Towards a pristine environment

By Dhaneshi YATAWARA

Co-existing with the environment and abstaining from over-exploitation is today’s philosophy. Sri Lanka is no exception. In fact, studying the Sri Lankan lifestyle and age old traditions, it is obvious that the development visions of our kings were based on this concept. Our ancestors built historic engineering marvels such as sthupas and gigantic reservoirs and cultivated thousands of acres of paddy fields yet never disturbed Mother Nature.

Following colonial rule, Sri Lankan regimes in the post-independent era, did implement their visions for the country’s development, yet always kept environment conservation in a separate frame. Thus, chaos erupted at every point where development and environment conservation overlapped.

Taking office in November 2005, President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s vision - Mahinda Chinthana - had plans to bring a sustainable solution to this chaos which had resulted in development lapses and environment destruction. Wiping out terrorism from the country, the Mahinda Rajapaksa Government established a peaceful land and made it a policy for development and environment conservation to go hand in hand. A new ministry was established amalgamating several ministries and departments involved in the national development drive and environment conservation. The result was the Economic Development Ministry under the purview of Minister Basil Rajapaksa. The mission was to develop the country based on our rich natural resources. Facing the demand for the development of the entire country including that of the liberated areas in the North and the East, this was a staunch task.

The national development drive mainly includes land-based development work and such constructions need more land. To address the two most critical problems faced by nature in Sri Lanka the Gaja Mithuro and Pilisaru projects were launched through the Ministry of Environment. The Pilisaru project was launched to control solid waste disposal and encourage the recycling habit.

New approach

Gaja Mithuro (Friends of Elephants) was launched in 2007 with the perspective of having an extensively organised approach towards elephant conservation and management, mitigating the human-elephant conflict. This human-elephant conflict situation has emerged as a result of many factors such as reduction of forest cover, planned and unplanned land-based development activities and the steady increase of the elephant population during the past decades.

The National Development plan under the Mahinda Chinthana has recognised the gravity of the human- elephant conflict and is determined to find a solution. An action plan suggesting a sustainable solution to the human-elephant conflict was handed over to President Mahinda Rajapaksa, drafted by the Ministry of Economic Development and Wildlife authorities under the purview of Economic Development Minister Basil Rajapaksa.

Authorities suggest in the action plan new methods such as hormone treatments and establishment of holding grounds for wild elephants causing problems. These are the long mid and short-term solutions mostly implemented through Gaja Mithuro. The action plan states that electric fencing is to be introduced only where necessary.

The short-term recommendations specify actions that will provide immediate relief from human-elephant conflict. The mid-term actions will help develop a comprehensive management strategy that will effectively address the human-elephant conflict and bring it down to manageable levels in selected areas. The long-term action plan suggests strategies that will prevent the conflict escalation and its spread into new areas and bring down the conflict to tolerable levels countrywide. For the success of the action plan authorities suggest appointing a task force for close monitoring.

According to the Economic Development Ministry, Sri Lanka will be receiving support from foreign countries in our environment conservation plans. Countries such as New Zealand, South Korea and Armenia have given their consent to support us, especially in elephant conservation plans.

On par with development activities in which nature resources are used, the Government gives more attention towards ‘in situ’ and ‘ex situ’ conservation in the country. Promoting ‘in situ’ conservation , the Government has implemented programs to improve the infrastructure facilities in four main national wildlife parks at a cost of over Rs. 120 million. Implemented through the Economic Development Ministry, the National Parks at Wilpattu, Kumana, Yala and Horton Plains will be upgraded through this project. The Zoological and Botanical Gardens will be getting a facelift under the same development plan.

Infrastructure development projects in the Wilpattu National Park will be completed soon and the Ministry has initiated development projects in Kumana too.

Conservation

Improving ‘ex situ’ conservation in the country, the Government took several initiatives to develop our Zoological and Botanical Gardens. Reconstruction work in the Dehiwala Zoological Gardens and Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage has started and will be completed soon. Under the Mahinda Chinthana the Government planned to expand the number of botanical gardens to 20 by 2016. At present Sri Lanka has only three botanical gardens, set up during the colonial era. Botanical gardens were established in Peradeniya (1821), Haggala (1861) and Gampaha (1876).

A botanical garden at Mirijjawila in Hambantota will be set up soon. The Department of National Botanical Gardens plans to complete phase one of the Mirijjawila Botanical Gardens by the end of this year. It has 300 acres of land, and is twice as large as the Peradeniya Gardens. The technology and expertise is entirely from Sri Lankan scientists and technicians. Another wet zone botanical garden of 62 acres is under construction at Ilukkowita in Avissawella which the Department expects to complete by next year.

The herbal industry will also be supported as these botanical gardens will house a specialized herb collection. The Dry Zone supports a large number of medicinal plants used in Sri Lanka. These are valuable plants which can be used in the development of the herbal industry.

Floriculture has also been highlighted as an area of both national policy priority and where worldwide growth is also marked. The national botanical gardens have already developed expertise in anthuriums, orchids, gerberas and other varieties. Complementary additions of dry zone plant varieties will be immensely valuable, and of interest to national growers and societies and international groups.

The site of the new botanic garden at Mirijjawala near Hambantota in Southern Sri Lanka is characterised by scrub jungle and dry zone vegetation and its of sufficient size to accommodate both the immediate and long-term needs of a new 21st century garden development. The garden can play a role in ex-situ conservation of some of the more important components of agrobiodiversity found in the dry zone. The garden gets sufficient water from the Baragam Wila nearby. Rain water harvested within the site is also used.

This will be the first new botanical garden in Sri Lanka in 130 years. Under the Mahinda Rajapaksa regime, Southern Sri Lanka has been earmarked as a development zone for tourism, and a botanical garden presents an attractive location both for domestic and foreign tourists. The experience of running the national botanical gardens of Peradeniya and Hakgala has demonstrated the lucrative business case for tourism, with both gardens being profitable and a major feature on the tourist trail.