Offshore Gold Exploration Raises Environmental and Ocean Governance Concerns
By Joyce Gyekye Plans for offshore gold exploration in Ghana have triggered renewed concerns over the environmental, fisheries and governance implications of extracting mineral resources from the country’s marine environment. The concerns were raised separately by a coalition of 51 civil society organisations and maritime expert Dr. Samuel Dotse, who both called for greater scrutiny […]
Offshore gold exploration in Ghana has raised significant concerns over environmental, fisheries, and governance implications. A coalition of 51 civil society organizations and maritime expert Dr. Samuel Dotse have called for greater scrutiny and safeguards before any major offshore gold activity proceeds. They argue that the country's marine resources are already under pressure from human activities and environmental degradation, making it necessary to exercise caution with new extractive activities in the offshore environment.
Dr. Dotse emphasizes that while Ghana has the sovereign right to explore and exploit offshore mineral resources, this right comes with obligations to protect fisheries, marine biodiversity, and the marine environment. He proposes an Inter-Agency Marine Environmental Assessment and Ocean Governance Mechanism to coordinate marine baseline studies, cumulative-impact assessments, stakeholder consultation, monitoring, and mitigation.
Brief written by urgent.news from GBC Ghana's own syndicated text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
