Minister of Mines and Natural Resources Mike Hammah is advocating for a wider stakeholders forum to address the problem of illegal mining and chain saw operations.According to him, the two activities are of great threat to the environment.He told Joy Business the rate at which the forest is being depleted has become alarming and needs to be tackled head on.Speaking to Joy Business about the extent of devastation he has seen after touring some parts of the country Mr. Hammah said offenders were using sophisticated equipment for their operations that made it difficult for the security agencies to track them.“First of all we need to deal ruthlessly with the illegal chainsaw operators and make sure that we can stop their activities or minimise it,” he said.While at this, Mr Hammah, said the nation must vigorously pursue the objectives of the National Timber Plantation Project to b able to improve on the vegetative cover and to be able to supply adequate timber to meet local demand.“The illegal exploitation of our natural resources is costing this country close to about six per cent of GDP (Gross Domestic Product), which translates into a whooping sum of about $350 million annually,” and it is important to stop the practice, the minister maintained.Source: Joy Business/Ghana