The Chief Executive Officer of the Petroleum Hub Corporation, Dr Anthony Aubynn, has called for the full repeal of Legislative Instrument (L.I.) 2462, which governs certain aspects of small-scale mining in Ghana.
Speaking during an interview with Channel One TV on Monday, 28 April, Dr Aubynn argued that the current regulation must be scrapped and replaced with a more robust legal framework that prioritises environmental protection and more effectively regulates the sector.
He observed that while the government was making progress in addressing the galamsey menace, it would be unreasonable to expect sweeping results within just four months of taking office.
“I think the government is on course in the area of small-scale mining, even if you think that it has not been as fast as you expect.
“This problem has been age-old. It’s been here for a very long time, so four months is certainly too short a period for you to say that it [Mahama government] succeeded in addressing the challenge or not,” he stated.
Dr Aubynn expressed his firm support for repealing L.I. 2462, criticising the regulation for permitting mining activities within forest reserves.
“The L.I. 2462, I support the idea that it should be repealed. It should be completely repealed, and maybe a new law brought in. But if you read the law very carefully and compare it with the policy that existed before then, the danger associated with that law is the fact that it allows the minister to allow for mining in the forests,” he explained.
He further noted that although previous policies did not impose a total ban on mining in forest reserves, they made the process extremely difficult, thereby limiting the environmental impact.
“In the old policies, it didn’t completely ban mining in the forests, but it made it such a difficult enterprise. There were only a few companies that had the concessions to mine in the forests,” he added.
The L.I. 2462, formally known as the Environmental Protection (Mining in Forest Reserves) Regulations, was enacted in November 2022.
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