Global Health Otherwise shared a post on LinkedIn:
“When Gold Mining Poisons Rivers, Who Pays the Price?
In Ghana, illegal small-scale gold mining, locally called galamsey, has rapidly expanded along the Ofin River basin. This matters because these rivers historically hosted blackflies, insects that spread river blindness (onchocerciasis), a disease threatening millions across Africa.
Sumboh and colleagues (2026) offer a critical assessment of how galamsey is reshaping river ecosystems across three communities: Adwuman, Buabenso, and Kyekyewere. The authors draw on earlier entomological records showing blackfly populations along these rivers collapsed as mining intensified from the early 2000s onward.
Their fieldwork confirms why. All three river sites recorded turbidity levels exceeding 3,300 NTU, far beyond what blackfly larvae can survive in. Satellite imagery spanning 2008 to 2023 showed forest cover shrinking and water bodies expanding across all communities. Vegetation health consistently declined, particularly near riverbanks.
The authors conclude that while blackfly breeding has become less viable, the deeper ecological damage threatens food security, clean water access, and biodiversity, undermining Ghana’s progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals.
Illegal mining in Ghana has severely degraded the Ofin River ecosystem, reducing blackfly breeding while simultaneously threatening food security, clean water, and public health outcomes.”
Title: A GIS and field-based assessment of the ecological consequences of illegal mining (galamsey) on blackfly breeding sites in Ghana: implications for the sustainable development goals
Authors: Jeffrey Sumboh, Gabriel Appiah, Frank Oblim, Emmanuel Oboubie, Michael Wilson, Satoshi Kaneko, Dziedzom deSouza
Read the Full Article on Tropical Medicine and Health.
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