A coalition of civil society organisations (CSOs) has called on President John Dramani Mahama to take immediate and decisive action to stop what they describe as an “ecocide” caused by illegal mining (galamsey), warning that failure to act would amount to complicity in the destruction of Ghana’s environment and future.

In a joint statement delivered Friday, the coalition cited alarming findings from a recent Mercury and Heavy Metals Impact Assessment conducted by Pure Earth and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), alongside a 2023 report by the UN Special Rapporteur on Toxic Substances.

The groups said the data confirmed widespread contamination of water, soil, and food systems by mercury, arsenic, and other toxic metals linked to galamsey.

According to the assessment, mercury levels in Konongo Zongo soils reached 56.4 ppm—560 percent above safety guidelines—while arsenic levels in some sites exceeded permissible limits by more than 400 times. Water samples from Konongo Odumase were found to contain arsenic concentrations 330 times the national standard.

“These findings paint a picture of a nation poisoning its own life-support systems,” the statement read, pointing to rising health cases, including kidney disorders in children, miscarriages linked to placental contamination, and mercury-related developmental risks.

The groups also highlighted the loss of more than 1.2 million hectares of farmland, the displacement of over 500,000 farmers, and the collapse of water treatment facilities in mining-affected areas.

Demands for leadership and accountability

The coalition urged President Mahama to provide a clear definition of success in the fight against galamsey, along with a roadmap of milestones and timelines. Among their specific demands were:

• Clarity on benchmarks for declaring a state of emergency on galamsey.
• Updates on prosecutions of alleged “kingpins” named in the Frimpong Boateng report and cases referred to the Attorney-General and EOCO.
• The establishment of fast-track courts dedicated to illegal mining cases.
• Performance indicators for MMDCEs and police commanders in mining hotspots, with consequences for failure.
• Protection for anti-galamsey activists facing intimidation, particularly in Atronsu and Breman.
• Confiscation and reclamation of lands under illegal mining and investigations into the role of chiefs.
• An end to the deportation of foreign suspects in mining crimes, with full prosecution under Ghanaian law.
• Monthly public reports on the state of rivers, forests, and food safety in mining zones.

The CSOs, including the Media Coalition Against Galamsey, A Rocha Ghana, OneGhana Movement, Peasant Farmers Association, and the Ghana Institution of Engineering, warned that without bold intervention, Ghana faced collapse of its water, agriculture, and food systems.

“We either deal with this menace or we perish,” the statement declared. “Without clean water, air, and sustainable forests, we are done as a people. Not to act decisively is to be complicit in this wilful ecocidal genocide of monumental proportion.”

The groups urged the President to act with urgency, warning that history would judge the current leadership harshly if it failed to confront the crisis.