The Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) has shut down five Chinese-owned warehouses at Anwiankwanta in the Bekwai Municipality of the Ashanti Region for the illegal storage and fabrication of changfan machines and related equipment used in unlawful small-scale mining operations.
The enforcement action, part of the government’s intensified campaign against galamsey, followed intelligence that several foreign-owned facilities in the area were operating as production and distribution hubs for changfan machines, floating dredges banned in Ghana due to their destructive impact on water bodies and ecosystems.
During the operation, the EPA task force discovered that the warehouses, registered under the guise of storing vehicle spare parts, were instead stocked with hundreds of changfan machines, engine components, metal frames, welding tools, and other fabrication equipment.
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Professor Nana Ama Browne Klutse, Chief Executive Officer of the EPA, who led the exercise, expressed grave concern over the scale of illegal production uncovered.
“This is a clear violation of Ghana’s environmental protection laws and the government’s directive banning changfan fabrication and use.
What we have seen here at Anwiankwanta is unacceptable,” Prof. Klutse
She stressed that the illegal manufacturing and distribution of changfan machines continued to drive the widespread destruction of rivers, farmlands, and forest reserves across the country.
Prof. Klutse said the Anwiankwanta operation was the beginning of a broader nationwide enforcement initiative focused on dismantling illegal supply chains that sustained galamsey operations.
She added that the crackdown was not targeted at any particular group, but rather part of a national effort to restore degraded lands and protect water resources. The EPA is working closely with security agencies to enhance surveillance and ensure full compliance with environmental regulations.
Residents of Anwiankwanta, who had long raised concerns about illicit fabrication activities in the area, praised the EPA for the decisive action. Many noted that the operations of these warehouses had indirectly contributed to rising galamsey activities in Bekwai and neighbouring communities.
The EPA has since sealed off the warehouses and confiscated all equipment for further investigations. The owners are expected to be prosecuted under Ghana’s environmental protection laws.
According to the EPA, similar enforcement exercises will soon be rolled out in the Western, Central, and Eastern Regions, where changfan-related activities remain widespread.
The operation underscores the government’s renewed commitment to protecting the environment and ensuring the sustainable use of Ghana’s natural resources. It also reaffirms the EPA’s resolve to hold accountable all individuals and entities contributing to environmental degradation and illegal mining.
