Religious leaders and community members in the Konongo community of the Ashanti region are standing against illegal mining activities swallowing up the green vegetation and water bodies in the area.
The gold mining town is left in ruins by the illegal mining menace with imminent threats of water shortages.
Green-Faith Ghana together with other locals to marched through the principal streets of Konongo in demand for action against the environmental crisis.
Lives of indigenes at the Konongo community are at the peril of illegal mining activities.
Open pits and gullies filled with brown milky sludge continue to emerge on arable lands with the latest being the destruction of a site close to the Accra-Kumasi Highway.
Many lives have been lost over the years, including the prominent 2022 incident of a young mother who died when a mining pit dug under her toilet caved.
The Ghana Water Limited warns of imminent water shortages in the area as the only water treatment plant serving the communities is heavily polluted.
The once beautiful capital of the Asante Central municipal and surrounding communities is losing their greenery and source of water.
“The water is no longer clean. When you swim in it, it feels like you are diving into a chocolate beverage. Nobody would destroy the water bodies without support from an influential person,” Yaw Gyeabour, a native, said.
In a joint call for action, religious leaders and some community members took to the principal streets of Konongo to raise awareness on the devastating impacts of illegal mining.
Spearheaded by GreenFaith Ghana, the group comprising the local council of churches, the widow association and the youth demanded an end to illegal mining in the area.
“Our environment is not just a source of livelihood. It is a sacred gift that we have a moral and divine responsibility to protect. The relentless extraction of mineral resources and fossil fuels, driven by greed and neglect, has not only failed to benefit the communities affected but has endangered the basic element of human survival,” the clergy in a joint statement read to journalists.
The group are demanding a raft of decisive measures against the menace including a ban on illegal mining activities and sanctions meted out perpetrators.
The group highlighted the need for a shared commitment to environmental stewardship as part of the global Faiths4Climate Justice campaign.
The campaign highlights the vital role that faith leaders and congregations play in advocating for long-term climate action.
Country Organizer of GreenFaith Ghana, Gifty Agbenyaga, called on all religious bodies to support the call for action.
“If we don’t take care of the earth, who would take care of it for us. As people of faith, it’s now time that we add our voices to the call to keep the environment safe,” she said.
The event also focused on promoting the transition to renewable energy, reducing carbon emissions, and stopping fossil fuel development.