THE IMPACT OF ARTISANAL AND ILLEGAL MINING ON THE
ENVIRONMENT IN NIGERIA
Dr. Jacob I. D. ADEKEYE
CENTER FOR PEACE AND STRATEGIC STUDIES,
UNIVERSITY OF ILORIN, ILORIN –NIGERIA e-mail: adekeye2001@yahoo.com
ABSTRACT
In Nigeria, the most commonly talked about environmental impacts have been on the oil producing region of the Niger-Delta where agricultural, surface and underground water resources have been badly affected.
However, artisanal and illegal mining of solid minerals pervade the entire country leaving behind their effects on the environment. Most of these artisanal and illegal miners (men, women and children) are rural and poor and usually work without legal mining title. Their activities include mining of gemstones like tourmaline, beryl, amethyst, aquamarine and garnet and precious minerals like diamond and gold. It also includes mining of other minerals like columbite, tantalite and cassiterite. Mining of river sands, digging of burrow pits, removal of topsoil, sand and laterite for building purposes are also carried out. Other activities include removal of vegetation and cleaning of dams to produce dam sands. These array of activities lead to uncoordinated and unregulated mining which usually result in haphazard extraction of the minerals and eventual destruction of the environment.
Evidences of such destruction are observed in the form of soil erosion, and, change in topography, and water pollution and dumps of overburden material. The resultant effects of abandoned pits and other mining sites that become flooded during the raining season pose health dangers to the citizens. All these impact negatively on and degrade the environment.
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However, artisanal and illegal mining do contribute to economic development inspite of these negative attributes. One major contribution is in the provision of employment. This may be temporary or short-lived but it increases the social and economic activities of the communities where they operate.
Devaluation, misrecognition and criminalization of artisanal and illegal miners hamper their participation not only in the environmental and political decision-making process but also in negotiating potential alternative livelihoods for the rural dwellers. In order to reduce the negative impacts on the environment, it is recommended that government should accord due recognition to artisanal and illegal mining as a legitimate organization that can contribute legitimately and meaningfully to sustainable development.
This will nurture them into being able to provide an alternative viable livelihood for the rural dwellers. In addition, it will give them the opportunity to be part of decision-making process and eventually part of efforts to minimize the negative impact of their activities on the environment.
Keywords: Artisanal mining, Illegal mining, Environmental impacts, Socio-economic impacts, Solid minerals, Sustainable development, Miners, Nigeria.
INTRODUCTION
The history of mining until this century was one of small-scale operations, often crude in terms of technology and hazardous to health and safety but nevertheless providing the necessary mineral raw materials for society. In contrast, resources development in the twentieth century has been marked by the growth of large mining utilizing economics of scale. In
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recent years, this philosophy has come under increasing criticism in developing countries where the gap between the richer and poorer nations seems to have widened. The corporations have grown to awesome levels of power and the industrialization that has taken place has too rarely benefited the majority of the people in the society. Many planners and theoreticians have thus begun to emphasize a “basic needs” approach to raising the quality of life. It is natural, therefore, that the interest in minerals has ‘begun to return to the idea of small-scale operations. This has led to the re-emergence of small-scale mining. In an effort to determine the significance of smallscale mining in the world, the UN did a survey of small-scale mining in developing countries (Skelding, 1972). Thereafter, the UN and Mexico did another survey (Meyer and Carman, 1980). The results of both surveys showed that small-scale mining activities are important in the mining sector, but are in a state of decline. There have been serious calls for re-emergence of Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining (ASM), (Freyman, 1978; Kalymon et al, 1978; Mineral Resources Groups, 1978; Wojciechowski, 1979) inspite of their negative environmental and social impacts but based on their positive socio-economic impacts on the society. There have also been calls to engage Artisanal and Small-Scale mining in developmental efforts (ILO,
1999).
Although most attention in the mining industry is focused on large corporations, but in many parts of the world, particularly in developing countries, minerals are extracted by Artisanal, Small-Scale Mining (ASM) and Illegal Mining (Hentschel et al, 2002). These activities are carried out by people working with simple tools and equipment, usually in the informal sector outside the legal and regulatory framework. Nigeria being a developing country belongs to where these types of activities have the potential to thrive and indeed are thriving. The government is aware of the
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importance and potential contribution of Artisanal mining to her economy that it has now established an office in the Mines Department of the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development. The truth of the matter is that ASM and illegal mining are an important segment of mining in Nigeria. Their activities, however, have considerable impacts on the environment (Down and Stocks, 1977; Hollaway, 1996; Ripley et al, 1996; Warhurst, and Insor,
1996; McMahon et al, 1999; IUCN, 2004). Unlike the big mining corporations, the environmental impacts of these minerals are mainly ecological, although they also produce socio-economic impacts.
The main objective of this study is to characterize the nature and extent of artisanal and illegal mining activities in Nigeria in terms of environmental impacts. It is also to raise awareness regarding the effects of environmental impacts of artisanal and illegal mining on the people. In addition, it is to create more awareness on the socio-economic consequences of artisanal and illegal mining and the role government should play to ensure that these miners contribute positively to the country’s rural development.
Characteristics of Artisanal and Illegal Mining
Several workers (Noetstaller, 1995; UNEP, 1996; Charkravorty, 2001;
Gunson and Yue, 2001; Jennings, 2001; MMSD, 2001) have characterized
Artisanal and Illegal Mining by the following parameters:
Lack of or very reduced degree of mechanization, great amount of physically demanding work, low level of occupational safety and health care, deficient qualification of the personnel on all levels of operation, inefficiency in the exploitation and processing of the mineral production
(low recovery of values), exploitation of marginal and/or very small deposits, which are not economically exploitable by mechanized mining, low level of productivity, low level of salaries and income, periodical
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operation by local peasants or according to the market price development, lack of social security, insufficient consideration of environmental issues and hence significant impact on the environment, chronically lack of working and investment capital and mostly working without legal mining titles
Who are Artisanal and Illegal Miners?
Generally in developing countries, estimations show that 80% to 90% of small-scale mining activities are informal, artisanal and illegal. The generally invisible character of this subsector does not allow for more exact data because there are no official figures at ministries and other governmental institutions. Also, the fact that the sector is extremely mobile and flexible hinders more accurate estimations. This is because mining activities and villages with some thousand people can appear and disappear overnight which makes it very difficult to monitor and control even for local authorities and NGOs working many years in the sector.
Artisanal miners are in effect subsistence miners who often undertake the activity of mining and work independently mining or panning for minerals using their own resources. They may involve only individuals or families, generally between 20 and 50 people. They may or may not obtain mining concession rights. On the other hand, illegal miners are individuals or families or groups operating informally without recourse to government regulations and controls. From the point of view of their nature, operation and characteristics, there is little difference between artisanal and illegal mining. Hence in reality, the activities of artisanal and illegal miners are the same and so are their impacts.
Most of these miners are poor men, women and even children from rural areas (EMCOZ, 1995; Mugedeza, 1995; Ofei-Aboagye, 1995; MMSD,
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2002). They often work seasonally, for example, subsistence farmers mine gemstones in the dry season when there is less agricultural work. Some people may also take up mining as a last resort during periods of economic recession e.g. in Nigeria, during the mid 1980s and late 1990s. Illegal mining boomed in Nigeria during this period. Also, many people can suddenly be drawn to these mining activities following the discovery of new mineral resources, such as the coltan rush in the Democratic of Congo
(DRC) in 1998 and gemstones mining in Nigeria in late 1980s to date.
Recent research suggests that throughout the world, artisanal and illegal mining involve on the order of 13 million people directly, mainly in developing countries and that their operations affect the livelihoods of a further 100 million. This number also fluctuates with the international demand and the price of a particular mineral. For example, the global increase in the use of mobile phones in the last decade recently contributed to a surge in informal mining activity for coltan (the minerals columbitetantalite), a primary source of tantalum metal which is used in capacitors.
The important point is that the number of people employed in Artisanal,
Small-Scale and Illegal mining is very large!
Products of Artisanal and Illegal Miners.
Artisanal and illegal miners extract a broad range of minerals.
Generally, they produce minerals that have the advantage of being relatively simple to extract, transport, and sell legally or illegally (Hilson and Potter,
2003). Minerals produced include gold, diamond, sapphire and gemstones like garnets, beryl, tourmaline, amethyst and aquamarine. Others are cassiterite, columbite, tantalite, marble, sphalerite/galena, barites, kaolin etc.
Some other activities in which they typically engage include the following: river sand being removed from rivers, burrow pits being dug all over the
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country without authorization, removal of the so-called topsoil, sand and laterite for building purposes, rock blasting (quarries) for production of crushed stones for building and construction works.
Environmental Impacts
Mining of minerals is an environmentally unfriendly activity and has thus attracted global attention from the standpoint of its environmental impact (Maponga, 1995).Generally, mining affects all the components of the environment and the impacts are permanent/temporary, beneficial/harmful, repairable/irreparable, and reversible/ irreversible. However, impacts produced by artisanal and illegal mining activities are felt most by the ecology, land and atmosphere. These environmental impacts are perhaps of greatest concern to many observers of the mining sector.
There is no doubt that small-scale mining has contributed significantly to land degradation, deforestation, health and safety problems. Small scale miners are wasteful because of their high-grading practices. The miners are only interested in free minerals (gold, tantalite, etc), thus any “locked up mineral” is lost as tailings. In addition, the miners shift from one place to the other once the high grade ores are exhausted or once the extraction becomes impossible without rehabilitating the mined out areas.
The most important environmental problems as recognized by (Da
Rosa and Lyon, 1997; Mason, 1997; MMSD, 2002) are: mercury pollution, cyanide pollution, direct dumping of tailings and effluents into rivers, improperly constructed tailings dams, acid rock drainage, river damage in alluvial areas and river siltation. Others are erosion damage and deforestation, landscape destruction, garbage and solid waste, tropical diseases, improper closure and uncontrolled activities in protected areas.
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The causes of these severe environmental impacts are numerous. The following shows the most relevant ones: Lack of knowledge, education and training (technical and environmental), Inefficient technology and limited techniques, inefficient administrative management, errors in human control, economic limitations, lack of access to better techniques, lack of information about good practice, lack of control and enforcement and lack of or non adequate environmental legislation.
From their activities, it is clear that artisanal and small-scale mining are unlikely to disappear unless there is substantial other economic opportunities within the mining communities. Entry into the small-scale mining is largely the result of lack of other economic opportunities. It is also facilitated by low start-up cost. While small-scale mining is a substantial source of employment, miners seem highly mobile within the sector and to employment outside the sector particularly agriculture.
Of great importance is the difficulty in monitoring and enforcing environmental violations due to lack of resources and the widely scattered and inaccessible nature of the terrains. Because of the remoteness of the mining locations, and the wide dispersion of the miners, they are very difficult to control and police.
Socio-Economic Impacts
There is quite some debate about the contributions of artisanal and illegal mining to sustainable development and sustainable livelihoods. For the thousands of poverty-stricken and hungry people in both rural and urban areas, artisanal and illegal mining is a welcome solution to their problems.
To many people, particularly those involved in gold and semi-precious minerals, artisanal mining represent the “fast track process to their earthly riches”. Yet, there are those who view artisanal and illegal mining with high
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contempt. This contempt is based on the belief that artisanal and illegal mining represent the greatest environmental disaster in the making”.
However, the sector produces both positive and negative socioeconomic impacts. Positive impacts include employment generation, job creation and income generation leading to better living standards. Negative impacts include displacement of people, loss of livelihood, changes in population dynamics, water scarcity addictions, and health problems.
The impact of Artisanal and Illegal Mining on the Environment in
Nigeria.
Mining in Nigeria is currently in a rudimentary stage and also serves as secondary occupation. At the same time, there is the tendency for most operators to change occupation from farming and adopt mining as their primary occupation. In Nigeria, artisanal and illegal miners produce the following minerals: cassiterite, columbite, tantalite, gold, gemstones
(garnets, tourmaline, aquamarine, amethyst), limestone, marble, talc, gypsum, galena/sphalerite, barites, sand, gravel and crushed stones. Some of these (limestone, marble, sand, gravel, crushed stones) are useful mainly in the construction industry while the others are exported usually illegally. The implements and equipment they use are simple and crude and in most cases include shovels, pickaxes, hammers, headpans, simple crushers, sluice boxes, rolling mills and sieves. All the mining activities at present in
Nigeria fall within the small-scale category, since there are no big corporations miners in the country.
The following are the ways they carry out their operations which explain the manner of their impacts on the environment:
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Panning: Panning is done for mining gold, cassiterite, tantalite, and columbite. This is done by simply stripping the overburden materials which ranges between 2 and 3 meters before getting to the mineralized zone of the bottom of the river bed. The material is brought out for hand panning
(gravity separation). Occasionally, mercury is added to the pan to enhance recovery. Many tonnes of materials are extracted to produce a few ounces of the mineral. Panning, therefore, is characterized by large mounds of sand punctuated by numerous pits along the riverbanks.
Artisanal Mining : Minerals worn by artisanal mining include limestone for lime production, marble, gemstones, barites, gypsum, galena and sphalerite.
For these minerals, the miners use simple implements such as pickaxes for digging, and shovels for removing the materials. For gemstones, hammers are used for cobbing out undersired minerals.
Open cast mining: This is carried out by excavating pits that are usually not more than 20 metres deep in the case of the artisanal and illegal miners.
Minerals worn by this method include gemstones, tantalite in weathered pegmatites, etc. Also, river sand and laterite mining involve shoveling and scooping. Stone aggregates are mined using pickaxes and shovels while final napping is by a hammer.
In general, all these extraction methods are technically inefficient and carried out without much knowledge about basic technical parameters such as ore grades or reserves. However, provided the operations are still profitable despite poor management, the miners’ only objective is to extract the greatest amount of mineral in the least amount of time and get out.
The array of minerals produced and the manner of their production as well as the materials and features left behind cause the environmental
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problems. The following are the negative impacts left after the mineral has been extracted:
Devegetation and soil erosion: wherever mining is taking place, land has to be cleared which means removal of vegetation. So in all the above aforementioned mining activities, land clearing has led to devegetation and soil erosion.
The aesthetics of the landscape is destroyed through the production pits on the surface which pose danger because of rock falls and flooding during the raining season. They are hazardous in that they lack ground support, are poorly ventilated and badly lit. They are not even fenced off as danger zones. Many deaths have occurred due to caving but have not been reported officially. This is to ensure that these miners’ location and identity are not exposed because of the illegal and clandestine nature of their operations.
In the case of panning and alluvial mining, their actions impact directly on the river and water system. Some of the tailings are dumped directly into the river system thereby polluting it. Where tailings are discharged into the river, the river course may be diverted. So, apart from river pollution, the river system is affected. Gold panners are usually normadic and whenever they discover a lucrative panning site, they move there and construct make-shift homes using local trees. In addition, 100% of their fuel needs come from wood. Hence they add to vegetation destruction.
The gold panners move considerable millions of tonnes of material for panning per year and this ends up directly in the streams and dams as silt causing siltation. Also, they destroy about 2 metres of river bank on either side of the river in cases where mineralization continues beyond the banks.
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Where minerals like galena, sphalerite and barites are mined, their tailings produce acid rock drainage. The leachates from their tailings are potential pollutants if they are discharged into river systems.
Burrow pits, sites of stone aggregates mining etc that leave behind open pits all constitute hazards. At times, these sites are near to urban centres where they are used for dumping solid waste and garbage. The main pollutants of ground and surface water were found to be mercury from gold extraction and to some extent, human excreta (because of lack of good health and sanitation facilities).
Dust generated by sand, laterite and gravel digging affects the individual miner who does not usually use nose dust shield to cover his nose.
Thus, such a miner inhales the dust and stands the risk of developing diseases such as silicosis and tuberculosis. However, because of their clandestine mode of operation, this phenomenon has not been easy to monitor in the mining areas.
Erosion destroys river banks, diverts rivers from their normal courses and increases siltation (caused by direct panning in the river systems).
Rivers are diverted and water accumulates as pools in open pits, becoming good breeding grounds for mosquitoes and other disease causing animals.
The problems caused by concentrating so many people in places without infrastructure and digging great holes, particularly in weathered pegmatites looking for tantalite and gemstones are great. The mining of gemstones causes extensive excavations which are left open and unprotected and they not only pose hazard to the community but also damage the environment.
Socio-Economic Impacts
Mining activities also impact negatively on the socio-economic activities of the mining community. In Nigeria, the number of artisanal and
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illegal miners is approximately 300,000 of which women and children constitute up to 50% and 10% respectively. For example, women and girls are prominent in the middle and upstream sectors of the industry i.e. processing and marketing. Also, in highly prosperous areas especially rich in gemstones, the enormous influx of miners commonly results in the creation of enclaves of overcrowded shanty settlements. There is increase in child labour involving young boys and girls and school drop outs. This commonly leads to shortage of farm hands and hence loss of agricultural produce. In addition, substantial immigration and human trafficking consequently result in increase in sexual trade, prevalence of sexually transmitted diseases (STD), unwanted pregnancies and early marriages.
Sites of Artisanal and Illegal Mining Activities
Figure 1 and Table 1 show clearly the distribution of the various mineral occurrences in Nigeria. Figure 1 shows that important minerals occur in every State of Nigeria. Table 1 shows further the types of minerals in each State. It can be observed that there is no State in Nigeria that does not have minerals amenable to mining by artisanal and illegal methods. In the table, all the bolded minerals are amenable to artisanal and illegal mining. No State in Nigeria has less than two of such minerals. Therefore, the entire country is home to artisanal and illegal miners, hence illegal mining activity is ubiquitous throughout rural Nigeria. The countryside of every State is not spared the activities of these miners and so environmental impact is felt by every part of the country. It is high time the government examines the gravity of the existence and effects of the activities of these miners on the environment and start providing solutions to these problems.
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Fig. 1: Minerals Map of Nigeria
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TABLE 1: NIGERIA’S SOLID MINERALS RESOURCES
Source: Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC), Abuja, Nigeria
ABIA Glass sand, limestone , salt , shale, ballclay, galena , granite, marble , Iaterite phosphate, kaolin, pyrite, feldspar, petroleum, lignite, gypsum , sphalerite,
, bentonite,
ADAMAWA Granite , clay , gypsum , limestone, uranium, kaolin , coal, trona , barite, marble , magnesite, laterite
AKWA-
IBOM
Clay , sand, granite , coal, petroleum, natural gas, kaolin , limestone , lignite
ANAMBRA Clay , iron stone, natural gas, petroleum, sandstone, kaolin , pyrite, lignite
BAUCHI Kaolin, trona, gypsum , cassiterite, mica, clay, tantalite, galena, gemstone, sphalerite, sand , barite, columbite , zinc, lead, monazite, feldspar, graphite, wolfram, coal, agate, tantalite, rutile, tungsten, copper, talc, ilmenite, zircon
BAYELSA Salt, petroleum, natural gas, silicasand, Bentonite, petroleum, limestone, glasssand
BENUE Gemstone , barites, feldspar, marble , mica, galena , sphalerite, sand , clay , coal, gypsum, kaolin , anhydrite, brick clay , crushed and dimension stone , fluorspar, wolframite, bauxite, magnetite. Ilmenite
BORNO
CROSS -
RIVER
DELTA
Silicasand, natural salt, sapphire , topaz, mica, gypsum , feldspar, granite , potash aquamarine, limestone, kaolin , bentonite , laterite , refractory clay, trona, gold , cassiterite
Salt, limestone , coal, manganese, mica, ilmenite, gold, quartz, glasssand, tourmaline, petroleum, natural gas, kaolin , mica, clay , spring water, talc, granite, galena , cassiterite, goethite, uranium, barites
Kaolin, gravel, sand, natural gas, petroleum, ballclay, bauxite, granite, clay, spring water
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EBONYI Sphalerite/Galena , salt, limestone , ballclay, refractory clay, gypsum, granite
EDO Copper, gold, marble, granite, gypsum, petroleum, lignite, limestone, ceramic clay
EKITI Clay, quartzite, lignite, limestone, granite, gemstone , bauxite, cassiterite, columbite, tantalite , feldspar, kaolin
Crude oil, ballclay, iron-ore, petroleum, gypsum , coal, sand, ceramic clay ENUGU
FCT Kaolin, limestone, granite, marble, feldspar, mica, dolomite, clay, sand, talc
GOMBE Graphite, kaolin, limestone, sand, uranium, coal, halite, clay, gypsum, granite
IMO Crude oil, shale, natural gas, kaolin , sand , limestone, salt, marble,
JIGAWA Glasssand, granite , clay , kaolin, iron ore, quartz, potash , talc, limestone
KADUNA Muscovite, granite, gold , manganese, clay , graphite, sand, zircon, kyanite, cassiterite, ilmenite, gemstone, columbite
KANO Clay, laterite , cassiterite, columbite, ilmenite, galena, kaolin, gemstone, silica wolframite, thorium, granite , hyalite, beryl, amethyst, gold
, monazite,
KATSINA Gold, Manganese, feldspar, black tourmaline, amethyst, quartz, kaolin, mica, gypsum, silimanite, clay, granite, sand , uranium, asbestos, tourmaline, serpentine chrormite, ilmenite, diamond, graphite, iron ore, potash,
KEBBI
KOGI
Salt , iron ore, gold , feldspar, limestone , quartz, bauxitic clay, manganese, kaolin, mica
Clay, iron ore, gemstone, marble, limestone, feldspar, dolomite, phosphate, mica, cassiterite, granite, coal, kaolin
KWARA Clay, kaolin , sand, quartz, dolomite, marble, feldspar, gold, tantalite, cassiterite, granite, limestone, tantalite
LAGOS Sand , bitumen, gravel , petroleum, laterite
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NASSARAWA Cassiterite, gemstone, amethyst, beryl, chrysolite , emerald, garnet, sapphire, topaz, barites, galena, monazite, zircon, glasssand, coal
NIGER Ballclay, kaolin, limestone, granite , glasssand, iron ore, red clay, feldspar, gold, graphite, kyanite, quartz, asbestos, marble, talc , gemstone
OGUN Kaolin , feldspar, silicasand, mica, granite, clay , phosphate, gypsum, limestone , quartz, tar sand
Marble, gold, gemstone, clay , diorite, lignite ONDO
OSUN Clay, granite , talc, dolomite , ilmenite, feldspar, quartz, limestone, mica, clay, gold
OYO
PLATEAU
RIVERS
SOKOTO
Clay , feldspar, granite, ilmenite, iron ore, kaolin , quartz, talc, marble, dolomite, tourmaline, aquamarine, amethyst
Monazite, columbite , feldspar, clay, cassiterite, gemstone, kaolin, dolomite , mica, zircon, marble, ilmenite, barites, quartz, talc, galena
Petroleum, natural gas , sand , clay
Silicasand, clay , salt, Iimestone, phosphate, gypsum, kaolin, laterite, potash , granite
TARABA Fluorspar, garnet, tourmaline, sapphire , neon, tantalite, columbite, cassiterite , barite, galena, gypsum, limestone , laterite, calcite, bauxite, magnetite, pyrite, lead/zinc ore
YOBE Salt , trona, diatomite, clay, gypsum , kaolin, silicasand, limestone, iron ore, shale, uranium, granite, bentonitic clay
Gold, granite, chromite, charnockite, clay, feldspar, spring water ZAMFARA
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Recommendations
It is clear that artisanal and illegal miners have been operating informally and illegally but their activities should not be ignored because of the impacts on the socio-economy and environment. Though their activities cannot be monitored by government thus enforcement of regulations on violators is not possible. It is essential to address the issues of these miners so that their activities are formalized. However, when their positive socioeconomic impacts are considered, opinions favour their retention but with strong laws to guide their operations. It is therefore now fashionable to suggest ways that these activities can promote sustainable development.
The government should put in place certain programmes to encourage these miners to operate legally. The advantages of this are that their activities can be monitored and they can contribute meaningfully to positive environmental and socio-economic development. The following actions should be undertaken by government:

Government should formally recognize and legalize the activities of artisanal and illegal miners. This will bring them to the formal status of the sector and allow them to function well and perform their duties efficiently and effectively. Government in this case will provide all necessary enabling environment that will make their operations succeed.

The artisanal operators, land owners, and local authorities need to be urgently organized into cooperative bodies or shareholders of the ventures with the government being involved in the supervision of the operations.

Government must support research and development in the designing and fabrication of necessary operational facilities and equipment for enhancing productivity and minimizing health hazards and risks.
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
There is need to implement comprehensive primary health programmes incorporating effective and efficient epidemiological units in each district or rural division or local government area. Such units would undertake periodic survey, monitoring and handling of epidemiological problems in mining communities. They should also be empowered to enforce the use of safety devices such as mining helmets, nose dust shields and first aids.

Government should evolve necessary approach for effective conflicts management and resolution for a sustainable development of the minerals industry.

Government should establish special mining development Bank (MDB) to provide investment facilities for the operators. In addition, all current programmes involving international funding such as by the World Bank need to be appropriately and efficiently managed.

For effective and optimal revenue derivation and collection, local or district or divisional governments should preferably in collaboration with relevant departments/ministries at State and Federal levels be directly involved in the regulation of artisanal mining activities.
Conclusion
It is a reality that artisanal and illegal mining activities have contributed greatly to mining in Nigeria although they have impacted negatively on the environment. Yet these activities have remained uncontrollable because government lacks the ability to check them and their scattered areas of operation makes the task more difficult. The nonrecognision of these miners by government has forced them to continue to operate illegally and clandestinely. The most important step that government should take is to legalize their activities so that government can have good and effective control over their operations.
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