The Lankan relationship with its nature is filled with nuance. We laud ourselves for our bountiful natural resources and their many applications, from generating revenue to helping us sustain ourselves. But oftentimes, development seems to be at odds with protecting our natural environment in the long term.
Last week saw the Ministry of Wildlife and Forest Resources Conservation issue an extraordinary gazette that announced that a portion of the Vedithalathivu Nature Reserve (VNR) would be degazetted and reallocated for development purposes. The size of the land and the development purposes are both unclear at the moment of writing.
This decision to degazette (in effect, to take back a portion of the land allocated to the nature reserve and use it for other purposes like farming or infrastructure development) has been met with opposition by many conservationists and scientists on multiple grounds, from the environmental implications this move can have on the surrounding ecosystem to due process around this decision not having been followed, to the precedent that degazetting and downsizing protected areas can set for long-term environmental conservation.
The Vedithalathivu Nature Reserve, located in the Mannar District, is a unique and ecologically-significant protected area. It was officially declared a nature reserve in 2016 via Gazette 1956/13, following a recommendation from a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) of the Northern Province. It is situated on the northwestern coast and is bordered by the Vankalai Sanctuary to its southwest, Adam’s Bridge Marine National Park to its northwest, and the Madhu Road National Park to its east.
The reserve covers an area of approximately 29,000 hectares and comprises many different ecological environments, namely mangroves, mudflats, salt marshes, seagrass beds, and coral reefs. It is considered the third-largest Marine Protected Area (MPA) in Sri Lanka. The area was identified as needing protection due to its rich biodiversity and ecological importance.
With last week’s intention to degazette part of Vedithalathivu in the near future, The Sunday Morning Brunch reached out to a few conservationists on just what makes the reserve so important and what possible impacts degazetting and irresponsible development can have on the reserve and our wider ecosystems in the long run.
The role of Vedithalathivu
University of Vavuniya Department of Bioscience Senior Lecturer Dr. S. Wijeyamohan shared that Vedithalathivu was a derivation of the terms ‘vidattal’ (the Tamil name for one of the most abundant plants in the region) and ‘thivu’ (the Tamil word for island). One of the reserve’s most defining features is of course its mangrove systems which form a breeding ground for a huge amount of marine life. The VNR mangrove system, most importantly the reserve’s marine and brackish environments, play host to a wide variety of algae which contribute heavily to how much carbon the area sequesters.
Despite its relatively small size, Vedithalathivu plays a crucial role in the ecosystem of the area. Environmental activist and Attorney-at-Law Dr. Jagath Gunawardana highlighted the need to think holistically, saying: “We can’t look at the environment in the traditional manner that we used to. We need to look at it from the point of view of interconnected ecosystems. Vedithalathivu is a unique ecosystem comprising salt marshes, sea grass, and mudflats, and therefore, we need to look at the ecosystem services these provide as a whole as well as on their own.”
Vedithalathivu’s unique role as an ecosystem is in large part due to the variety of environments within the reserve. “In particular, Vedithalathivu is a blue carbon specialty hotspot,” Wildlife and Nature Protection Society (WNPS) President Graham Marshall shared with Brunch, noting that there were four key environments in Vedithalathivu that stored carbon: salt marshes, mudflats, mangroves, and seagrass beds.
“In terms of carbon sequestration, we undoubtedly think of mangroves and rainforests as being one the greatest carbon sequesters, but seagrass beds can sequester up to 30% more carbon than the rainforest and four times as much carbon as mangroves. They’re also home to unique creatures like the dugong.
“Vedithalathivu is most unique, because it has all these four habitats in one location. It is also unique in that it possesses the only direct sea-facing mangrove habitat in Sri Lanka.”
Wayamba University Department of Aquaculture and Fisheries Chair Prof. Sevvandi Jayakody also emphasised on the pivotal role of the VNR as a collection of diverse ecosystems, from dry zone scrub forests to mangroves and coral reefs, which are all interconnected and influenced by the shallow sea between India and Sri Lanka. In her words, “Vedithalathivu is one rare place” where one can find a convergence of globally significant blue carbon ecosystems – salt marshes, seagrass beds, and mangroves.
Highlighting the richness of species in Vedithalathivu, she noted the presence of over 162 bird species, including migratory birds, which relied on the reserve’s abundant resources, which was the first port of call for many birds as they flew south for the winter months. Prof. Jayakody stressed on the importance of conserving such integral ecosystems, emphasising that fragmented landscapes offered little support to biodiversity and communities.
Economically too, Prof. Jayakody pointed out that Vedithalathivu was already home to multiple aquaculture and fishery projects as well as the fishing grounds of many fishing communities, providing some of the tastiest (export quality) crabs and shrimps, in part due to the careful preservation of Vedithalathivu that has come with it being a protected area.
It is also home to the dugong, a marine mammal that is only found in optimal seagrass beds, an indicator that Vedithalathivu’s ecosystems are in good health and should not be disrupted in the name of development.
“The major part of Vedithalathivu is actually ocean; land is a very tiny fragment, but it is land that contains the most essential ecosystems,” Prof. Jayakody said, adding that while the intention to degazette part of Vedithalathivu had been announced, it was not clear yet where this degazetted land would be located within the park nor how big this land would be, but that given the layout of the park, even the smallest land reclamation stood to dangerously impact the equilibrium of Vedithalathivu’s many ecosystems.
Degazetting part of Vedithalathivu
This is not the first time that Vedithalathivu, initially declared a reserve in 2016, has faced threats of degazettement. Pressures to degazette first emerged in 2017 with the proposal for an aquaculture project, despite concerns about introducing an exotic prawn species and the ecological impacts evidenced by failed projects in nearby areas.
Dr. Wijeyamohan, while sharing concerns about the impacts of irresponsible development due to the proposed degazettement, also questioned the initial gazettement of Vedithalathivu as a protected area in the first place, pointing out that it had been made a protected area in 2016 without consulting the communities living in those areas, which in turn effectively locked some of the local community out of these lands in the name of conservation.
“Many purists don’t understand that we need to use nature in some ways to exist,” he shared, putting forward the concept of sustainable exploitation of nature – a balance between using nature and ecosystems for survival and giving local communities the chance to interact more with nature, rather than being told it is out of bounds for conservation purposes.
Dr. Gunawardana shared that especially if the degazetted land was to be used for aquaculture as proposed in 2017, the impacts would be doubly concerning because not only was this proposed degazettement against due process, but it also went directly against Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) reports conducted in response to the 2017 aquaculture proposal.
“The whole process is irregular,” Dr. Gunawardana said regarding last week’s extraordinary gazette, noting that the latter provided no specific information in terms of how much land was to be degazetted and for what purpose. “The extent of land, where it is, and the schedule are missing. I’ve not received the printed version of this gazette yet, only the electronic version, and presently, I am at a loss to fathom the impact of this whole exercise.”
Compromising the ecosystem
One of the biggest impacts of irresponsible development at Vedithalathivu will be on its communities. Marshall outlined the community role that Vedithalathivu played, with fishing being one of the main sources of livelihood for communities in the area, noting that development projects could impact the equilibrium of its ecosystem. On a diplomatic level too, compromising the mangrove-centric Vedithalathivu ecosystem paints Sri Lanka in a bad light before the international community.
Sri Lanka is bound by international conventions in relation to the protection of mangroves. The Sri Lankan Government also adopted the Commonwealth Blue Charter in 2018, where it pledged to champion the collaboration on mangrove restoration. In 2019, Sri Lanka submitted a resolution along with Indonesia to the United Nations Environment Assembly, calling world leaders to take action on the global health of mangroves.
In January 2020, a national policy was formed to conserve and sustainably utilise mangrove ecosystems in Sri Lanka. The aim of the policy was to integrate all Government agencies into the task of protecting the patches of mangroves dispersed around the island.
In February this year, Sri Lanka accepted the UN World Restoration Flagship award and was commended for the accelerated natural regeneration of mangroves. Degazetting a mangrove-centric nature reserve for irresponsible development that could threaten these mangroves is a highly contradictory move to make in light of the country’s actions thus far.
Prof. Jayakody voiced grave concerns regarding the potential repercussions of aquaculture activities on the VNR. She highlighted the delicate balance of ecosystems and the profound impacts that disturbances could have, stating: “What is very important for us to understand is what happens when such fragile ecosystems are disturbed.”
She also expressed scepticism towards the decision to degazette the reserve for aquaculture [while the exact purpose for degazetting the land is yet to be revealed, many conservationists surmise that the land is being degazetted for aquaculture], pointing out past failures in aquaculture in the area and environmental sensitivities.
She noted that the introduction of invasive species also posed risks such as potential loss of vital habitats for birds: “Salt marshes and mudflats are prime areas for birds. The moment you have a shrimp farm, what is required next is deterrents for birds.”
Additionally, she questioned the lack of comprehensive ecological studies and proper procedures, stating: “The EIA study in 2018 that looked at whether the area could be degazetted rejected aquaculture because it was very clear that there would be profound impacts to the ecosystem and the services it rendered.”
Amidst her concerns, Prof. Jayakody underscored the crucial role of ecosystems such as Vedithalathivu in carbon sequestration and climate resilience. She emphasised on the significance of maintaining these ecosystems intact, cautioning against actions that could compromise their integrity.
Prof. Jayakody further criticised the disregard for established conservation policies and procedures, stressing on the importance of responsible environmental stewardship and urging adherence to conservation policies to safeguard precious ecosystems such as Vedithalathivu. “No one can say: ‘Let’s destroy what is already protected in order to go for development.’ It sets a very bad precedent for the future,” she said.