Enhancing knowledge for utilizing Biotechnology for Environment Conservation
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In an age when population is exponentially increasing and biodiversity is being depleted due to man-made environmental degradation, loss of specific species, groups of species and decrease in number of particular organisms are taking place in different parts of the country at a rapid pace. These losses are often the manifestations of degradation or destruction in the ecosystem or habitat.
Biotechnology today has become a very powerful tool for critical assessment of biodiversity, especially genetic diversity and consequently the identification of potential bio-resources. In order to enhance the knowledge of their students in this capacity, Horizon campus recently organized a visit to the Diyasaru Park in Thalawathugoda, which consists of a wetland spreading over 60 acres comprising of a high density of biodiversity for many species.
With Wetlands being a critical part of the natural environment, playing a key role in supporting the country’s biological diversity, the purpose of the visit was to help students enhance their knowledge on how wetlands support birds, fish, amphibian and plant species during important life stages by providing roosting, nesting and feeding habitat
The visit to Diyasaru Wetland Park entailed the students experiencing and interacting with real nature .It gave them an opportunity to conduct further research and gain an insight on various types of flora and fauna, butterflies, different types of dragonflies, various types of birds, rare species and immigrant species that live in this wetland.
Dr.Lekha Wanasinghe, Dean of the Faculty of Science at Horizon Campus stated “Biodiversity has environmental and social value. Wetlands have healthy biodiversity and provide essential services to the environment and to our communities. We believe that biotechnology should come to the rescue of mankind by providing greater and efficient means of utilizing the available biodiversity. Once a country attains the capacity to manage its genetic resources, it will automatically be able to produce novel products from its own biodiversity and we hope to train our students to play key role in this sphere in the future, for the industry. The visit to Diyasaru Wetland Park was a part of the real life experiences that we give our students to enhance their learning in working towards gaining ideas and methods to reduce biodiversity decline”.