Volume 10, Number 3 (April 2023):4547-4557, doi:10.15243/jdmlm.2023.103.4547 ISSN: 2339-076X (p); 2502-2458 (e), www.jdmlm.ub.ac.id
Open Access 4547 Research Article
Application of triple bottom line concept to artisanal and small-scale mining activities in Wa East District, Ghana
Emmanuel Mensah-Abludo1, Kenneth Peprah2*, Issah Baddianaah3
1 Ghana Broadcasting Corporation, Box 55, Wa. UWR. Ghana
2 Simon Diedong Dombo University of Business and Integrated Development Studies (SDD-UBIDS), Wa. Faculty of Integrated Development Studies, Department of Environment and Resource Studies, P.O. Box WA64 Wa Upper West Region, Ghana, W/Africa
3 William V.S. Tubman University, Harper City, Maryland County, Liberia
*corresponding author: kpeprah@ubids.edu.gh
Abstract Article history:
Received 8 November 2022 Accepted 31 January 2023 Published 1 April 2023
The artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) sector offers a supplementary livelihood strategy to agriculture in northern Ghana, acting as a source of capital to support agriculture. However, the sector has been associated with several adverse environmental and socio-economic consequences, making its sustainability dimensions extremely complex and inconclusive across the literature. This study sought to investigate the dynamics of ASM operations in line with the Triple Bottom Line concept.
Specifically, the paper explored the influence of the small-scale mining law and institutional framework on ASM operations, examined the relationship between the economic benefits of ASM and other livelihood activities, and assessed the adverse environmental effects of ASM in the host communities. The research design was a mixed method and cross- sectional survey. Household questionnaires, semi-structured interviews and non-participant observation were the main primary data collection techniques. Secondary data were provided by satellite images sourced from USGS Earth Explorer. They were analysed to determine the land cover types. The results indicate that the relevant regulatory state institutions lag behind their law enforcement duty. The ASM is a lucrative job that provides quick income to the youth. However, ASM activities affect food crop farming and decrease the quantity and quality of vegetation causing variations in land cover. Consequently, the host communities and ASM cooperatives have employed some land reclamation strategies. The study recommends increased government support to the relevant regulatory state institutions to constantly monitor and sanitize the ASM sector. To eradicate illegal mining, the study advocates for multi-stakeholder consultation and action.
Keywords:
artisanal and small-scale mining land cover
poverty
Triple Bottom Line Wa East District
To cite this article: Mensah-Abludo, E., Peprah, K. and Baddianaah, I. 2023. Application of triple bottom line concept to artisanal and small-scale mining activities in Wa East District, Ghana. Journal of Degraded and Mining Lands Management 10(3):4547-4557, doi:10.15243/jdmlm.2023.103.4547.
Introduction
Globally, countries endowed with rich mineral deposits have the mining industry playing a major role in economic growth and development (Makua and Kola, 2017). Within the same context, the mining
industry exerts environmental degradation and social disorder (Fayiah, 2020). The negative impacts of mining are exacerbated by the competition between large-scale mining (LSM) and artisanal and small- scale mining (ASM) as the two compete for the same mineral resources, particularly, in developing
Open Access 4548 countries (CASM, 2009). Meanwhile, mining is to
help achieve net positive or no net loss impact and preserve ecosystem services for Sustainable Development Goal 15 (The World Economic Forum, 2016). In this regard, the LSM sector is said to be doing better than the ASM sector (Omotehinse and Ako, 2019). Artisanal and small-scale mining is seen as a generator of revenue for 40.5 million people from 80 countries in 2017, particularly, from the global south;
ensures poverty reduction and rural development;
contributes 20% of global gold supply, 80% of sapphire, 20% of diamond, 25% of tin and 26% of tantalum production; and, serves as a safety net for retrenched workers from other sectors (Hentschel et al., 2002; Kwai and Hilson, 2010; IGF, 2017).
However, ASM is noted for its high environmental cost, poor health, and safety records (Hentschel et al., 2002; IGF, 2017). And, whether or not ASM is a net contributor to sustainable development requires further research as the current literature is limited (Hentschel et al., 2002).
This study aimed at making contributions to the facts by investigating the sustainable dynamics of artisanal and small-scale mining operations as underpinned by the triple bottom line concept. The specific objectives were to explore the influence of the small-scale mining law and institutional framework on ASM operations, examine the relationship between the economic benefits of ASM and other livelihood activities and assess the adverse environmental effects of ASM in the host communities. In sub-Saharan Africa, the main concern for ASM is the economic gain in terms of income generation for the teaming youth as gainful employment (Mapuva and Dube, 2016).
The environmental degradation caused by ASM as well as the clash of ASM and LSM resulting in social disorder is secondary issues that are to be dealt with by policy (Hirons, 2011). In Ghana, the extraction and processing of gold pre-date the age of European explorations of Africa. Presently, indigenous gold mining practices and processing methods in ASM stand side by side with that of the LSM (Anglo-Gold Asante, Newmont Ghana Gold Company Limited, Goldfields Ghana Limited and Bogoso Goldfields) (Ofosu-Mensah, 2011). Due to the operations of ASM in the country, the economic gains made in this sector are described as individual gains in which the country has negligible economic gains (Hilson and McQuilken, 2016). However, the externalities are socio-economic and environmental costs carried by the whole country such as land degradation, biodiversity loss, water and air pollution, school dropouts and an increase in the crime rate (Agyemang and Okoto, 2014; Mensah et al., 2015; Rajaee et al., 2015).
Another aspect of ASM in Ghana is that a chunk of the operators is not registered with the state. Hence, their activities are classified as illegal mining, that is, operations without licensing and environmental permits (Hilson and McQuilken, 2016).
Several legislations have been passed to deal with problems associated with ASM between 1989 and 2015. It started with PNDC Law 153 (minerals and mining law), PNDC Law 217 (mercury regulation in gold mining), PNDC Law 218 (small-scale gold mining law) and PNDC Law 219 (establishment of minerals commission) in 1989. Hence, the illegality of ASM is from 1989 to the present. These laws have passed through various amendments, such as ACT 450 (1993), ACT 703 (2006) to ACT 900 (2015). Amid the difficulties in handling ASM in Ghana, the study asks these questions: how sustainable are the dynamics of artisanal and small-scale mining operations?; how does the small-scale mining law in Ghana influence the operations of artisanal and small-scale miners?; how do the economic benefits of ASM supplement other livelihood activities?; and, how do the adverse environmental effects of ASM manifest?
Analytical Lens: Triple Bottom Line (3Ps) in ASM operations
This study is underpinned by the triple bottom line concept of the 3Ps: People, Planet and Profit (Elkington, 1998). The 3Ps represent the society (people), Earth (planet) and economics (profit) aspects of sustainability (Wang and Lin, 2007). Hence, social, environmental and economic sustainability are taken care of by the triple bottom line’s 3Ps. In academia, lectures are centred on the significance of the triple bottom line to sustainable development; emphasizing organizational performance, profitability and values in terms of social, economic and environmental assets (Savitz, 2006). However, environmentalists see this theoretical framing to be useful in promoting sustainable resource utilization (Slaper and Hall, 2011). It stresses ways through which natural resource extraction will yield profit for people and protect the environment (Planet) for the unborn generations (Alhaddi, 2015). However, a comparison of the use of TBL and sustainability in the literature indicates that TBL always goes with social, economic and environmental whereas sustainability is not always so (Arowoshegbe, 2016).
Additionally, the literature encourages TBL plus one, that is, the inclusion of governance into the 3Ps (Lins and Horwitz, 2007). In the current study, the ASM activities can either be unsustainable or sustainable mining practices. The former entails threats to people’s health and livelihoods; such vulnerable people are likely to cause harm to the environment during the exploitation of resources and their profit levels are likely to be low. The latter deals with good health and livelihood resulting in the prevention of harm to the environment and leading to enhanced profit. The ideal situation is for ASM to operate on the latter side [sustainable mining practices]
but due to uncontrollable drivers, the former [unsustainable mining practices] are not completely avoidable.
Open Access 4549 Materials and Methods
Study area
The study area is located in the tenth administrative region of Ghana (Upper West Region) which is rated as the poorest region in the country. However, the Region contains rich deposits of gold and tin (Timbillah et al., 2007; Guri et al., 2012). It is divided into eleven district assemblies and this study is located in Wa East District, the epicentre of ASM activities in the Region. Also, the District hosts Azumah Resources Limited, a Large-Scale Mining Company operating Wa Gold Project with its completed feasibility studies between 2006 and 2015. Again, Wa East District is considered the food basket of the Upper West Region.
The geographic coordinates of Wa East District are latitudes 9o 50’’N and 10o 20’’N and longitude 2o20’’W and 1o40’’W. Its relative location is shown by Mamprugu-Moaduri District (Savannah Region) in the northeast, North Gonja District (Savannah Region) in the southeast and Sissala East District (Upper West Region) in the north, Wa West District (Upper West Region) also in the north and Wa Municipal in the west. The elevation of the land in the District is between 180 and 1300 metres above sea level. The land is dissected by Rivers Kulpong and Kulun and their tributaries. The climate is the Aw Koppen type (tropical savannah with winter dry season) with temperatures between 21 oC and 38 oC but could rise to 45 oC in the dry season and with an annual rainfall average of 1200 mm. The vegetation is made up of trees, shrubs and grasses.
Methods of study
The research design employed was a mixed method and cross-sectional survey. The primary data collection was divided into three themes: social, economic and environmental sustainability. Data collection instruments were a questionnaire, a key informant interview guide and a personal observation chart. With respect to environmental sustainability, secondary data from satellite imagery downloaded from USGS Earth Explorer were added. For the selection of the study communities, three communities were selected from nine (Du, Danyawkura, Goripie, Baayiri. Bunaa, Chaggu, Besikaan, Manwe, Bulenga) purposively due to the size and age of ASM operations.
These communities were Goripie, Baayiri and Manwe.
The sample frame of a list of 827 households for the three study communities was collected from Ghana Statistical Service and a formula (n =
( ) ) was used to determine the sample size of 270. Furthermore, proportionate samples were taken for Goripie 106 from 325 households, Baayiri 81 from 248 households and Manwe 83 from 254 households (106 + 81 + 83 = 270). Questionnaires were administered to the household heads to solicit their views on social, economic and environmental sustainability with respect to the operations of ASM. Besides informal discussions with the miners, one lead miner from each
community, one traditional leader from each community and a staff each from the District Assembly, Minerals Commission, Forestry Commission and Environmental Protection Agency were interviewed. For the miners, the themes for the interview were the mode of operation, challenges and economic benefits and for the relevant state institutions, the interviews centred on their respective roles in enforcing the mining laws. Also, satellite images of the Wa East District were acquired from USGS and analysed to determine the land cover dynamic of the District. That is, three Landsat 7 images: 2000, 2010 and 2019 were used. The images had a pixel size of 30 meters, path 194 and row 052 with a cloud cover of less than 10% for the year 2000- 02-02, 2010-01-12 and 2019-01-21. The dates show that dry season images were used. Environment for Visualizing Images (ENVI 5.3 version) was used to process the data. A supervised Maximum Likelihood Classification (MLC) algorithm, suitable when each class defined has a Gaussian distribution (Laari et al., 2015) was used to classify Digital Number (DN) values into 5 different classes (i). built-up area (ii) closed vegetation (iii) open vegetation (iv) water body and (v) bare ground/soil. Data analysis of the primary data was carried out using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). Coded data were entered into SPSS using a string variable type to generate the frequency of occurrence of particular codes and their percentages. Central tendencies such as mean, mode, and standard deviation were also calculated and mean rank size was used. Furthermore, cross-tabulations were calculated and a chi-square test was used to show relationships based on the alpha value of 0.05%.
Associations less than 0.05% were classified as established associations and those more than 0.05%
were described as having no relationship.
Results and Discussion
This section is divided into three: social sustainability addresses the human interactions and regulations of ASM laws; economic sustainability considers incomes earned on a daily, monthly and annual basis, gender relations with the income and assets acquired;
environmental sustainability describes the effects of ASM on the biophysical environment.
Perspectives on small-scale mining law and institutional framework on ASM operations
The household heads perceptions of the district assembly were examined. Many respondents (28.5%) consider the assembly as a law enforcer and, therefore, responsible for illegalities involved in the ASM. The failure of the assemblies generally has resulted in the formation of the ‘Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining’ which is supported by the ‘Media Coalition Against Illegal Mining’. The literature shows that several government organizations have contributed to the fight against illegal mining within
Open Access 4550 ASM (Hilson and McQuilken, 2016). Other roles of
the district assembly revealed were making of mining bye-laws (21.5%), provision of logistics (18.9%), host of Operation Vanguards (14%), supervision (6%), prosecution (5.6%), environmental regulations (3%) and education (2.6%).
Table 1 shows opinions expressed by respondents on the role of the Minerals Commission in ASM operations. It is seen as a law enforcement commission by many respondents (35.8%). The PNDC Law 154 established the Minerals Commission in 1986 to grant a permit for minerals prospecting. The amended version, Act 703 in 2006 asked ASMs to obtain a concession of 25 acres. And, the 2015 amendment Act 900 required firms to obtain a license and pay royalties to the government. The requirements of Act 900 seem not to have been properly watered down to the household heads. This is particularly important due to the huge involvement of household
members in ASM. The literature confirms that the Minerals Commission has not delivered as the law demands (Crawford and Botchwey, 2016). This is due to a lack of compliance by operators of ASM. The results show that local communities are aware of some of the functions of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in promoting environmental sustainability (Table 2). Once again, the law enforcement aspect came out stronger (36.9%) than the other responsibilities. A key informant intimated:
securing re-election is the primary motive of most of our politicians and this has a downward effect on good governance in Ghana. This has been a major cause of our inability to operate independently. Hence, the miners have it their way against the EPA. The literature equally places responsibilities on the government (Crawford and Botchwey, 2016).
However, others claim the EPA is liable (Hoedoafia et al., 2014; Gilbert and Albert, 2016).
Table 1. Role of the minerals commission.
Educational
Status Role of Minerals Commission Total
Allocating Mining Concession
Enforce
Mining Laws Protect
Minerals Formulate
Mining Laws Fight Illegal Mining No formal
education 26 (36.6%) 34 (35.8%) 14 (28.0%) 17 (37.0%) 5 (62.5) 96 (35.6%) Basic 19 (26.8%) 25(26.3%) 13(26.0%) 12 (26.1%) 2 (25.0%) 71 (26.3%0 Secondary 13 (18.3%) 16 (16.8%) 10 (20.0%) 8 (17.4%) 0 (0.0%) 47 (17.4%) Diploma 8 (11.3%) 11 (11.6%) 6(12.0%) 5 (10.9%) 1 (12.5%) 31 (11.5%) First degree 4 (5.6%) 6 (6.3%) 4 (8.0%) 3 (6.5%) 0 (0.0%) 17 (6.3%) Postgraduate
degree
1 (1.4%) 3 (3.2%) 3 (6.0%) 1 (2.2%) 0 (0.0%) 8 (3.0%) Total 71 (100.0%) 95 (100.0%) 50 (100.0%) 46 (100.0%) 8 (100.0%) 270 (100.0%)
Table 2. Role of the Environmental Protection Agency.
Education
Status Roles of Environment Protection Agency Total
Education and
Sensitization Enforce Environmental
Laws
Mining
Regulation Punishing Offenders No formal
education 34 (35.4%) 24 (36.9%) 5 (33.3%) 33(35.1%) 96 (35.6%)
Basic 26 (27.1%) 18 (27.7%) 3 (20.0%) 24 (25.5%) 71 (26.3%)
Secondary 18 (18.8%) 11 (16.9%) 3 (20.0%) 15 (16.0%) 47 (17.4%)
Diploma 11 (11.5%) 6 (9.2%) 3 (20.0%) 11 (11.7%) 31 (11.5%)
First degree 5 (5.2%) 4 (6.2%) 1 (6.7%) 7 (7.4%) 17 (6.3%)
Postgraduate
degree 2 (2.1%) 2 (3.1%) 0 (0.0%) 4 (4.3%) 8 (3.0%)
Total 96 (100%) 65 (100.0%) 15 (100.0%) 94 (100.0%) 270 (100.0)
The Water Resources Commission is related to the work of ASM in its mandate to advice on water pollution. Water pollution from artisanal mining operations has been a major challenge facing both rural and urban communities in Ghana (Boadi et al., 2016).
A key informant revealed: Our greatest challenge in providing potable water to Ghanaians these days is the operations of illegal miners. They have increased the
cost of treating water; in some cases, we have no option but to shut down our processing plants.
A chi-square test of independence of gender on respondents’ perception regarding the role of traditional authorities in the ASM sector was statistically significant (p-value <0.000). A key informant intimated: I think the allegation of chiefs getting involved in ASM activities is not far from being
Open Access 4551 true. You know most of our local chiefs are not
educated and are unemployed as well. However, the Minerals Commission doesn’t ensure that royalties are duly paid to us. The results corroborate the argument of Crawford and Botchwey (2016) that the small-scale mining sector in Ghana is influenced by several actors including traditional rulers.
There exist statistically significant results (p-value <0.05) on respondents’ occupational status and their perception of the role of ASM association in sanitizing the ASM sector in the Wa East District.
However, the literature describes artisanal miners as an unorganized group or individuals who continue to degrade lands in search of gold with little knowledge of sustainable mining (Mensah et al., 2015; Crawford and Botchwey, 2016; Mapuva and Dube, 2016). The study shows the role performed by the association of ASMs as providing job security (41.1%), regulating the activities of members (15.3%), setting ASM operation standards (11.5%), enforcing compliance with mining rules (8.2%), ensure land reclamation and conservation (4.4%). The social effects of ASM depend on proximity to the mining sites. Armed robbery and theft scored a mean of 3.28, drug abuse 3.01, teenage pregnancy 2.92 and school dropout 2.83.
The Kendall‘s W = 0.103 was statistically significant (Chi-square = 111.521, df = 4, p-value = 0.000 <0.05).
Respondents claim ASM contributes to the prevalence of diseases as reported by 75.9% (malaria), 10.4%
(skin rashes), 7.8% (HIV/AIDS) and 5.9% (accidents and injuries). A cross-tabulation of the level of respondents’ education and diseases shows a lack of relationship. A key informant said: On these mining related-diseases, I cannot point out clearly a specific disease. Malaria has been the most common reported case in this community but it has been a general problem across rural communities in Ghana and
Africa as a whole. However, I understand abandoned mine pits serve as breeding hubs for mosquitoes.
Relationship between economic benefits of ASM and other livelihood activities
The study examined the views of respondents on ASM through the Likert scale and subjected the results to the Kendall test (Figure 1). Artisanal and small-scale mining as the number one source of livelihood activity was ranked first (8.75). The Kendall‘s W = 0. 63 was significant (chi-square = 1711.716, df = 10, p-value = 0.000<0.05). However, a lead miner said: The contribution of mining to livelihoods is so great in this community. The majority of the unemployed youth are engaged in mining. For ASM being the most lucrative or the most outstanding livelihood activity, I will say no to that because we don’t eat gold.
The results indicate that ASM helps workers to realize their livelihood outcomes. The results were found to be significant with Kendall‘s W = 0.57 (chi- square = 770.626, df = 8, p-value = 0.000<0.05). The study shows the means of livelihood outcomes as increased freedom of choice (5.48), appropriate accommodation (5.27), access to potable water (4.97), good health status (4.54), sufficient food (4.43), sufficient access to food (4.42), poverty reduction (4.16) and increased number of working days (3.29).
The results agree with Mapuva and Dube (2016) that ASM has positive livelihood outcomes.
In Table 3, incomes from ASM were compared to that of other livelihood pursuits in a paired sample t-test of means for daily, monthly and annual incomes.
The results show a significant relationship (p-value <
0.05) in all income cases (1 UDS = 5.79 GHS). Boadi et al. (2016) have indicated that incomes from ASM are increasing in Ghana.
Figure 1. Mean rank of contribution of artisanal and small-scale mining.
3.19 3.19
4.03 4.88
5.36 5.43
6.96 7.74
8.75
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Mining is more lucrative Mining provides quick money Most sought after job Alternative job Better livelihood than crop farming Better livelihood than livestock Crop yields are low Affect crop farming Number one source of livelihood
Mean Rank
Perceived Contributions of ASM
Open Access 4552 Table 3. Income difference between ASM and other household livelihood activities.
Income (Y) mining-other activities Statistics 95% Confidence Interval
of the Difference
T Df Sig. (2-tailed)
Mean Std. Deviation Std. Error Mean Upper Lower
Daily income-Daily income other 84.01653 145.53883 13.23080 57.82046 110.21260 6.350 120 .000
Monthly income mining-monthly income
other 2556.94215 5242.45423 476.58675 1613.33355 3500.55074 5.365 120 .000
Annual income mining-annual income other 21805.61983 51597.05452 4690.64132 12518.47647 31092.76320 4.649 120 .000
Open Access 4553 The effects of ASM on the District’s economy reveals
that income increases are enjoyed mainly by male with the females suffering a reduction in savings due to the high cost of living (Table 4). A lead miner revealed:
You know the work is tedious but when the reward (money) comes you become thrilled that you even forget all the difficulties you pass through. In so doing, most miners will want to spend extravagantly to equal the suffering they have gone through. In doing that, it affects those who are not into mining. I don't think any farmer will be able to spend GH¢2000.00 to GH¢3000.00 daily in this village but miners do.
We sometimes buy things without collecting the change as a measure of our wealth. Actually, if
you are not a miner, it's very difficult to cope with the economy here, even sugar, milk and food cost more than Wa (the capital town).
On assets acquisition, another lead miner intimated:
In truth, mining has its positive and negative consequences in this community. You cannot say the positive effects are more than the negative effects. We are destroying the land but the benefits are huge. When we started this mining, most of the youth here could not think of ever owning the properties they have today. I always use myself as an example; I built two self-contains [self-contained houses] in Wa and a compound house here for my family. Those who knew me earlier could attest to my status then and where I am positioned now in this community.
Table 4. Economic shock of ASM operations.
Gender Economic shock of ASM Total
Extravagance High Cost of basic commodities High Cost of doing business Low savings
Male 21 (100.0%) 174 (100.0%) 31 (100.0%) 31 (70.5%) 257 (95.2%)
Female 0 (0.0%) 0 (0.0%) 0 (0.0%) 13 (29.9%) 13 (4.8%)
Total 21 (100.0%) 174 (100.0%) 31 (100.0%) 44 (100.0%) 270 (100.0%) Chi- square ((ꭓ2) = 70.150, df = 3, p-value = 0.000
Adverse environmental effects of ASM in the host communities
The Kendall’s W test on the adverse environmental effects of ASM on the biophysical environment reveals a shortage of fuel wood as the most prominent
effect. The Kendall‘s W = 0.57 was significant (Chi- square = 1696.596, df = 11, p-value = 0.000 < 0.05) as shown in Figure 2. Rather, Gilbert and Albert (2016) found ASM activities as a threat to food security while Funoh (2014) laments the negative effects of mining on forest species.
Figure 2. Mean rank adverse environmental effects of ASM.
A lead miner said: Actually, this site was covered with vegetation to the extent that one could describe it as a forest but you know we cannot mine without felling trees, leaving it the way it is now. However, we planned to recover and reforest the whole place after mining.
From Table 5, the land cover change detection reveals that built-up areas (settlements) have increased since the year 2000 (2.4%) to 2019 (12.6%). In terms of attribution, ASM is a major responsible factor although other factors such as a natural increase in population and labour migration due to the creation of
3.11 3.12
4.37 5.84
5.89 7.36
7.56 7.72 7.74 7.79
8.27 9.21
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Destruction of vegetation in your community Destruction of aesthetic beauty of the environment Noise pollution as a result of ASM Reduction in food production Air pollution Induce climate change effect Shortage of construction wood Presence of disease Shortage of fresh water Wind storm in the community are prevalent Flooding Shortage of fuel wood
Mean Rank
Environmental Effects of ASM
Open Access 4554 a new district could not be ruled out. Closed vegetation
declined sharply from 1.5% to 0.9% (2000-2010) but increased to 2.4% in 2019 indicating protection measures against bush fire have been successful.
During the same period, open vegetation declined consistently implying loss of open vegetation to built- up areas (built environment) since bare ground increased and later decreased.
Table 5. Land cover change detection.
Land Cover Types Year 2000 Year 2010 Year 2019
Area in km2 Percent Area in km2 Percent Area in km2 Percent BUILT-UP AREA 174159000.00 2.4 224103600.00 3.1 919287900.00 12.6 CLOSED
VEGETATION
106177500.00 1.5 66131100.00 0.9 179164800.00 2.4 OPEN VEGETATION 6705384300.00 91.6 6281786700.00 85.8 5953230900.00 81.3 BARE GROUND/
SOIL/BARREN LAND
307755900.00 4.2 727476300.00 9.9 252460800.00 3.5 WATER BODY 25386300.00 0.3 19365300.00 0.3 14718600.00 0.2
As shown in Figure 3, closed vegetation and bare ground/soil or barren land seem to appeal to the eyes more than other land cover types in the year 2000. The 2010 image in Figure 4 shows the prominence of open vegetation and the drastic reduction in closed vegetation. Also, bare ground/soil, built-up areas (settlements/built environment) and water bodies are more vivid as compared to the 2000 image. In the 2019 image shown in Figure 5, the rejuvenation of closed vegetation and the continuous spread of settlements are very indicative. The role played by ASM as a major driver of land cover change has already been
highlighted conceding that other factors have contributing roles. The host communities have embarked on tree planting often termed afforestation, some land recovery activities (reclamation), underground mining (digging deep into the land rather than spatial spread) and washing of the ore far from the river sources. A chi-square test of independence of gender of respondents on perceived best practices to addressing the adverse environmental effects of ASM across the study communities was statistically significant (chi-square = 128.171, df = 3, p-value = 0.000<0.05).
Figure 3. Land cover in Wa East District in 2000.
Open Access 4555 Figure 4. Land cover in Wa East District in 2010.
Figure 5. Land cover in Wa East District in 2019.
Open Access 4556 Conclusion and Recommendations
On governance, the significant roles played by the state institutions were perceived as law enforcement for the District Assembly, Minerals Commission and Environmental Protection Agency. The Water Resources Commission is to sensitise ASM on water pollution; the ASM association mainly provides job security for its members and the traditional authorities use customs and traditions to guide everyday life (normative principle). The laws on ASM are existing and relevant state institutions are present in the districts but enforcement is limited and not satisfactory to the appreciation of household heads. Besides the logistics required by the state agencies, a win-win approach between economic gains (profit) and safeguarding the biophysical environment (ecosystem) needs to be worked out under sustainable mining practices, with the Minerals Commission leading the dialogue; addressing mining methods and techniques that would yield even greater profit but conserve the natural environment.
On social sustainability, it is evident that changes in social life in ASM communities from the original traditional setting are inevitable. However, the health of the people concerning the presence of diseases exacerbated by ASM activities will let ASM operate on the unsustainable mining practices side with the attendant negativities. Again, crime (armed robbery and theft) together with drug abuse threaten not only ASM as a livelihood option but other livelihoods including agriculture. While teenage pregnancy affects the girl child, the boys drop out of school to do ASM thereby depriving the schools of pupils and students.
The normative principles alone will not work unless they are backed by the bye-laws of the District Assemblies and strict enforcement of the free compulsory universal basic education (FCUBE).
In the ASM communities, mining is considered the number one livelihood option due to its deliverables on the livelihood outcomes. The main concern is income or the profit that accrues from ASM activities and the expenditures covered by the income.
It creates new lease of life for people in the traditional (Ghanaian or African) village setting. The new income generates a new crop of entrepreneurs engaged in petty trading, food vending, accommodation, artisanal and repair works. All the ventures benefit from the new income. However, the cost of living becomes higher for those still eking out a living from traditional livelihood options like crop farming and livestock raising. These traditional livelihood options would have to improve upon their businesses to increase production and profits as the ASM could not be wished away.
The environmental sustainability depends heavily on its altruistic or destructive use by all including ASM operators. The activities of ASM requires the use of water which are readily available from rivers and streams for the washing of the ore.
These rivers supply potable water for domestic,
agricultural and industrial use. So, it is not only the vegetation that suffers from ASM activities but freshwater sources too. The vegetation is not needed and has to be destroyed to make way for the ore to be accessed. Therefore, proper harnessing of the vegetation could precede mining and then afforestation or reforestation whichever applies takes place after mining. Supply of water to ASM as industrial water should be considered as part of methods and techniques for sustainable ASM operation under the general sustainable mining practices.
Acknowledgements
We are grateful to the state officials who opened the ‘locked’
doors of artisanal and small-scale mining for this research work. We are equally thankful to the academic Faculty for their input during the seminars. Without the study respondents, this work will not have been a success, to the many of you and the data you provided; thank you very much.
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