Galamsey Menace: Dr Kwaku Aning warns of cancer risk from heavy metals used in illegal mining

The Board Chairman of the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission (GAEC), Dr. Kwaku Aning, has stated that illegal mining activities expose the public to cancer.

He explained that illegal mining activities introduce heavy metals into the soil, and these toxic substances are absorbed by food crops. When consumed, these heavy metals enter the body and increase one's chances of developing cancer.

"You are bitten by a mosquito, for five days you know you have malaria or not. The cancer, the cancer will show up ten to fifteen years after the event. Is, now getting into the food, the places where they are digging up these things, the heavy metals get into the soil, cassava, plantain are also absorbing this thing.

“So, you just go and eat that, and you haven't done anything to anybody and you have not done anything wrong. You just bought a bunch of bananas so, you eat every day before you know it you are sick and then you cannot find out how you got sick," he stated during a recent interview on Key Points on TV3.

Public discussions about illegal mining activities also referred to as galamsey resurfaced on September 1, 2024, when Ghana Water Limited (GWL) issued an apology to residents of Cape Coast, Elmina, and surrounding areas for the recent erratic water supply in the area.

The company attributed the disruptions in water supply in the Central Region to the activities of illegal miners which have severely polluted the River Pra.

JKB/ ADG

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