The Deputy National Director of Operations at A Rocha Ghana, Daryl Bosu, has cast doubt on the effectiveness of chemical-based river clean-up pilots aimed at reversing pollution caused by illegal mining, arguing that true ecological restoration must focus on stopping contamination at its source rather than treating symptoms.
Speaking on the Asaase Breakfast Show on Wednesday (25 February), Bosu said visible separation of mud and water following remediation exercises should not be mistaken for genuine environmental recovery.
“Cleaning the water is not the same as restoring the ecosystem,” he said. “Ecological restoration is about working with nature and ensuring biodiversity, fish species, and the whole river system are sustained.”
His comments follow a pilot intervention by the Environmental Protection Agency Ghana using ionic nanocopper technology to treat sections of polluted rivers.
While acknowledging that the technology may work in controlled environments, Bosu said applying it across long, flowing rivers degraded by illegal mining — known locally as galamsey — is impractical and financially unsustainable.
“Rivers are not standard bodies of water. They are flowing systems,” he said. “You treat one section today and pollution continues upstream or downstream tomorrow. It’s like mopping the floor while the tap is still running.”
He argued that the funds earmarked for chemical treatments would be better spent strengthening enforcement and halting illegal mining activities that continue to discharge heavy metals and sediments into water bodies.
According to Bosu, nature has the capacity to regenerate if human pressures are removed.
“If we stop the source of pollution and support rivers with nature-based solutions like restoring vegetation along the banks, they will recover themselves in a more sustainable way,” he said.
He urged authorities to prioritise enforcement, ecological recovery and community protection over what he described as costly, short-term technical fixes.
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