A whopping 8,923.8 hectares of the country’s forest reserves, equivalent to 12,500 FIFA standard football fields, have been heavily impacted by illegal mining activities, the latest scientific study by the Forestry Commission has revealed.
The findings of a national satellite remote-sensing-based verification of mined-out areas in forest reserves, released by the Commission last Tuesday, February 24, revealed that the affected areas encompassed 45 forest reserves and a national park as of December 31, 2024.
Extent of damage
The research found that the Ashanti Region was the hardest hit, with a total of 4,948.9 hectares across 13 forest reserves destroyed through galamsey.
The Western North Region followed with 2,195.7 hectares in 12 forest reserves decimated by galamsey, while the Western Region suffered a total of 1,301.5 hectares in 11 forest reserves.
Furthermore, the Upper East Region had 210.7 hectares in three of its forest reserves destroyed due to galamsey, while the Bono Region recorded 136.2 hectares destroyed in one of its reserves.
The research also showed that the Eastern Region had three forest reserves impacted by galamsey, totalling 56.7 hectares, while the Central and Savannah regions had 44.7 hectares and 29.5 hectares of forest reserves, respectively impacted by illegal mining.
The Operations Manager at the Plantations Department of the Forest Services Division (FSD) of the Forestry Commission, Dr Ben Torgbor, who presented the research findings, said the three most impacted forest reserves were the Oda River Forest Reserve (2,654.8 hectares), Upper Wassa (1,660.4) and the Apamprama Forest Reserve (1,366.7).
The country has 288 forest reserves being managed by the Forestry Commission’s FSD. As of 2021, it was established that illegal miners had destroyed 5,252.9 hectares of 43 forest reserves.
Currently, the Forestry Commission is analysing data to determine the extent of destruction to forest reserves as of 2025.
However, the Chief Executive of the Forestry Commission, Dr Hugh Brown, said that the rise in illegal mining activities in the country, the withdrawal of the military from their bases in forest reserves in 2023, and logistical and human resource constraints on the part of the commission had contributed to the massive destruction of forest reserves in the country.
“At the height of galamsey activities in 2023, the military had been withdrawn from protecting forest reserves and it was difficult to get them to flush out illegal miners.
Even now, although we have the military to assist us with some operations, they are not readily available when we need them,” he said.
He said in January this year, for instance, some illegal mining thugs invaded the Offin Shelterbelt Forest Reserve in the Ashanti Region but efforts to get the military to deal with the challenge promptly failed.
“We called for assistance but the military team was not readily available because they were engaged in other operations elsewhere,” he said.
Dr Brown said the Forestry Commission needed the necessary logistics and personnel to help protect the country’s forest reserves.
Shortage of personnel
He said the commission’s current personnel strength made it practically impossible to fully protect all forest reserves from encroachers.
He said as of last year the commission had a staff shortfall of 2,334.
“From last year till now, some of our staff have gone on retirement or left for other reasons, so the staff gap has increased.
We need clearance to recruit more staff to fill this gap so that we can protect our forest reserves well,” he said.
Dr Brown added that because forest reserves were a critical national asset with ecological, economic and social significance, appropriate steps must be taken to protect them.
Dr Brown also stressed the need for the government to invest in forest protection as a matter of national priority.
Forest Protection Camps
Meanwhile, the Operations Director of Natural Forest at the Forestry Commission, Yaw Kwakye, said the Commission had installed six Forest Protection Camps at the Oda River Forest Reserve and the Offin Shelterbelt Forest Reserve to help combat encroachment.
He said four more of those camps would be set up by the end of next month in other illegal mining hotspots.
Mr Kwakye said that currently the commission was recruiting and training personnel to take charge of the protection camps.
“We are already getting information that the galamsey people have started moving out of the areas where we have set up forest protection camps.
I am sure that by the time we fully operationalise the camps, there will be a few challenges with galamsey to deal with,” he said.
Source:
www.graphic.com.gh