By Erica Apeatua Addo
Bogoso (W/R), July 20, GNA – Future Global Resources Bogoso Prestea Limited (FGRBPL), a mining company in the Prestea Huni-Valley Municipality, has dismissed claims of releasing any portion of its concession for the proposed community mining project in Bogoso.
According to the Mine, although they are not against the community mining programme introduced by the government, those going round purporting in their locality that they have permission from FGR to engage in community mining on the company’s concession were not being truthful.
The company also refuted the claim that one of the pits in question does not fall within its operational area.
Mr Robert Gyamfi, Head of Stakeholder Communications and Community Engagement, disclosed this to a group of journalists after touring the alleged portion of the concession.
He said mining at the Bogoso South and Bogoso South Bypass pits which formed part of several areas submitted to regulators in line with the Reclamation Security Agreement (RSA) for completion certificate since 2014 was completed in 2001.
“Rehabilitation in line with the RSA commenced immediately in 2000-2001 with tree crops establishment on the waste rock dump and water reservoir design with protective zones and features to ensure safety of community members. The tree crop establishment and maintenance of the two-pit areas over the 20 years period costed the company several thousands of United States Dollars to accomplish.
The rehabilitation and closure options agreed with regulators in the (RSA), was a forest reserve and a clean water reservoir for aquatic life growth and biodiversity establishment,” Mr Gyamfi noted
He stated that over the past 20 years, urbanization has resulted in the building of residential structures near and very close to the pits, though records of engagements carried out by the previous operator of the Mine, and those being caried out as a continuity by FGR since it took over the operations of the Bogoso-Prestea Mine in 2020 attest to various efforts by the company to stop the encroachment.
Mr Gyamfi lamented that as at the year 2020, the remaining rehabilitated grown trees which were 20 years old were unlawfully cleared for anticipated structural construction by some residents of the local community, resulting in exposure of the pits.
“What is becoming more worrying in recent times is the frequent emboldened invasion of the area by some community residents in Bogoso for community mining without prior approval or permit from any recognized institutions and in the clear face of opposition from security personnel of FGR.”
Apart from the obvious increase in the environmental liability burden of the company, if the activities of the encroachers are not stopped immediately, their activities could have the potential of causing serious threat to public safety.
This would especially those innocent residents living within the vicinity of the pits in question and not to mention the eventual risk of ground subsidence that would affect private properties and the section of the Bogoso-Prestea public road that separates the two pits” He pointed out.
Explaining more on the consequences and risk of the unapproved community mining initiative, the Head of Stakeholder Communications and Community Engagement, said buildings close to the pits could collapse due to ground-activities of mining, the culvert on the Bogoso-Prestea road would most likely be affected and flooding of upstream residential buildings with high silt-laden water would be on the increase.
In addition, he said, the exposure of some geological characteristics of the pits to the weather could make the pit materials reactive and acid generating and their negative impacts on surface and ground water in the area will increase, noise and dust generation as well as the potential influx of people and its potential attendant social vices among others in the area cannot also be rule out.
“Although monitoring of the area to wade off the potential developers of the pits for community mining have been intensified by personnel of the security department of the company, it is important for all relevant stakeholders to support the company to avert this obviously unacceptable activity, Mr Gyamfi said,” Mr Gyamfi said.
He emphasised: “Even though the developers assert that their project would create job opportunities for some unemployed youth in the community, the consequences as we can see, far outweighs the anticipated socioeconomic benefits.” Mr Gyamfi emphasized.
As at the time of the journalists’ visit to where the two pits were located some groups of people were seen busily working in one of the pits with an excavator machine.
GNA