• Investigations ongoing: DWC DG

Blast fishing, also known as dynamite fishing, a banned fishing practice, is suspected as the likely cause of the deaths of a number of sea turtles that have occurred during the past several weeks, The Sunday Morning learns.

A senior official attached to the Department of Wildlife Conservation (DWC) told The Sunday Morning that post-mortem examinations of the sea turtle carcasses had found explosions to be the cause of death.

“We have done post-mortems of around 15 turtle carcasses and it was discovered that the deaths had occurred due to shock waves emitted by explosions,” the DWC official, who wished to remain unnamed, told The Sunday Morning.

However, speaking to The Sunday Morning, DWC Director General Chandana Sooriyabandara said that they could not disclose the official cause of death as of yesterday (26) as investigations were ongoing, but conceded that blast fishing was a possibility.

“We are unable to reveal how the deaths happened as the investigations are still ongoing and we are yet to submit the findings to courts. Death by explosions is a possibility,” he said.

The issue of dead marine life washing ashore has been under the spotlight since the disastrous MV X-Press Pearl accident which released thousands of tonnes of chemicals, plastic nurdles, and other substances into the seas off the western seaboard in 2020. The incident, which experts have termed as the worst marine pollution incident in Sri Lankan history, resulted in death and devastation to marine life.

Meanwhile, marine conservation organisation The Pearl Protectors also opined that the likely cause of death was blast fishing, which it said was likely taking place in the Hikkaduwa region.

“The carcasses have been found on the western coast between Kalutara and Negombo. At the moment, the sea current is from south to north, so it is quite likely that blast fishing is occurring somewhere around Hikkaduwa,” The Pearl Protectors Coordinator Muditha Katuwawala told The Sunday Morning.

Criticising the DWC’s failure to release post-mortem reports, Katuwawala asserted: “They have a history of not releasing the post-mortem reports. It is essential that the public is made aware of the findings of these reports.”