The Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources has arrested five illegal miners in the Bosomtwe Range Forest Reserve in the Bekwai Forest District of the Ashanti Region.
The illegal miners were operating in the Forest Reserve despite the ban on mining in forest reserves and near water bodies.
The Deputy Minister for Lands and Natural Resources responsible for Lands and Forestry, Mr Benito Owusu-Bio, who led a delegation from the Ministry, Forestry Commission and Ghana Armed Forces into the forest, discovered that the miners had destroyed several hectares of the forest cover, abandoned their equipment and fled for shelter.
Excavators, changfan machines, fuel storage tanks and other equipment were used to build four illegal mining sites in the reserve, about the size of a sports stadium. The sites were eventually set ablaze by the Deputy Minister and his team.
Mr Owusu-Bio pointed out that illegal miners, popularly called galamseyers, have recently been drawn to the reserve and it was a source of worry to the Ministry and the government.
He called on the judiciary to expedite action to give stiff punishment to those arrested.
"Some of them have been arrested and being processed for court in Bekwai. A couple of them have been granted bail. We are praying with the court to expedite action on the case, so they can be prosecuted and jailed," he disclosed.
In addition to complimenting the task force and the military for a job well done, the Deputy Minister stated that the occasional visits to forests would not stop at the Bosomtwe Range Forest but would include other forest reserves in other locations.
The Chief Executive Officer of the Forestry Commission, John Allotey, said data was being gathered on the forest reserves destroyed by the illegal miners.
He described galamsey activities in the forest reserves as very devastating to the environment.
"The last decade, our focus was on illegal chainsaw operators and the bush fire prevention and others. But, at the moment, we have to deal with galamsey menace. It's becoming dangerous and bigger due to the impact," he stated.
