GWCL joins Medical Association's call for total ban on Galamsey

Cape Coast, Ghana - The Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) in the Central Region has added its voice to the growing chorus of calls for the government to halt small-scale mining activities in the country.

In an interview on JoyNews' Newsfile, Nana Yaw Barima Barnie, Public Relations Officer for GWCL, revealed that the company is facing significant challenges in purifying water due to excessively high turbidity levels, which are beyond the system's designed capacity.

Barnie emphasized the urgent need for the government to take action against small-scale mining, warning that if the situation persists, GWCL may be forced to resort to using stronger purifiers to make the water safe for consumption, which would be a costly and unsustainable solution.

When asked whether he supports calls by the Ghana Medical Association for the President to issue an absolute ban to end galamsey he said “I very much agree with them. In fact the aim of Ghana Water Company in bringing out this statement is that attention should be drawn to it so that the galamsey on river bodies, Ghana Water Company want to see galamsey stopped entirely," he said on September 7.

Nana Yaw Barima Barnie, also echoed the Ghana Medical Association's call for a total ban on small-scale mining, citing the devastating health impacts on mining communities.

The medical association, comprising doctors, nurses, and other health professionals, warned that unchecked mining activities pose a significant threat to public health, particularly in rural areas, due to the surge in respiratory and waterborne diseases.

Barnie shared a personal anecdote, recalling how he could drink directly from rivers during his childhood in the Ashanti Region because they were clean and unpolluted.

He emphasized that a complete ban on illegal mining would prevent further contamination, allowing rivers to naturally restore themselves to their pristine state when left undisturbed.

 “So we must get to a point where River Pra, the water in river Pra will become colourless and we can stand at the bank of this river and we can see the fishes swimming in the river. That is what we are all waiting for,” he added.

Source: Florence Kyei /Lead News Online