An Environmental Scientist, Professor Chris Gordon, has described illegal mining popularly known as galamsey as a “mental problem” adding that if urgent measures are not taken to stop the menace, the country will be mortgaging its future.

Speaking on Citi TV’s roundtable discussion on Galamsey, on Thursday, November 3, 2022, the former Director of the Institute for Environment and Sanitation Studies at the University of Ghana said Galamsey is a full-time problem that cannot be solved with part-time responses.

“Galamsey is a mental problem, it is a mental problem because you cannot steal today and expect to eat your cake tomorrow,” Professor Gordon said.

Professor Gordon who enumerated some of the dangers of illegal mining said the major danger with galamsey is the destruction of water bodies which makes treatment difficult for domestic use.

“There is no substitute for water, if you don’t eat yam, you can eat cassava, but water may be beer, but there is no substitute for it.”

The discussion touched on the potential effects of galamsey on water bodies, as well as measures to restore these water bodies.

The Citi Galamsey Dialogue dubbed “Galamsey and Ghana’s Water Security” aimed at bringing together important stakeholders in the water sector to deliberate on the state of Ghana’s water resources and examine the effects of illegal mining on Ghana’s water security.

Dr. Bob Alfa, Director of Planning at the Water Resources Commission; and Dr. Adwoa Yirenkyi Fianko, a Senior Lecturer at the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA) spoke at the event.