By Eric Appah Marfo/ Francis Ntow
Accra, Nov. 15, GNA – Ghana receives between 42.5 and 62 tonnes of mercury annually through illicit channels for use in artisanal and small-scale gold mining, stakeholders have disclosed.
The continued use of the toxic substance in mining communities poses risks to water resources, the environment and public health, they said.
Dr Sylvester Akpah, Chief Executive Officer of Smart Innovation Ghana Limited, disclosed this at a symposium organised by the United States Embassy in Accra on behalf of the Regional Environment, Science, Technology and Health Hub for West and Central Africa under the Ambassador’s Water Experts Programme.
He said the mercury entered the country through unidentified routes and was used in artisanal and small-scale mining communities.
Dr Akpah said more than 2.5 million people depended directly or indirectly on small-scale mining for their livelihoods, making the uncontrolled use of mercury a major concern.
He said mining communities in the Western, Ashanti, Eastern and Central regions were particularly affected by mercury pollution, with a number of water bodies contaminated.
Dr Akpah identified Tarkwa and surrounding communities as areas under severe environmental pressure and said continued pollution could threaten access to safe drinking water.
He said mercury continued to enter the country through illicit channels despite existing controls at the ports.
Dr Akpah also cited the absence of a dedicated national directorate to oversee mercury use and related controls in the mining sector as a challenge to effective regulation.
He said miners and residents of nearby communities faced exposure through the routine use of mercury in gold-processing activities, which could affect the kidneys, lungs and brain.
Dr Akpah called for stricter enforcement of existing regulations and the adoption of technologies to reduce and eventually eliminate mercury use in small-scale mining.
He cited gold-catching technologies as an alternative but said their adoption remained limited despite investments in importing the equipment.
Dr Akpah noted that Ghana had ratified the Minamata Convention on Mercury, an international agreement aimed at protecting human health and the environment from mercury pollution, but said enforcement remained a challenge.
Professor Daniel Nukpezah of the Institute for Environment and Sanitation Studies, University of Ghana, said mercury pollution required stronger surveillance and management systems.
He said mercury was a toxic heavy metal that did not break down in the environment but moved through air, water, soil, sediments and living organisms.
Prof. Nukpezah said mercury could be transformed into methylmercury in aquatic environments, where it accumulated in fish and entered the human food chain.
He explained that bacteria in sediments converted mercury deposited in water bodies into methylmercury, which was absorbed by aquatic organisms.
Prof. Nukpezah said mercury concentrations increased as larger fish consumed smaller organisms, thereby increasing human exposure through the food chain.
He said exposure could occur through inhalation of contaminated air, consumption of polluted water and fish, contact with contaminated soil and participation in mining activities.
Prof. Nukpezah identified artisanal and small-scale gold mining as a major source of mercury pollution in Ghana because miners used the substance as a relatively inexpensive means of extracting gold from ore.
He also identified electronic waste processing and other industrial activities as sources of mercury contamination.
Citing findings from the United Nations Environment Programme, Prof. Nukpezah said atmospheric mercury concentrations had increased by about 450 per cent above natural levels.
He said mercury occurred in different chemical forms, each presenting varying levels of risk, and called for appropriate sampling and testing to determine the extent of contamination.
Prof. Nukpezah urged the development of local capacity to monitor mercury pollution and exposure.
He said effective interventions required a better understanding of mercury sources, its movement through the environment and the pathways through which it entered human populations.
The symposium sought to identify measures to reduce mercury use and promote environmentally sustainable mining practices.
The two-day forum brought together government officials, academics, civil society organisations, development partners and private-sector representatives to discuss measures to address mercury pollution and protect Ghana’s water resources.
GNA
Edited by Kenneth Sackey
15 Nov. 2026
Reporters: Eric Appah Marfo/Francis Ntow