.
“It is the vision of the District Chief Executive to ensure that all abandoned galamsey pits are reclaimed to prevent future tragedies. We will not abandon this exercise after today. We will continue to monitor the sites regularly to ensure the reclamation works are sustained,” he said.
He warned that anyone caught mining on reclaimed lands would be dealt with according to the law.
The District Environmental Officer, Ernest Boakye, welcomed the progress, saying the reclaimed lands would be used for afforestation and other restoration programmes.
“This is the kind of progress we expect to see at all illegal mining sites. Reclaiming degraded lands is essential to restoring our environment. I therefore urge all illegal miners in the district to cooperate with the authorities and support the reclamation efforts,” he said.
The reclamation is being undertaken by Danmark Prime Company Limited, which has been contracted to restore the affected lands.
Its Operations Manager, Robert Dambo, said the company intends to reclaim more degraded lands before the end of the year.
“We appeal to everyone to support the government’s efforts to restore our degraded lands. Land reclamation is highly capital-intensive, so continuous monitoring and adequate security are needed to prevent illegal miners from returning to destroy the reclaimed sites,” he noted.
Also on the inspection tour was the District Liaison Officer for National Security, Bernard Kofi Ampofo, who commended miners who had complied with the directive but warned that authorities would not hesitate to act against defaulters.
“We are impressed with the level of compliance so far. But those who fail to comply with the directive should be prepared because we will come after them,” he cautioned.
