Your Environmental Rights and Responsibilities: A Handbook for Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka's environment and 'you'

Reviewed by Prof Bertram Bastiampillai

A much-needed invaluable volume with this title has now been produced by the Environmental Foundation Ltd. In Sri Lanka, it is difficult to identify any person, learned or otherwise, to show concern, comprehension and consideration for the environment. In fact, it disappoints many to recognise that only a few have any idea of the environment. This volume prudently and usefully produced in Sinhala, Tamil and of course in English, satisfies a much wanted imperative need in the understanding and enlightening of many a Sri Lankan.

As the contents of the valuable Handbook indicates, it deals with Sri Lanka's environment and "You", which will prove to be an eye-opener to many about the environment. First of all one is lucidly and simply told what the environment is, about which hardly a few know anything. The volume proceeds to demonstrate why the public and even private individuals need to maintain a healthy environment. Then the Handbook proceeds to delineate environmental issues and problems in our island republic. Thereafter follows a poignant capitulation on why anyone should endeavour to sustain a healthy environment. Thence it sets out on a vital analysis of how environmental degradation ill affects everyone, and the Handbook proceeds to delineate why the environment is being spoilt - which is appropriate and indispensable indeed to learn.

Arresting title

The arresting title of the Handbook should capture the attention of all Sri Lankans, and more so since it is with anxious concern produced compactly and handily in Sinhala, Tamil, and English, all admirably within one volume. This prudent attitude should indeed be an example even to the State. To approach and capture an interest and engagement of anyone whatever is capsulated should be accessible and intelligible to all of the ethnic communities who comprise the country's population. Moreover, the get up of the volume is indeed entrancing, yet another favourable asset in this indispensable production on a paramount and immensely important subject.

The main points raised as content-headings in the Handbook are, briefly, "Sri Lanka's Environment And You; Your Environmental Rights and Responsibilities Under The Law; and How You can Help and be Helped to Conserve the Environment." These are inevitable essentials addressed in each part and merits not only reading but also demands committed attention and adoption by any in this island, once called a paradise but now doubted to be so. The annexures too are thoroughly and helpfully informative and make the study most beneficial to citizens of our republic.

Environment simply denotes the surroundings in which animals, people, and plants thrive. Organisms are influenced by the several different physical features and factors in the environment such as temperature, water, gases, light, pressure, and other biotic factors such as food resources, in competition with other resources, and other species, predators, and disease. Few realise and react appropriately to what is so paramount in human life. This the Handbook summarises and does so in an easy to understand manner.

It is high time that one should recognise not only the importance of a clean and healthy environment but also how one could contribute to creating and maintaining it, which is a sore need. This handy, highly educative manual does not merely refer to the citizens' human rights but also delineates the responsibilities of citizens towards creating a country with a good record on its environment. It is indeed a handy Handbook, easy to understand, and necessary not only to comprehend but also to abide by what is pronounced.

Whatever the change be countenanced in Sri Lanka one must first obtain an account on possible effects of proposed constructions. Sadly, in Sri Lanka, political patronage, even bought, often allows constructions deleterious to the environment.

No wonder, contamination of the air we breathe, land and water we use, in Sri Lanka often occurs owing to the environment's unhealthy construction and development within. This Handbook shows clearly that such action is wrong and harmful.

Coordination

This Handbook indicates coordination of almost all that is known today so as to show how one could avoid environmental pollution as an individual or family; and what obligations and responsibilities one owes to civil society in this regard. The stress in both on one's environmental rights in consonance with this emphasises the responsibilities one has to exercise which have been succintly discussed and how they should be executed.

Sri Lanka has been notorious in being callous about rights to maintain an environmental pollution-free milieu, and worse in attending to responsibilities in contributing towards building a non-polluted environment. Though a little late, this Handbook on environmental rights and responsibilities is educative, informative, instructive and, above all, thoroughly useful and essential to one and all in society.

Questions

The questions raised, and answered, in the Handbook facilitates anyone's understanding about why the environment being well maintained is in the interest of the entire public in Sri Lanka. Pointedly, part two of the volume makes one obvious of one's environmental rights and responsibilities in accordance with the law.

Part three spells out how any citizen can help and be assisted to preserve and safeguard the country's environment. The annexures recount the list of environmental legislation, the international conventions to which our state has subscribed, and is bound to honour. Protected species and protected areas are informed. This is most necessary as few know these facts. The punishment for illegal doings in protected areas is duly informed. Thence follow water and soil measurements and standards along with corollaries pronouncing air, noise, and vibration measurements and standards.

At the end, equally useful and vital contact addresses are provided. It is a full recapitulation of material bearing on how one contributes to the environment's betterment to make it almost pure.

A useful Foreword at the beginning is followed by information about the Environmental Foundation Ltd., a necessary and indispensable body of which citizens should be aware.

The glossary simplifies reading and understanding the Handbook within about thirty one pages, well printed and in a clear to follow manner that a citizen is left enlightened about the environment, and why and how is should be rendered healthy. Any responsible citizen, indeed all citizens, should master this valuable Handbook on a subject of paramount importance to one and all. The Environmental Foundation Ltd. merits credit and public gratitude for the timely production and release of this fine and worthy Handbook.

Disease-free atmosphere

A disease-free atmosphere without the incidence of dengue, often malaria and filariasis, and some water-borne and air-borne ailments can be created only in a sanitary and clean environment. Such an environment can be developed with the cooperative endeavour of citizens following the good counsel contained in the Handbook produced by the Environmental Foundation Limited.

No further elaborate advertisement is needed for this prudent manual so much urgently required in society in Sri Lanka to establish a clean and pure environment, with clean water to drink, pollution free air to breathe, and sanitarily sold products to eat and even noise abatement.