The Centre for Environmental Justice (CEJ) on Friday filed a lawsuit against the digging of trenches in several areas in the country including the Protected Areas under the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance No. 2 of 1937 as amended, as a strategy to mitigate the Human-Elephant conflict (HEC) without any valid basis disregarding expert recommendations. The petitioners state that past experience in Sri Lanka with trenches as a barrier for the human-elephant conflict had shown to be ineffective, and the Action Plan of the Presidential Committee reinforces these views.
However, in drastic contrast to the Action Plan that a multi-stakeholder Presidential Committee prepared, the State Ministry and the Department of Wildlife Conservation are going ahead with an HEC mitigation measure that the Action Plan identifies as being ineffective.
The petitioners state that the digging of trenches has already commenced in some protected areas such as the Udawalawa National Park and Lunugamwehera National Park with plans for trenches to be dug around other protected areas and along electric fence lines, without any feasibility study, EIA, Climate Impact Assessment, Archaeological Impact Assessment or recommendations by experts.
The petitioners state that the adverse effects of trenches include trenches in wildlife landscapes impede the movement of all wildlife; Elephants which fall into deep and narrow trenches will face severe injuries, including death; Small animals can fall into the trenches, be severely injured, die and poachers can easily hunt small animals falling into trenches; Impact on rainwater runoff: there could be unforeseen hydrological impact, including diversion of streams, which will have an impact on local farmers and village communities and flooding of low lying lands due to flash floods; impact the cascaded tank systems and springs, including climate adaptation-related impact; during the monsoon season, either side of the trench could cave in and get filled with soil; destroy or divide the habitats of species, including some rare or endangered species; Restrict the free movement of the public and risk of infants falling into these trenches and being seriously injured; and Indigenous people who cohabit with the environment and survive on the natural produce will also be affected due to the fragmentation of their habitats.
The petitioners also state that the surrounding environment and sensitive ecosystems are destroyed by the heavy machinery used to dig trenches and vehicles used to transport sand.