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The Foresty Commission in the Eastern Region has impounded an excavator being used by illegal miners who had invaded the Atiwa range forest reserve.

The excavator was moved into an area of the forest known as Cambodia, near Segyimase, by the defiant illegal miners who attempted to prospect for gold in the protected area.

Briefing the media in Koforidua on Thursday, the Eastern regional manager of the Forestry Commission, Mr Attah Owusu, explained that on March 31, 2017, the commission had a tip-off that a group of daring illegal miners had invaded the forest reserve with an excavator.

He said the monitoring team made up of staff of the commission, armed military and police, laid surveillance and on April 1, 2017 at around 3: 30a.m. raided the scene. However, the illegal miners managed to abscond, hence no arrest was made.

He said the team impounded the excavator with brand No. 330L, which has since been transported to Koforidua, the regional capital.

The illegal miners were in the process of clearing the site and excavating the top soil when the team went there.

Mr Owusu stressed that preliminary assessment of the scene excavated by the illegal miners revealed that about 30 economic trees and a number of saplings, as well as habitats of micro -organism had been destroyed, adding that about 3.09 acres of the forest had been destroyed by the illegal miners.

The illegal miners also cleared all vegetations along the Adensu stream which is a tributary of the Birim River.

He further explained that the illegal miners also removed and relocated GSBA Pillars 14 and 15 from the boundary line of about 63 meters into the forest reserve ostensibly to conceal identification.

According to the Regional Forestry Manager, official complaint had been lodged with the Eastern Region Police Headquarters for further investigations, while the Attorney Generals’ department had also been notified.

For now, nobody has claimed ownership of the excavator.

The Eastern regional branch of the Forestry Commission of Ghana on January 26, 2017 arrested 29 foreign illegal miners, mostly Nigeriens, for illegally mining in the Atiwa forest reserve.

The suspects are currently standing trial at the Koforidua Circuit Court A.

Mr Owusu urged the public to collaborate with the commission to protect the 48 forest reserves in the region to benefit current and future generations.

Meanwhile, the government has waged war against illegal mining in the country due to the lethal destruction their activities cause to arable lands and water bodies in the country.