Journal of Environment and Earth Science www.iiste.org ISSN 2224-3216 (Paper) ISSN 2225-0948 (Online) Vol.4, No.19, 2014 57 Small - Scale Surface Mining in Tarkwa - Nsuaem Municipality in Western Ghana and its Effect on Soil Physical Properties Ebenezer Ekow Mensah * Leticia Ofori Ebenezer Teddy Mills Faculty of Science and Environment Education, University of Education, Winneba, P.O.Box 40, Mampong – Ashanti, Ghana * Email of corresponding author: ebemensek@yahoo.co.uk Abstract Small - scale surface mining in Tarkwa - Nsuaem municipality in western Ghana and its effect on soil physical properties is presented in this study. The rising rate of land degradation by the small - scale surface miners in the study area has created a situation in which farmlands are becoming scarce and farmers are left with no choice than to use mined - out lands. The study set out to measure the physical properties of soil from mined - out lands to determine their suitability for use for agricultural purposes. One set of samples comprising soil from mined and unmined sites were randomly collected using a cylindrical metal core of known volume. After recording their wet weights, the samples were then oven dried at 105°C for 24 hours after which their dry weights were also recorded. The bulk density, porosity, solid space, mass wetness and void ratio were then calculated. The procedure was repeated for three other sites in the study area. The results showed that the mined soil, in its current state, was unsuitable for use by farmers for agricultural purposes because it was compacted, less porous, susceptible to erosion, dry and could barely support plant life. It was recommended that practices that maintain or increase soil organic matter which leads to high pore space and low bulk density be adopted to restore the mined - out lands to their natural state. Keywords: Bulk density, Porosity, Pore space, Mass wetness, Void ratio 1. Introduction Soil is important for the survival of the human race, plant and animal life and so it is crucial that its structure and strength, the distribution of nutrients, the extent of compression and its relationship with water and plants, among others is sustained as long as possible. But this expectation may become short - lived if activities which degrade the soil are allowed to be carried out without putting the necessary measures in place to restore it to its natural state. One of such activities is small - scale surface mining which is currently gaining grounds in Ghana due to the involvement of the unemployed unskilled youth who hitherto would have engaged themselves in income generating activities such as farming, fishing, petty trading and artisanal ventures among others. Being poverty driven, small - scale mining in the country involves manual use of rudimentary tools and machinery in removing the soil for the extraction of naturally occurring minerals sometimes at great risk to the lives of the miners. With more than one million people directly involved across the country (Ghana News Agency, 2011), it serves as a readily available source of employment for the unskilled youth and the rural folk (Bawa, 2008; Tom - Dery et al, 2012). It also contributes some foreign exchange to the country's economy (Adu - Gyamfi, 2011) as well as the production of gold and diamond (Bawa, 2008). In 2011, both legal and illegal small - scale mining produced 800,000 ounces of gold which was 23% of the country's total gold production (Ghana News Agency, 2011). In Ghana, small - scale mining was legalized in 1989 as part of the minerals sector restructuring and the government established the Precious Minerals Marketing Corporation which became the sole governmental agency for the purchase of the produce of small-scale miners but this was later opened up to private licensed buyers( Akabzaa & Darimani, 2001). In 2011, about 300 small - scale mining groups were registered(Adu - Gyamfi, 2011) and many more including foreigners remained unregistered and therefore operated illegally and unregulated (McTernan, 2013). The small-scale mining activities are located mostly in rural settlements of the country such as the greenstone belts and alluvial areas especially along the Offin, Pra, Ankobra and Tano rivers and their tributaries (Bawa, 2008). These unskilled miners mainly practice surface mining which includes open - pit or strip mining and according to Tom - Dery et al (2012) it involves the removal of underlying vegetation cover, top soil, rocks and other strata, leaving in its wake devastating environmental problems such as pollution of rivers and streams nearby that serve as sources of drinking water for communities downstream (Adu - Gyamfi, 2011), deforestation, significant air pollution and soil erosion and farmland degradation. Tarkwa - Nsuaem is in the western region of Ghana and lies in the heart of the tropical rain forest whose