In a bid to deal with the destruction of water bodies by galamsey activities on the Black Volta (River), a military task force has conducted a swoop on the river around Bamboi in the Bole District of the Savannah region.31 Chanfang machines were burnt completely by the task force.
A pump action gun was also retrieved from a makeshift camp.Some items belonging to the illegal miners were also burnt.
The operation was sanctioned by the Savannah Regional Security Council in mining communities along the Black Volta where dozens of illegal miners have taken over the river.A similar operation was carried out by a joint security task force in September this year where four chanfang machines were burnt completely.There are an estimated 400 chanfang machines on the Black Volta (River) operating illegally.President Akufo-Addo, announced punitive measures against illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey including the use of military and other law enforcement agencies to flush out illegal miners from water bodies and forest reserves which remain "red zones" to mining activities.As part of the measures, the President also directed that immediate step be taken to revoke the Environmental Protection (Mining in Forest Reserves) Regulations, 2023 (L.
I. 2462), when Parliament reconvenes this month.