Environmentalists oppose Colombo port city

 

By Maheesha Mudugamuwa( The Island News paper)

 

A Sri Lankan environmentalist body has objected to a billion-dollar Chinese funded Port City being built off the coast of Colombo to uplift the city as a modern international metropolis.

 

The Centre for Environmental and Nature Studies (CENS) has claimed that the country’s delicate marine ecosystem is paying the price for this project.

 

It claims that the artificial island, when completed, will contain a large number of residential and commercial properties and they will take a heavy toll of on marine life in the Indian Ocean.

 

CENS Ravindra Kariyawasam yesterday told The Island that the dredging and filling such a mass of sea area would lead to coastal erosion and alter the balance of marine species in the area.

 

Kariyawasam said that the construction of the project had commenced with millions of tons of rocks and other debris being dumped into the sea and that would affect the natural coral formations as well as the weeds in the seabed.

 

The delicate eco-system of coral reefs, mangrove coastal areas and sea grass habitats would be depleted, Kariyawasam maintained.

 

He claimed that the project would damage the marine Eco-system along the western coast of Sri Lanka and endanger the fishing industry.

 

He alleged that the government had not done a proper Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for the project.

 

Kariyawasam noted that the EIA had been given by Master Divers Pvt Ltd owned by a Sri Lankan businessman Ariyaseela Wickramanayake.

 

“How can a government decide to destroy natural resources and jeopardise the livelihood of fishermen through a report issued by a businessman?” he questioned.

 

Citing the environmental damaged caused by Dubai Palm City project, Kariyawasam predicted that the local project which had been going on without a proper assessment would damage the western coastal line including Panadura, Angulana, Mount Lavinia, Uswetakeyyawa and Negombo.

 

The Colombo Port City Project, which covers 233 hectares planned for two stages will be completed in eight years. The total land area for the project is 233 hectares and that area will totally be reclaimed from the sea.

 

The proposed area will include facilities such as access roads, electricity, communication and all other infrastructure facilities together with landscaping constructions including lakes.

 

However, CENS, Api Meegamu Wesiyo Organisation and All Ceylon Fishermen Association have organised a protest in Negombo on Sunday (21) at 11 a.m to urge the government to stop the Port City project.

 

Observers, however, questioned the sudden concern of these organisations on the eve of a national election.

 

A government official said there had been hardly any fishing off Colombo for many years as the area had been declared a high security zone. “Beside Colombo is not the only place in the world where land has been reclaimed from the sea. What about Singapore and Japan?” He dismissed the protests as politically motivated.

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