Turtle conservation

You may know that turtles are a protected species of animals. There are special turtle conservation areas in Sri Lanka as well. But did you know that the biggest threat to turtles is man himself? People kill these animals for their meat; they also eat their eggs, thus destroying another generation of animals.

Turtles are destroyed by man accidentally too. The fishing hooks that are used by fishermen are also responsible for the deaths of many turtles. It is estimated that thousands of Sri Lanka's endangered sea turtles are accidentally snagged (torn) by the 'J' shaped traditional longline fishing hooks, every year.

These hooks can also be swallowed by them, resulting in suffocation (inability to breathe) or internal bleeding.

As a solution to this problem, a circular, turtle-friendly fishing hook has been introduced by London's Marine Conservation Society (MCS). A British retail chain and fishermen in Sri Lanka would join this venture to introduce these new fishing hooks.

Over 30,000 of these hooks will be used by a fleet of seven longline fishing vessels. The circular fishing hook had been discovered by US scientists who were involved in the conservation of sea turtles. They are expected to reduce turtle deaths through longline fishing by 90 per cent.

However, the 30,000 hooks to be distributed in the initial stage will only be a fraction(small part) of the total requirement in Sri Lanka. Depending on the success of the Sri Lankan experiment, the retail chain and the supplier will start distributing the equipment among other fishermen who use traditional hooks.

"By converting just two fishing vessels to turtle-friendly gear and techniques, 200 juvenile and adult marine turtles could be saved each year," the MCS said.

"If three kilometres of beach in Rekawa and Kosgoda can be protected, 90 per cent of the turtle population visiting Sri Lanka can be conserved. We need to provide adequate protection and develop appropriate strategies to protect and manage 2.5 km in Rekawa and 0.5 km of the Kosgoda beach," it said.

A recent study on Sri Lankan sea turtles found that the island's beaches provide nesting grounds for five species of marine turtles - Green turtle, Leatherback, Hawksbill, Loggerhead and Olive Ridley. Each species is recorded to nest along specific areas of Sri Lanka's coast.

The island is one of the leading countries that has paid attention to the conservation of sea turtles.

Disparities in Colombo schools

The Colombo Education Zone has schools with the best of modern facilities as well as schools without even one proper building, Western Province Chief Minister Reginald Cooray said recently during an inspection tour of the Colombo Education Zone.

There are hundreds of underprivileged families in areas like Wanathamulla: a school in this area is located in the building of an old tea store and has a number of shortcomings.

The Minister promised to convert this location into a fully-equipped school building. He expects that this will help the underprivileged children in the area to carry out their studies without any difficulties or hindrances. The estimates for the renovation of the building will be carried out shortly.

Towards a clean, green city

The Colombo city, like most other major cities of the world, is heavily polluted. One of the main reasons for this heavy pollution is the large number of vehicles joining the roads every year.

The transport sector rather than the industrial sector has been found to be the largest contributor to air

 pollution in the capital.

Some of these vehicles are not roadworthy at all as they have been plying the roads for far too long, both here and abroad. Lack of maintenance of some vehicles has also led to their unroad worthiness.

These vehicles emit smoke and gases which are harmful to the health of living beings. They also destroy the beauty of the environment, covering all surroundings in dirt and grime. This problem of air pollution is increasing by the day. As a means of reducing the air pollution in the city of Colombo, the Government has introduced plans to test all vehicles for emissions before they are issued with revenue licences.

Accordingly, all vehicle owners will have to undergo a vehicle emission test before obtaining or renewing their revenue licences at the Motor Traffic Department. This step has been made by the authorities with the objective of making a clean and green environment which sustains human life and nature.

The programme of issuing 'vehicle emission certificates' will be implemented in collaboration with the Motor Traffic Department.

Drought will affect park animals

The drought or dry season affects not only humans; it's just as difficult on the animal population. And as you know, the dry season starts around April.

This oncoming drought season is expected to affect animal habitats in the Yala and Bundala National Parks. The effects will be more serious because many of the tanks in these parks have been damaged by the severe rains and floods the Hambantota district had experienced in the recent past.

During the previous drought season, the Department of Wildlife provided water to these parks through the dredging of several tanks and reservoirs in them. Dried up water holes were also laid with polythene so that they can store water. The Department had also placed over 800 barrels in different parts of these parks to store water for the wild beasts.

Understanding polar meteorology

The World Meteorological Day will be observed on March 23 by the 187 members of the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) and the world meteorological community. It will be commemorated this year under the theme 'Polar meteorology: Understanding global impacts'.

This theme was decided by the WMO Executive Council in 2005 in recognition and as a contribution to the International Polar Year (2007/2008). The events are co-sponsored by the WMO and International Council for Science.

The main objective of this special year is to carry out scientific research on the polar regions and their far-reaching effects on the globe. The climatic and environmental conditions in these regions have taken on an added importance in the wake of global warming and the possibility of melting icecaps.

Through these research activities, WMO will contribute towards polar meteorology, oceanography, glaciology and hydrology. WMO's Space Programme will also get a boost through these measures. Developments are expected to be made in the areas of weather forecasts and predictions and the assessment of climate change and impacts.

World Meteorological Day is observed on March 23 to commemorate the day in 1950, when the WMO Convention came into force. The organisation was designated as a specialised UN Agency in 1951.