Appraisal of Sand Mining Activities at Ado Ekiti, Ekiti State Nigeria

Abstract

 Sand which is a major component of soil being formed by rock erosion over thousands of years is globally known as an indispensable natural resource. This no doubt makes the sand mining activities to face numerous challenges of which the process affects not only its surroundings but also cause environmental damage worldwide The general overview of the sand mining and marketing makes this paper to examine the trend and volume of sand mining, to determine the socio economic implication and the environmental impacts of this activity at Ado Ekiti. The methodology involved the collection of data through oral interview and questionnaire that were subjected to descriptive analysis. The result of findings noted that increasing sand mining activities which promote development and income revenue generally continue to reduce the vegetation of most of the mining communities to levels that are destructive to biological diversity. In order to reduce the negative impacts of sand mining in a way to limits environmental damage during exploitation and restores the land after mining operations are completed calls for a holistic approach in community resource management.