Liberia’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), has shut down and seized the equipment of a Liberian-Chinese mining company over alleged illegal operations and given 7-day ultimatums to a number of others, including a fully Chinese owned company. Scott Investment is co-owned by Gao Freng, a Chinese national, commonly known as ‘Barry, the Original Minister’. Mr. Gao has a troubled reputation in Liberia’s mining sector and in July 2024 was accused by the Liberian government of running an illicit mining network that defrauded the government of over $US29 million according to FrontPage Africa report quoting the Inspector General of the Ministry of Mines and Energy.
By Aria Deemie, climate, environment and science reporter with New Narratives
SOAUR Mining Company is fully owned by Chinese, according to the EPA, but the agency provided no details about its owners.
The other companies fined and given 7-day ultimatums and warnings of closures over environmental pollution and illegal operations were Kplon Mining and Agriculture Cooperative, MK Group, Selma Agriculture Development Corporation, Golden SIFCA and Alex Gee Mining Group. The EPA said it took the actions during an ongoing nationwide tour.
“When we get to town, we’ll compile the reports, then decide how to go after them one by one,” said Dr. Yarkpawolo in a FrontPage Africa/New Narratives interview by phone. “Right now, we’re doing stop orders, not fines.”
Dr. Yarkpawolo said Scott Investment had committed serious environmental violations and operated two illegal sites in Billibo town, Grand Gedeh, without proper environmental permits. He said the agency also found that the company had abandoned its previous site in Gbarpolu County after allegedly refusing to pay fines. He said the company, which was previously closed in Grand Kru County, illegally resumed operations in the county.
“They leave a county, return to another, and the work continues. They are all over the place, that’s why we’re setting up offices around the country. When those offices are strong, we’ll be much more proactive.”
Dr. Yarkpawolo said EPA investigations found that all the identified mining companies along with dozens of “Class B” miners in Grand Kru, Rivercess, Maryland, Grand Gedeh, Bong, and Lofa counties were using heavy machines such as dredges and earthmovers without proper environmental permits.
He said the Agency faced serious challenges enforcing decisions against companies found to be in breach of environmental and mining laws because of limited funding, capacity and the lack of local cooperation.
“In Grand Kru, we’re told these are livelihood activities,” said Dr. Yarkpawolo. “So clearly, some community members are helping the miners. And some of these places are very far. So, my team has to stop the vehicle and ride motorbikes for long distances.”
Liberia’s 2000 mining law allows miners to seek approval before using mining equipment. That law and the environmental management laws of 2002 prescribe punishments for violators, including fines of up to $US50,000. They could also be imprisoned for up to 20 years with the seizure of their equipment.
Illegal and unregulated mining are increasingly widening across Liberia. Class B miners, who are sometimes artisanal and small-scale miners, often use dredges, which were officially banned in Liberia in 2019. Artisanal and small skill mining accounts for millions of jobs in Liberia. But equipment used by the miners pose a serious danger to the environment, often polluting water bodies and communities and also causing deforestation. In some instances, companies use mercury to extract minerals, a chemical that violates the Minamata Convention, of which Liberia is a signatory.
“The environmental implications of unregulated mining are huge, ” said Mr. Emmanuel T. T. Swen, an environmentalist and former assistant minister for mines in the Weah administration. Mr. Swen knows the scale of the problem. Under his watch, in joint operations with the EPA, the then government shut down many mines.
“Miners dispose of it directly into water bodies, polluting rivers that downstream communities rely on for farming, drinking, and cooking. You can imagine how exposed these people are to contamination,” said Mr. Swen in an FPA/NN interview.
He echoed Dr. Yarkpawolo’s sentiment about locals serving as accomplices to the illegal miners.
“When regulators arrive, these actors are shielded, and enforcement becomes nearly impossible,” Mr. Swen said. “In the end, if the land is destroyed and not reclaimed, we’re creating problems for the next generation.”
Selma Agriculture Development Corporation, also a rice mill producer, did not respond to an FPA/NN request for comment in time for publication.
The other accused companies couldn’t be reached for comment, as there are no emails, mobile phone numbers and other contacts for them. They are also not registered in the repository, a database of all registered mining companies in Liberia.
The EPA says a final report on the monitoring mission will be released later this month. In the meantime, the agency is urging all mining companies to meet their permitting requirements. It urged citizens to report violations via its environmental hotlines.
This story was a collaboration with New Narratives. Funding was provided by the American Jewish World Service. The donor had no say in the story’s content.
