The Birim River and some of its tributaries in the Eastern Region are regenerating their natural ecology months after the destructive illegal mining on them was stopped.
The rivers had become muddy and brownish in colour, highly polluted with mercury and other chemicals and undrinkable.
[contextly_sidebar id=”ym9kMNdIPbwGq9QRQJ4PXEZDLACenPMa”]But following a directive for the cessation of all illegal mining activities in the country as part of the national campaign against galamsey, the rivers have become clearer and less muddy.
Citi News’ Kojo Agyeman and Nii Amartey Karnaku who visited the Adensu River, reported that residents in some farming communities along the river, including Sekyimase, have begun drinking from the river.
Kwame Brako, an environmental officer at A-Rocha Ghana, an NGO focused on the preservation of natural resources, said water supply had improved in the Kyebi area following the launch of the anti-galamsey campaign.
“One month before the campaign started, Kyebi had no water because the turbidity of the water was so high that the company couldn’t extract water for us, but after the campaign started and people started stopping, we have water every day, that means that the water is clearing up and the campaign is yielding some results,” he said.
Some residents told Citi News they could not drink or use the water for domestic activities prior to the start of the anti-galamsey campaign, but they’ve seen some improvement in its quality few months into the campaign and have resumed using them.
Before the campaign, Citi News reported that some of the residents have resorted to using sachet water for various domestic activities including cooking.
Meanwhile, the Police has arrested 4 illegal miners for defying the government’s ban on galamsey and mining on the Birim River.
The four were arrested at Dua Nkwanta, a village close to Kade in the Eastern Region.
They are Felix Akutei 20, Carbo James 19, Tetteh James 19, and Asamoah Enoch 20. They were busily mining in the river when the Kade District Security Committee (DISEC) together with the police command which had embarked on a clamp down operation sighted them while on patrol.
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By: Jonas Nyabor/citifmonline.com/Ghana