The Mankrom Cocoa Cooperative Farmers Affiliation has expressed deep concern over the escalating destruction of cocoa farms resulting from unlawful mining actions, generally referred to as galamsey.
In accordance with the farmers, over 100,000 acres of cocoa farms have been destroyed within the pursuit of gold.
The President of the Affiliation careworn the pressing want for presidency intervention to halt the menace and defend the livelihoods of cocoa farmers.
“They’re destroying cocoa farms and lands for this unlawful mining and we have now not heard something. In case the federal government is just not conscious of the destruction; the cocoa board is telling farmers that they can’t do something as of now trying on the stage of hurt and the massive males which can be into gold mining.
“Now, even the federal government has modified the title and made it group mining. What’s group mining? They’re doing precisely what the unlawful miners are doing.
“Greater than 100,000 acres of farmlands have been destroyed resulting from unlawful mining and it has affected our manufacturing for this 12 months. As a result of many of the cocoa has been lower down and as soon as they’ve been lower down, it’s making issues tough for us to get the harvest that we’re getting.
“So, I consider that going ahead the federal government ought to declare a state of emergency within the galamsey areas. All galamsey points must be halted in order that after the elections, a fee must be set as much as examine all of the unlawful mining within the nation in order that we give you a blueprint, for the way in which that we should always do mining in Ghana.
“Aside from that everyone has to simply get up and seek for gold and illegally proceed on these companies, then lives and properties will proceed to be affected,” he stated on Citi Information.
Conversations on galamsey and its dire impression arose after the administration of Ghana Water Restricted (GWL) introduced extreme water provide challenges in Cape Coast, Elmina, and surrounding communities resulting from galamsey actions within the Pra River.
In a press assertion signed and issued by the Central Regional Workplace of GWL on Friday, August 30, it defined that water sources have been polluted past reasoning limits, affecting processing and distribution for home and industrial use.
It additional talked about that the Sekyere Hemang Water Remedy Plantplant is producing solely 7,500m³/day, 1 / 4 of its capability, inflicting extreme inconvenience to prospects.