NPP Fails To Consider Impacts On Environment

by Hafsa Sabry (Sunday Leader)2016.02.21
Many projects are being constructed in the country to attract tourists. One of them is the construction of several roads along the coastal belt of Sri Lanka as well as at places of ecological importance with little regard for the environment of the country under the National Physical Plan (NPP).
The NPP was signed between Sri Lanka and 36 other countries including India and China with the aim of developing the country during the period of 2011-2030. After its completion, it is expected that the country will become the regional center for aviation, trade, power, and education. However, the project seems to have failed to consider the agricultural and farming sectors, claim environmentalists.
“Any project before being constructed should consider protecting the environment and the nature of a country. But the National Physical Plan lacks concerns about the safety, and this should be looked into without further delay as some of the projects are currently under construction,” said the Director of Center for Environment and Nature Studies (CENS) and Environmentalist Ravindra Kariyawasam.
The tourism industry is given prominence in the project. Therefore, several tourist hotels will be constructed along the coastal belts, beaches and lagoons from Chilaw to the South and North in the island. The proposed hotels are to be built in ancient cities like Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa and in forest areas of Bibile and Nilgala and other locations harming the historical importance of these places.
Meanwhile, it also proposed to develop and extend a number of airports in the country. They are in Palaly, Trincomalee, Puttalam, Batticaloa, Kalutara, Ampara, Vauniya, Anuradhapura, Galle, and Ratmalana. Aviation Authorities in Sri Lanka plan to set up a domestic airport in Palavi in the Puttalam District of the Northwestern Province as well in order to create easy access to the Kalpitiya Tourist Zone.
The Civil Aviation Authority told The Sunday Leader that measures were already in place under the NPP to set up domestic airports, one in the Puttalam area, and in many other areas.
“The country will have 19 airports by 2030 once the National Physical Plan is fully carried out,” said Kariyawasam.
Meanwhile, environmentalists question as to why a small country such as Sri Lanka needs many airports affecting its environment and people. For constructing and extending these airports, the villagers are being forcibly evicted from the area, they added.
Furthermore, foreign investors will be allowed to start new industries in the country. Municipal council zones, special towns, and district capitals will be established in agriculture-based areas like Mannar which have now been earmarked for development, the environmentalists said.
The areas from the Gampaha District to Kalutara, from Matara, Hambantota to Tanamalwila will be declared Municipal zones. Similarly, the areas between Ampara and Batticaloa will be renamed Eastern Municipal zones while Trincomalee, Polonnaruwa, Dambulla, and Anuradhapura will come under the North Central Municipal Council area. Mannar, Killinochchi, and Point Pedro will be renamed the North Municipal Council zone.
Proposed other development activities include projects for mining minerals in the coastal areas, generating different types of hydropower activities, nuclear power and coal power and developing 40 fishing harbours and increasing the number of fishing crafts up to 40,000. A project for developing a fibre optic information network from Batticaloa up to Hambantota connecting Lahugala, Yala, and Udawalawe Wild life sanctuaries is also included in the plan.

Impact on nature
“The proposed Municipal zones, highways, coal power, and nuclear power generation projects and commercial crop cultivation activities will affect the environment significantly,” said Kariyawasam.“The Colombo-Matara highway will result in fragmenting Sinharaja forest (a World heritage Site) to two parts and with it, destroying 39 forests. The Udawalawa wildlife Sanctuary, Lunugamwehera, Weerawila, Bundala, Ussangoda, Kataragama, Ruhunu Yala, Ulpassa, Egodayaya, Mahakanadarawa, Anuradhapura, Mihintale, Ritigala, Kahalla, Pallekele, Sigiriya, Minneriya, Giritale, Elehara, Bakamuna, Kavudulla, Somawathiya, Neval headwork, Chundikulama, Wilpattu, Yodawewa, Madu Reservation, Muthurajawela, Kalametiya, Priyakachchi Wildlife Sanctuaries and forest reserves will be affected because of the construction of highways,” he added.
The Bibile Nilgala area will have tremendous repercussions as a result of the proposed hotel complexes. The seizure of land for these purposes will continue, alleged the environmentalist.He went onto say that the construction of large cities will result in the disappearance of a large number of minor tanks and blocking tank cascades disturbing the natural water flow conditions. Droughts and floods will become a recurrent feature of these areas and water scarcity and water pollution will be unavoidable.
This development policy is now being implemented in the country through the proposed NDP. “Sustainability of fauna and flora, lands and water is given little importance,” claimed Kariyawasam.
“Any country pursuing development goals will give due regard for the environment, especially when their sustainability have not been able to achieve desired economic and political development. America is one such country being ruined because its lack of due regard to the environment,” he added. Funds for carrying out the NPP are being provided by funding agencies such as the World Bank and Asian Development Bank. It must be recalled that the Mahaweli Development Plan which started with the hope of achieving tremendous development within a short period resulted in bringing in the country ecological disasters, human elephant conflicts, land fragmentation, commercialization of agriculture and grinding poverty of the peasantry.
The country is still paying debts to international funding agencies that provided funds for the Mahaweli Accelerated Development Programme. This trend will continue with the development activities proposed under the NPP as well. It has been mentioned in the proposal that people in disaster prone areas should voluntarily move to the municipal zone areas.
The population proposed to be settled in Municipal Zones by 2030
Municipal Zones Population to be settled (Million)
Western Municipal Zone 3.5
Southern Municipal Zone 1
Galle Municipal Zone 1
Eastern Municipal Zone 1
North Central Municipal Zone 4