MDF Publishes Landmark Study Urging Galamsey Polluters to Pay for Environmental Damage

The Minerals Development Fund (MDF) has published its first research paper in the international journal Resources Policy, marking a significant milestone in its development as both a research institution and a development agency.

The paper, titled “Leveraging the Polluter Pays Principle to Address Ecosystem Degradation from Unlawful Mining in Ghana,” appears in Volume 121 (2026), Article 106029. It presents an evidence-based approach to addressing environmental destruction caused by illegal artisanal and small-scale mining, popularly known as galamsey.

The study was conducted under the leadership of MDF Administrator, Dr Hanna Louisa Bisiw-Kotei, and sponsored by the Fund.

Dr Bisiw-Kotei contributed to securing funding, project administration, resource mobilisation, supervision and editorial review. She co-authored the paper with Frank Hayford, Christian Kofi Anthonio, Noah Appiah Kubi and Jil-Nathaniel Addo.

Members of the MDF Research Department, including Anita Donkor, Juliana Sulemana and Victor Kadosh Astyor, also contributed to the research, alongside the Fund’s Zonal Coordinators.

The research identifies galamsey as a major threat to Ghana’s environment, highlighting its effects, including river siltation, water pollution, soil nutrient depletion, deforestation, loss of arable land and declining biodiversity.

It also points to the rising costs of water treatment and ecosystem restoration resulting from environmental degradation.

The researchers argue that the Polluter Pays Principle (PPP) should form the basis of Ghana’s response, ensuring that those responsible for environmental damage bear the cost of restoring affected areas rather than shifting the burden to communities, taxpayers and future generations.

The findings are based on a field study involving 330 respondents, including 300 illegal miners from 10 communities across the Ashanti, Ahafo, Bono and Eastern Regions, as well as representatives of government agencies and a mining association.

The researchers gathered data through interviews, questionnaires, direct observation and a targeted review of existing literature.

The paper proposes three major interventions to strengthen efforts against illegal mining and its environmental consequences.

Stronger legislation and enforcement: The researchers recommend incorporating the core principles of the PPP into enforceable national laws. They also call for accountability to extend, where legally justified, beyond those directly involved in illegal mining to individuals and entities that facilitate or benefit from the activities.

Improved institutional coordination: The study advocates stronger collaboration among regulatory agencies, law enforcement bodies, mining associations, traditional authorities and local communities. It recommends integrated data-sharing systems and measures to address corruption and collusion.

Deployment of modern technology: The researchers propose using satellite imagery, drones, GPS and geospatial analysis to identify and monitor illegal mining operations. They emphasise that technological evidence should be supported by physical inspections, ownership and licensing records, witness testimony and appropriate legal procedures.

A key finding of the study is the need to complement enforcement with actual environmental restoration.

The authors argue that efforts to combat galamsey should go beyond arrests and penalties to ensure that degraded ecosystems are rehabilitated.

They recommend transparent and audited management of restoration funds, identifying confiscated assets and machinery, as well as special levies, as possible sources of financing.

The paper also examines situations in which polluters cannot be identified or lack the financial capacity to cover restoration costs.

According to the researchers, Ghana’s experience could provide useful lessons for other Sub-Saharan African countries confronting similar environmental challenges.

The publication strengthens the Minerals Development Fund’s position as an institution committed to using research and evidence-based solutions to address challenges facing mining communities.

It also reflects the Fund’s leadership vision of influencing national policy through research and innovation while complementing its broader mandate to address the developmental and environmental impacts of mining.

As Ghana intensifies efforts to combat illegal mining and rehabilitate degraded lands and water bodies, the study underscores the need to ensure that those responsible for environmental destruction bear the cost of repairing the damage rather than transferring the burden to affected communities and the Ghanaian taxpayer.

By Esther Padmore Amonoo