General Secretary of the Ghana Institution of Geoscientists, Prof. Prince Ofori Amponsah, has described illegal small-scale mining as a silent killer that must be stopped immediately.

He highlighted the severe contamination of major water bodies like the Pra, Ankobra, and Tano rivers due to high levels of mercury and cyanide from galamsey activities.

Speaking in an interview on JoyNews’ The Pulse on September 1, he warned that communities relying on these water sources, including boreholes, are in serious danger, as the polluted water exposes people to harmful metals.

• Read also: Water bodies must be designated as security zones for better protection against galamsey – GWCL MD

“In fact, the headwaters of these waters have all been polluted and everybody that lives along these water bodies is in danger.

“The worse situation is our groundwater resources… many people depend on boreholes in their homes to source water and these boreholes are polluted and we are polluting them day by day. Now, when you drink these borehole water, you are exposing yourselves to all these metals being used by the galamseyers,” he stressed.

Prof. Amponsah stressed that the pollution has escalated to a point where food security is compromised, with mercury now found in fish, making them unsafe to eat.

He further described the situation as "a time bomb" and a crime that must be urgently addressed, warning that the problem is growing more dangerous each day.

"If we don’t do anything about it, it will explode. It is a silent killer. We are doing the research and seeing the levels of these heavy metals and I can tell you that it is at an alarming rate,” he stated.