The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has begun rolling out nationwide enforcement measures aimed at controlling the growing practice of illegal gold leaching, warning operators that continued non-compliance with environmental standards will attract sanctions and possible prosecution.
The move follows increasing concern within the Authority over the environmental impact of unregulated chemical processing in mining communities. The EPA says incidents of hazardous liquid discharge, land degradation, and pollution of water bodies have risen, with several communities facing growing risks to public health and livelihoods.
The new approach was triggered by a high-level meeting between EPA management and executives of gold leaching associations in the Tarkwa Municipality of the Western Region. The engagement marked the start of what the Authority describes as a coordinated national exercise to address chemical pollution associated with informal gold processing.
Gold leaching typically involves the use of chemical solvents such as cyanide and strong acids to extract gold from crushed ore. While the technique is widely used in industrial mining, the EPA says its uncontrolled use outside regulated systems has become a major source of environmental harm. Where operations lack environmental permits, containment infrastructure, and waste treatment systems, the result is often toxic seepage into soil and groundwater, with long-term consequences for ecosystems.
Although gold leaching remains illegal under existing environmental and mining laws, the EPA has indicated that it is now pursuing a pathway that combines enforcement with structured regulation. Following inspections of multiple sites in Tarkwa, operators were invited for engagement, during which the Authority outlined a compliance framework focused on formalisation, monitoring, and environmental protection.
EPA Chief Executive Officer Prof. Nana Ama Browne Klutse said the agency is introducing a system that will require operators to undergo training and certification before they can be considered for regularisation.
“As we speak, the activity is illegal, but the EPA has developed regulations to control and regularise the operations of the leachers. We have agreed that they will go through training and certification to ensure they mine sustainably without polluting the environment,” she stated.
She explained that the process will begin with the registration of operators, followed by structured capacity-building and gradual permitting under strict conditions.
“To start with, there will be training. We will register them and then move toward granting permits under strict environmental conditions,” Prof. Klutse added.
Beyond the operators themselves, the EPA is also seeking to tighten controls around access to hazardous chemicals used in the process. The authority says the current system allows for uncontrolled circulation of substances such as cyanide and acids, contributing to unsafe practices.
“We want to regulate the sources of cyanide and acids used in gold processing. The associations will be empowered to help control how these chemicals are procured and distributed to their members, ensuring their activities have minimal environmental impact,” she said.
The EPA says the measures being introduced will apply nationwide as part of broader efforts to curb pollution in mining areas and protect water resources, farmland, and public health.
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