Betterland Ghana Ltd., the company that Ghana's Minerals Commission has given the century-old Draw River Forest Reserve, a Globally Significant Biodiversity Area (GSBA) to mine is getting ready to mow it down. While our petition to the President of Ghana, Minerals Commission, EPA, Ministry of Lands & Natural Resources, and Parliament awaits action, our checks in the community indicate that four excavators and a galamsey washing machine have been placed at the edge of, and inside the forest reserve at Gwira Banso, ready for use.

Elders of the Gwira Banso stool have also called for a halt to any mining in the forest reserve. In a petition sent to the Presidency, Mineral Commission and others, they have emphasized the spiritual and economic significance of the forest to them and their people. Meanwhile, the EPA's call for stakeholder input is still open.

We call on all who care about our environment to join us to save Draw River Forest Reserve, and all forest reserves in Ghana from destruction by calling on the President of Ghana to do the right thing and withdraw the mining license for Draw River Forest Reserve and #repealLI2462. Thank you