Legal action has been filed over alleged damage being caused to the environment by a church within the Wilpattu National Park (WNP). The Environmental Foundation (Guarantee) Ltd.(EFL) and the Wildlife & Nature Protection Society (WNPS) have been working in alliance to demarcate the boundaries of the Pallekandal Church situated within the Wilpattu National Park (WNP), and to regulate activities of the Church which poses a threat to the conservation of the park’s remarkable biodiversity. EFL, is a pioneer public interest litigation organisation dedicated to conservation and protection of the natural environment through legal and scientific measures. WNPS, at 125 years old, is the 3^rd oldest conservation NGO in the world and was instrumental in the creation of the Wilpattu and Yala National Parks and its administration until the establishment of the Forest Department. on 25.01.2018. The two parties initiated legal action in the Court of Appeal against the unlawful and unregulated religious festivities taking place at the Pallenkandal Church. The Respondents for the case include, among others, the Director-General of the Department of Wildlife and Conservation, the Bishop of Chilaw and the Minister of Tourism Development, Wildlife and Christian Religious Affairs. The EFL legal team appeared for the Petitioners against the violations of the provisions of the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance (FFPO) and the damage caused to the sensitive environment of the WNP by the activities of the Church. The Petitioners observed large constructions of permanent structures and buildings beyond the Church premises resulting in a substantial increase of festival celebrations. Moreover, the Petitioners noted that the scrub-lands, and some of the areas surrounding the Church, had been cleared to facilitate the festivities. A total of 284 faunal species, belonging to 101 families, have been recorded within the WNP, with 21 endemic and 30 nationally threatened species among them. Deforestation to make way for camp sites and food stalls disrupts the preferred environment of a species, causing population fragmentation and ecosystem decay. In like manner, the habit of feeding wild animals by pilgrims severely disturbs wildlife foraging, nesting and breeding patterns while also posing a risk to all attendees. Aside from this, the air pollution from hundreds of vehicles also threatens the environment, and the lives of wild animals through road kills. The burning of wood to cook, coupled with the noise pollution caused by loudspeakers and firecrackers,all have devastating impacts on the lives of all fauna. In addition, the thousands of visitors open the possibilities for illegal activities such as sand-minding, poaching and bio-piracy, all of which have been detected there.