The Concerned Citizens of the Atewa Landscape (CCAL) are insisting that, the Atewa Forest located in the Eastern Region of Ghana is a ‘no- go’ area for bauxite exploration. Speaking to Aljazeera Media Network on Sunday 24th April, 2022, Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Mr Samuel A. Jinapor assured that, the President Akufo-Addo government would not needlessly compromise the integrity of Atewa Forest but rather exploit it for the ultimate benefit of the Ghanaian people. According to him, Ghana Integrated Aluminum Development Corporation (GIADEC) has Atewa Forest as one of the key projects being relentlessly pursued by government together with Awaso, Nyinahin - Mpasaaso, Kyebi and Valco projects, all in efforts to build an integrated iron and Aluminum industry. "Government and GIADEC continue to be fully committed to the preservation of the Atewa Forest and ensure that the exploitation of the bauxite in Atewa is in the ultimate interest of the Ghanaian people and is in the public interest. They are also working to ensure that the integrity of the forest is preserved", he added.
Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Mr Samuel A. Jinapor
The Minister explained that the thin line between mining the bauxite and preserving the environment is striking a delicate balance to ensure that the country's industrilisation drive continues because these minerals he opined are the starting point for industrial development and prosperity of the country.
It is repugnant
In reacting to the Minister’s comment, the CCAL noted that, it is very repugnant and reprehensible to listen to the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, adding, it is not only needless for the government to still insist on mining bauxite in Atewa claiming it will be for the ultimate benefit of the Ghanaian but very unfortunate. “The reverse will be the fate of the Ghanaian. No one can eat the cake and still have it. The Minister must be told in no uncertain words that, he and the government have failed miserably with galamsey and its accompanying problems and which it ought to have resigned honourably”, the group said. According to them, whatever benefits the Minister claims would inure to the benefit of the Ghanaian are only a fleeting illusion to be pursued but never attained, adding that, the singular loss of the three major rivers Densu, Birim and Ayensu cannot be compensated for whatsoever; and wherein lies the preservation of the integrity of Atewa albeit the ‘thin line’. “What are the guarantees of the Minister’s assertion that bauxite mining in Atewa will be done in a manner that will not ‘unreasonably comprise the ecological integrity of the forest”, CCAL asked. “This posture of the government on Atewa clearly shows that myopically it sees only bauxite and nothing else in Atewa as observed by a concerned environmentalist. Hon Jinapor must boldly be told that, he has failed even before he starts with this assertion”. “Being ‘unreasonably compromised’ means there will be a compromise at all cost and will be detrimental and irreversible. The Concerned Citizens of the Atewa Landscape (CCAL) has insisted and reasoned with sister environmental to NGOs with clarity of vision and still insist that Atewa is a NO – GO area for bauxite mining”, the group in a statement signed by its President, Mr Oteng Adjei.
Cost of Ghana’s aluminum projects will outweigh potential benefits
A US based Duke University report in March 2021 sent a warning signal to the government of Ghana that, the cost of the proposed aluminium industry projects linked to the Sinohydro agreement would outweigh the potential benefits. According to the report by the Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions at Duke University, Ghana’s environmental assessment laws are not adequately tailored to address risks, and the government has not facilitated a comprehensive transparency concerning the planned aluminium industry projects and the Sinohydro agreement. The main contention with environmentalists is the plan to permit bauxite mining in Atewa Forest – a biodiverse forest preserve – the main source of three major rivers that provide water for five million people. Three global manufacturing companies – BMW Group, Tetra Pak and Schüco International – recently said they would not source bauxite from Ghana’s Atewa Forest due to the environmental risks associated with mining the forest. “By calling out the risky nature of mining bauxite in the Atewa Forest, BMW Group, Tetra Park and Schüco International have certainly put the business community on notice and at the minimum their peer firms are likely to proceed with caution when sourcing bauxite from Ghana in the future,” said Terrence Neal, a natural resources governance researcher and author of the report.
Water flowing through the Atewa forest
The report noted that, the aluminum industry projects would likely contribute to deforestation and biodiversity loss across Ghana, which presently has one of the highest rates of deforestation in Africa. According to the World Resource Institute, Ghana experienced the “highest percent rise in primary forest loss between 2017 and 2018 of any tropical country. “Of the aluminum industry projects, bauxite mining poses the greatest threat. Mining companies generally extract bauxite using open pit or strip-mining methods, which involves removing topsoil and everything above it (e.g., trees and plants) to excavate the underlying bauxite. The amount of forest habitat disturbed at any given mining site can be substantial because bauxite mines are often large, even in relation to mines for other types minerals”, it said.