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| Sunday, 18 December 2005 |
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Features |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
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Environment Good and bad news in air quality by Shanika Sriyananda The good news is, according to some air quality monitoring officials, the country's ambient air quality, as a whole, is improving and has less harmful chemicals.
The answer to the bad news is the speedy implementation of the Air Emission Standards (AESs) to cut down the number of un-road worthy vehicles which emit dozens of toxic chemicals to the environment. Enforcing of the much awaited AESs seemed to be dragging for years and years, while one to two children in every class in most of the schools in Colombo are having breathing problems and using inhalers... while the Colombo city identified as the most polluted city in the island... where every minute we are inhaling a dozen of chemicals, which cause long term illnesses. No official can turn back or delay approving or expediting the implementation process of AESs, which is one of the most vital steps to protect people of this country. According to Dr. R.L. Wijayamuni, a member of the Expertise Committee of the Air Resource Management Centre of the Ministry of Environment the problem in the Colombo city is controlling pollutants - lead(Pb), Sulphur Dioxide (SO2), Particle Matters (PM) - which emit from thousands of vehicles plying on the roads of Colombo. "The Sulphur dioxide, which exceeded the normal rate five times in 1992, exceeded 82 times the normal rate in the year 2000. Same as this the PM is also alarming", he pointed out. According to Dr. Wijeyamuni the respiratory problems among children are high and majority of school children, over 200,000 school children in Colombo district, are exposed to polluted air, since many schools are by the road sides. He said that due to the high level of sulphur dioxide and PM in air, people in Colombo, especially those who are regularly exposed to vehicle emission will have eye, nose and respiratory problems, frequent headaches, difficulty in breathing and wheeze, asthma and skin irritation. " The carcinogenic substance, will cause cancer of nose, throat, vocal cords and lungs due to high level of particulate matter in the air. This will also increase the susceptibility to infections", he added. However, K.G.S. Jayawardena, Senior Environmental Officer of the Central Environmental Authority said that compared to daily analysis, the ambient air quality of the country is improving. The air quality is checked according to US Standards. "But, the annual analysis is exceeding the US standards, which is 50 micro gram per metre cube. Sri Lanka is in the range of 75 to 80 micro gram per metre cube", he pointed out. He said that the PM10 reduction during rainy season few years back cannot be seen now due to heavy traffic congestions in the city. "Vehicle Emission standards should be implemented soon to bring down PM10 and hydro carbons, which is carcinogenic", he added. Some unseen forces, according to officials, seem to be delaying the process. Once it was the tussle over two Ministers to put their signatures on the document and now ... it is worthwhile to 'investigate' whose delay it is. Under air emission standards for vehicles in use, no vehicle, which discharge exhaust emission exceeding the set Air Emission Standards, (AES) should be allowed to run on roads, and a certificate in compliance with the AES will be issued by the vehicle emission testing centre authorised by the Commissioner of Motor Traffic to every vehicle. Such centres would be set up islandwide with the help of the private sector and the main centre - the Air Resource Monitoring Centre with its officials representing the Police, Motor Traffic Department, Central Environment Authority, the Ministry and the Ministry of Transport would keep a sharp eye on activities carried out by these centres run by the private sector. According to Transport Ministry officials two companies - American and Australian - have come forward to set up centres and agreements have already been signed. The Environment Ministry officials said that the draft is now with the legal draftsman and the centres will be set up soon. New species found in Borneo The WWF has caught two images of what appears to be a new species of mammal, living in the central forests of Borneo. The animal has been described as dark red, larger than a domestic cat, with a long muscular tail. It is also believed to be carnivorous. Neither local residents nor researchers have scientifically identified the animal. It was sighted in the Kayan Mentarang National Park, located in the Indonesian territory of Borneo. The WWF team that discovered the creature, led by biologist Stephan Wulffraat, intend to publish their findings in a new book about Borneo and its diverse wildlife. The researchers have now set up camera traps amongst the dense forest, which rely on animals breaking the infra-red beams across the forest paths, setting off the hidden cameras, which capture images from the front and back. Currently just two images exist of the mammal, but are substantial enough for Nick Isaac from the Institute of Zoology in London to believe that this may indeed be a new species. Although the animal resembles a lemur, this is highly unlikely as their habitat is confined to the island of Madagascar. Dr. Isaac believes that "It's more likely to be a viverrid-that's the family which includes the mongoose and civets-which is a very poorly known group". The size and length of the unknown animal's tail, seems to indicate that the creature may spend much of its time up trees, which could be one reason why it has never been spotted before. Another reason could be the changing landscape of Borneo, with increased access through new roads and the expansion of population centres. The WWF feel that the governments of Indonesia and Malaysia, which each rule parts of Borneo, are a threat to the native wildlife and encourage the destruction of the jungle by developing giant palm oil plantations across the region. Pehin Sri Haji Abdul Taib Mahmud, chief minister of Sarawak, the larger Malaysian state on Borneo, believes these views are unfounded and just part of a smear-campaign. The WWF team are now planning to capture the unknown species in a love trap, so that they can study it and find out more about this 'new' mammal. Pilgrims and eco-friendly bags Sri Pada season commenced this week with thousands of local and foreign devotees paying homage to the deity Sumana Saman during this season.
To Buddhists the Sri Pada is the footprint of the Buddha and was the abode of deity Saman (Samantakuta). Hindus believe it as that of God Siva (Sivanoli patham), Muslims call it Aadammalai (foot print of Adam). The Christians believe it is the foot print of Adam. Though devotees hold four separate beliefs about Sri Pada, it has stood as a symbol of unity for over a thousand years. Stories and legends behind this unique mountain, are varied according to the four religions. Buddhists believe that while on a visit to Kelaniya to settle a dispute over a gem studded chair in the year 577 B.C. Lord Buddha had placed His right foot on the peak. While many stories were woven around the Sri Pada, according to history the first person to discover the sacred footprint was King Walagambahu in 100 B.C. Historical anecdotes reveal that King Walagambahu found the footprint while he was hiding in the vicinity of the Sri Pada area during the Chola invasion. It is said that the land adjoining the path was donated by King Vijayabahu I (1059-1114) for the convenience of the pilgrims and a canopy was constructed by the King over the sacred footmark to protect it from the sun and the rain. Before power supply was introduced to the area a 'pandama' (torch) fuelled by coconut oil was used by pilgrims climbing the mountain at night. But on March 4, 1950 the path leading to the summit and the summit itself was illuminated to fulfil a vow made to God Saman for the successful completion of the Laxhapana hydro-electricity project. The 'Dolos Mahe Pahana' (twelve-month-lamp), the huge brass lamp burns throughout. Pilgrims offer oil and some add it with medicinal herbs, with a belief that the oil has a healing power, which they take home. Our ancestors climbed the peak with much devotion and faith to worship the sacred footprint, in the bygone days. Robert Knox, an Englishman who was in the custody of King Rajasinhe II for nearly twenty years, in his book 'An Historical Relation of the Island of Ceylon, in the East Indies,' which was published in 1681, wrote how difficult it was to climb this mountain. " Pilgrims and travellers climb the sacred summit of Adams Peak by means of an iron chain which is fastened to the rock, and the links of which serve as the steps of a ladder to facilitate the ascent", it states. The Sri Pada area consists of 22,380 hectares but the trees considered most valuable in the jungles are fast diminishing every time after a season due to unauthorised structures being put up by vendors. Polythene is the other 'devil' that plays havoc in the area. At the end of the season thousands of sili sili bags can be found strewn near the entrance to the maluwe creating a serious environmental hazard. You may be planning a pilgrimage to this holy mountain. Then remember to carry your goods in eco-friendly bags. Place all leftovers in a proper place, kept for the waste. Make sure that you have an eco-friendly journey. (SS) Action plan for Botanical Gardens To give more care to the country's botanical gardens and the National Zoo the newly established Ministry- the Ministry of Promotion of Botanical Gardens and Zoological Gardens will implement an Action Plan soon. One major purpose of implementing the Action Plan is to maintain botanical and zoological gardens properly, to impart knowledge in the field to local and foreign people who do research."We also want to attract more visitors to these gardens. Nearly 2 million people visited the Peradeniya Botanical Garden last year and the Huggala garden too recorded a similar number", Minister Bandula Basnayake said. Minister Basnayake said that the Ministry hopes to put up another two gardens in the wet zone and dry zone and to develop the Pinnawela elephant orphanage. Construction of a well equipped research centre is also on the cards. A comprehensive report on the proposed new plans will be submitted by the Director Peradeniya Botanical Garden, Dr. D.S.A. Wijesundara and Director National Zoological Garden, Brigadier H.A.N.T. Perera. Extinction alert for 800 species by Richard Black, Environment Correspondent, BBC News website Researchers have compiled a global map of sites where animals and plants face imminent extinction. The list, drawn up by a coalition of conservation groups, covers almost 800 species which they say will disappear soon unless urgent measures are taken. Most of the 800 are now found only in one location, mainly in the tropics. Writing in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the researchers say protecting some of these sites would cost under $1,000 per year. "This is a whole suite of species threatened with extinction," said Stuart Butchart, global species programme co-ordinator with BirdLife International, one of the groups behind the report. If we don't protect them, these are guaranteed extinctions says Stuart Butchart "Most of them are living on single sites and are therefore highly vulnerable to human impacts," he told the BBC News website. "Safeguarding this suite of sites is not the only thing we need to do; but if we don't protect them, these are guaranteed extinctions." Aiming for zero The list of organisations behind the study reads like a Who's Who of the conservation world, with the Zoological Society of London, Conservation International, and the American Bird Conservancy among 13 groups involved. They come together under the umbrella of a relatively new organisation, the Alliance for Zero Extinction (AZE), whose aim is exactly what the name implies. From their databases they have drawn up a list of 595 sites which contain at least one species classified as "endangered" or "critically endangered" according to criteria laid down in the Red List of threatened organisms. Each is either the only place where that creature resides, or contains at least 95% of the known population. Some of the sites contain more than one endangered species. Because not every organism on the planet has been studied or even identified, the 794 species include only birds, mammals, amphibians, conifers, and some groups of reptiles. The majority of the key sites are in tropical regions of the world, and most in developing countries. Price of failure On average they are in places where the human population density is high; a minority are fully protected. For John Fa, director of conservation science at Durrell Wildlife, working with communities is the key to conservation strategies in these regions. "Our strategy is not just to focus on the animals but also to work alongside local communities so we do something for their livelihoods," he told the BBC News website. "Projects run by Durrell Wildlife include captive breeding of species like the pygmy hog of Assam and the ploughshare tortoise in Madagascar. Both animals are now being re-introduced into the wild. "In Madagascar the community benefits," said John Fa, "because we have been able to attract donor money to support the establishment of schools, building of wells, and starting initiatives like home gardens; so people see there are benefits from conserving wildlife." The AZE team has calculated the cost of conserving each of the 595 key sites; they conclude that the annual price would vary hugely, from $470 up to $3,500,000. The higher end of the scale might appear prohibitively expensive, but Stuart Butchart is optimistic that at least some can be properly protected. "The message that these are species restricted to single sites is quite a powerful argument for the public," he said. "It's impossible to know or predict how long these species might live but certainly within the next few decades, if these sites aren't protected, they will be gone." |
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| Produced by Lake House |
But, the bad news is, according to health experts, the particulate matter
(PM10) and hydro carbons emitted from vehicles still pose a danger to human
health. Especially, the city dwellers and those who travel to the cities
regularly are under threat of getting asthma and cancers. 
Young and the old will climb the holy peak battling the biting cold. Sri
Pada, 7360 feet above mean sea level with a summit area of around 74 square
feet, is a place of sanctity and bliss to all Sri Lankans, irrespective of
their religious belief. 
