artisanal gold mining and their effects on the major rivers in ghana

The area is known for its widespread illegal mining activities. The area is also known as Dunkwa-on-Offin because of the significance of the Offin river to the people. This study area was chosen due to the widespread illegal mining activities in the Municipality and the proximity of these illegal mining activities to a major river (Offin) in Ghana.

Artisanal small-scale gold mining (ASGM), a significant industry in Ghana, typically occurs near streams and rivers in order to obtain a source of water for processing and waste discharge.

Some of the poorest people in the world's poorest countries eke out a living in artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM). Equipped with primitive tools like picks, shovels, buckets, and gold pans, they work mining valuable resources, like gold, diamonds, tin, lithium, rare earth elements, tantalum, and cobalt, and any other usable …

What We Do. Projects. Gold mining is a central component of Ghana's economy. An increased amount of illegal artisanal mining in recent years has led to accelerated …

This study aimed to evaluate the potential risk of mercury pollution in soils in Gbani, an artisanal gold mining community in Ghana. Two hundred and thirty-seven soil samples were collected from within 0–10 cm depth, from active mining sites near residences, two transects in the community, waste soil from mining processing and the ...

The paper draws on 74 interviews with artisanal and small-scale gold miners and other stakeholders to investigate communities' perceptions of the effects of ASM methods (alluvial mining, surface ...

This report is one of three synthesis documents produced via an integrated assessment (IA) that aims to increase understanding of artisanal and small-scale gold …

The effects of small-scale gold mining activities on heavy metal levels in groundwater were determined for the Lower Pra Basin of Ghana. Sixty five boreholes in 45 communities were analysed between January 2012 and April 2012 for the dry season and June and October 2012 for the wet season. The test for significance and the use of …

1. Introduction. Artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) is a crucial source of income for millions of people in developing countries [4], including Sub-Saharan Africa, where it directly benefits around 20–30 million individuals and supports downstream industries [3, 12].However, despite its economic importance, ASGM is often viewed …

Some of the poorest people in the world's poorest countries eke out a living in artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM). Equipped with primitive tools like picks, shovels, buckets, and gold pans, they work …

Over the past three decades, the global appetite for gold has continued to grow, driven by increased consumer demand from Asia and soaring investor demand following spiking gold prices. 6 Artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) is prevalent in at least 64 countries (Figure 1).The estimated number of ASGM miners increased from …

The prime issue relates to incessant illegal artisanal gold/diamond mining on or along these rivers. In order to assess the state of these rivers, water samples were taken, and analysed at the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research Laboratory (CSIR, Accra-Ghana) to investigate their physico-chemical quality.

Artisanal and small-scale mining in Ghana. According to historical accounts, artisanal gold mining has been practiced by natives in modern Ghana for well over 2000 years (Hilson, 2002a). Today, with total gold production of 4.8 million ounces in 2018, Ghana leads Africa as the largest gold producing country (Whitehouse, 2019). The …

Mining in Ghana. The mining sector has historically been one of the major economic activities that contribute to national growth. Many countries have grown their economic stature by extrapolating natural resources through mining.Given the economic boom, not much attention is paid to the health implications of the mining activities.

The environmental impacts of artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) are currently a major issue globally. There is cause for concern given the rapid loss of forest resources and pollution of water bodies through contamination with heavy metals like cyanide, arsenic, and mercury. The study investigated the livelihood and …

20 per cent of the global gold supply, 80 per cent of the global sapphire supply and 20 per cent of . ... Streams and rivers often become polluted near ASM sites, ... Artisanal and small-scale mining is also the source of the largest releases of mercury, estimated at . 1,400 tonnes per year in 2011 according to the Minamata Convention.

Five artisanal mining communities were selected based on the intensity of mining activities in them. The study respondents consisted of 290 heads drawn randomly from 1,050 s.

The study examined the critical factors influencing the sustainability of the Pra river basin in Ghana, with a focus on water pollution incidents caused by illegal …

The river is relied upon for drinking water, agriculture and fishing which are the bedrocks of their survival. Artisanal small-scale mining (ASM) is not new in Ghana. Known as galamsey, artisanal …

A study in an ASGM area in Ghana identified four challenges: mining on the river bed and diversion of the path of the Fena river; potential toxic metal …

It is estimated that globally, 13 million people depend on artisanal gold mining for their livelihood and that majority of these people are in developing countries (Donkor et al., 2011). Artisanal ...

History of Mining in Ghana. There is evidence of gold extraction activities in Ghana as far back as the 7th and 8th centuries A.D., as gold deposits attracted Arab traders into the country.7 These activities were strategically located along rivers where sediments believed to contain deposits of gold were washed constantly to separate the …

In Niger, artisanal gold mining contributes to the socioeconomic development for populations and government. It involves more than 450.000 persons who pay artisanal gold mining taxes and more than 2.700.000 peoples depend on it. Gold panning produces between two and ten tons of gold per year, which represents 2.90% of …

Projects. Gold mining is a central component of Ghana's economy. An increased amount of illegal artisanal mining in recent years has led to accelerated deforestation, destruction of protected areas, and human health issues due to Mercury used during the mining process. This project addresses Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 15 (Life on Land ...

Researchers from NASA, U.S. universities, and government agencies in Ghana recently used satellite data to estimate the extent of vegetation lost to artisanal mining in the southwestern portion of the country, where the majority of gold mining takes place. They found artisanal mining accounted for 25 percent of vegetation loss in the region ...

The study were to assess on the impacts of mining activities on land degradation, land stability, atmosphere, water resource, biodiversity and on local residents as well on local uses of mineral resources in Kape area.Data's employed were gathered through field observation, group discussion, and asking local peoples aboutimpact of gold mining, …

The informal artisanal and small-scale mining (ASGM) sector in Ghana has been engrossed with grave environmental challenges and practices. Whereas some ideologies call for its perpetual banning ...

Ghana is known globally for gold (and diamond) mining, and this activity contributes more than one-third of Ghana's export revenues. During the global COVID-19 pandemic, the mining sector was one major area that was largely considered as an essential sector, especially in Ghana (GCM, 2020), possibly due to its impact on the …

The quality of river water in the South-western Rivers System of Ghana has been evaluated to unveil the impacts of artisanal small-scale mining activities. The …