Tarkwa: Professor Richard Kwasi Amankwah, Vice Chancellor of the University of Mines and Technology (UMaT), has declared that UMaT, in collaboration with the Minerals Income Investment Fund (MIIF), is set to clean the turbid water bodies across the nation. “I’m fronting that process, and I have proof of concept that it is a real thing, and if given the opportunity, I believe UMaT with support from MIIF, can go ahead and clean the turbid waters that we have around us,” he stated during the Mining for Development forum held in Tarkwa.

According to Ghana News Agency, Prof. Amankwah highlighted the progress made by UMaT since the imposition of a ban on small-scale mining. The university has successfully trained 5,000 small-scale miners, emphasizing that reviving the sector requires education, engagement, engineering, and an attitudinal shift not only from the miners but also from all beneficiaries of the sector.

The Vice Chancellor introduced innovative processes developed by UMaT, including a three-pond purifi
cation technique. He explained that instead of washing waste directly into rivers, small-scale miners could dig three ponds on their concession, using the technique to clean water for operation. Despite the adoption of this method by the Minerals Commission, Prof. Amankwah noted that only about 10% of miners had embraced it, with 90% still washing directly into streams.

Prof. Amankwah also discussed UMaT’s development of a direct smelting process, which allows miners to recover more gold without using mercury. This method avoids the loss of finer gold particles and is effective even when sulphites are present in the concentrate. Although it is cost-effective compared to using mercury, the method disrupts traditional supply chains, leading some miners to resist its adoption. Those who have accepted direct smelting are primarily operating independently, owning the gold they process.