Children at the Atatem D/A Basic School are unknowingly consuming water laced with toxic chemicals, a new study by the Rights of Nature Ghana Movement (RoNAG) and KNUST scientists has revealed. The research shows arsenic, chromium, and lead levels hundreds of times above WHO safety limits, tracing the contamination to illegal mining activities encroaching on the school’s land and nearby rivers. Galamsey’s Proximity Sparks Concern RoNAG initiated the study following observations during a Rights of Nature sensitization workshop in June 2025. The workshop, which included tree-planting activities and educational sessions for teachers and pupils, revealed disturbing encroachment by illegal mining (“galamsey”) operations onto the school’s land. The close proximity of these sites prompted the research team led by Dr. Dickson Adom and Dr. David Azanu, supported by Mr. Isaac Ayew Aidoo and Ms. Deborah Ntaidu from KNUST’s Department of Environmental Science to conduct a detailed water quali...