By: Kadijatu Bangura, Daily Scope
Sierra Leone’s Environmental Protection Agency has collected $26.2 million in financial guarantees from 11 mining firms to cover mine closure and environmental restoration costs, marking the largest recovery of its kind in the country’s mining sector.
The agency said the funds are earmarked to ensure that companies, not the state, pay for rehabilitating land disturbed by mining operations.
The announcement follows a two-day workshop at Freetown’s Shangri-La Hotel, where EPA-SL met with large and small-scale miners, environmental consultants, government agencies, civil society groups and traditional leaders. The forum centered on the Mine Rehabilitation Liability Estimator model and the 2024 Environmental Impact Assessment fee regulations.
Under the MRLE framework, operators must submit closure plans backed by financial guarantees to restore mined sites to a safe and functional state once extraction ends.
“This is a strong step toward more responsible mining and greater protection for our land, rivers, forests, and communities,” EPA-SL said in a statement.
The agency confirmed it will issue Environmental Compliance Assurance Certificates to the 11 companies that met the requirements. Valuations for other operators are ongoing as EPA-SL pushes for wider compliance across the industry.
While praising compliant firms, the agency urged all mining operators to observe environmental laws and warned that stronger enforcement is key to balancing resource extraction with environmental protection.
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