Sierra Leone, beach sand mining. “Unlawful and unsustainable sand mining is destroying one of Sierra Leone’s prize assets: her beaches.” Captions and Photo source: Change.Org
Excerpts;
Once synonymous with a brutal civil war, Sierra Leone was forecast to be one of the world’s fastest growing countries in 2012. On the back of the rapid economic growth, a construction boom, with new roads and buildings springing up in and around the major towns… But the construction brings with it increasing demand for sand, an essential building material, and much of this sand is coming from the country’s beautiful beaches.
The coast, stripped of its natural protection, is now being eroded at a rate of up to 6m (yards) per year in places, according to Kolleh Bangura, director of the Environmental Protection Agency.
View Pictures And Read Full Article, BBC News
Destroying Paradise To Make Concrete Blocks: Sand Mining In Sierra Leone
A new threat has emerged that risks destroying Sierra Leone’s eco-tourism untapped opportunities for sustainable development: Sand Mining. The free-sand-for-all bonanza just exploded. Without permits, hundreds of trucks attack the beaches on a daily basis, hiring local boys as daily laborers to destroy their own communities…
