The Sanitation and Water Resources Committee of Parliament is scheduled to embark on a one-week tour of illegal mining sites in the Eastern, Western and Ashanti Regions beginning September 25, 2024.

Members of the Committee decided to organise the tour to assess the devastating impact of galamsey on water bodies and the environment.

The Ghana Water Limited (GWL) recently announced that Cape Coast, Elmina, and surrounding communities in the Central Region will soon experience water challenges due to illegal mining activities popularly known as galamsey.

GWL explained that its catchment area’s pollution has reduced water intake to a minimal level, with approximately 60 percent of the catchment capacity silted due to galamsey.

The Chairman of the Sanitation and Water Resources Committee of Parliament, John Oti Bless, said September 25 is the date fixed for the tour.

“The committee has scheduled a tour to visit the various serious galamsey sites, especially on our water bodies, where the activities of the galamsey have really impacted negatively in Ashanti, Eastern and the Western regions. So on the 25th of this month, the committee is going to embark on a one-week tour of these three regions.

“It is a serious issue. Today, under this Akufo-Addo’s government, they have reduced the military to nothing. And if I take the responsibility of the military, why don’t they put the military to those areas?”