ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on mining development in Ghana since the introduction of Structural Adjustment Programs in the country. It examines specific impacts of mining on the ecosystems of the areas where minerals are exploited. Commercial-size mining operations take place in 19 African countries while small-scale mining provides a living for nearly one million miners and their families in more than 30 African countries. The extent to which the aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems and the lives of the local people have been affected by the new "gold rush" and upsurge of investments in other minerals will then be examined. The law has a general objective of creating a positive enabling climate for both local and foreign investment in the mining industry. The legalization of small-scale mining has led to a resurgence of alluvial gold digging and diamond mining in Ghana which were widely carried out illegally and clandestinely.
