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Forest fires continue to burn unabated, leave scars in Ella
More forest fires have been reported this year, causing damage to environment, wildlife and now affecting one of the most popular tourist destinations – Ella.
28 hectares of the Ravana Ella Sanctuary and two hectares of the mixed eucalyptus plantation were damaged by the recent fire. Pix by Palitha Ariyawansha
According to the Disaster Management Centre, there have been more than 100 forest fires in the eight months so far.
The department’s Deputy Director Pradeep Kodippili told the Sunday Times that lack of awareness among people is a drawback.
“Not many people are aware of the aftermath of such man made disasters which can lead to an imbalance in nature,” he said.
Senior Professor of the Department of forestry and environmental sciences at the University of Sri Jayawardanapura, Hemanthi Ranasighe told the Sunday Times that 95 per cent of forest fires are caused by humans and less than 5 per cent are natural fires, while many are unrecorded.
Most fires are caused by discarded cigarette butts. Also, controlled burns turn into raging fires.
Authorities do not have the equipment to contain the fires.
“The forest is an important ecosystem that people don’t understand much about,” she said.
She explained that trees absorb the carbon dioxide in the air through photosynthesis and this process will be restricted when trees are destroyed.
Commenting on the recent forest fire in Ella, she said that it is most likely caused by careless people.
“Authorities couldn’t extinguish the fire due to the delay in gathering equipment. It took a while for them to reach the place,” she said.
The Forest Department said that the fire occurred on the Ella Wellawaya Road, below the Ella rock.
There is a pledge to increase the forest cover up to 32 per cent by 2030, officials said.
A burnt out area of the Ella sanctuary
The department’s conservator of forests, W.A.C.Weragoda, said 28 hectares of the Ravana Ella Sanctuary which belongs to the Wildlife Conservation and two hectares of the mixed eucalyptus plantation which belongs to the Forest Conservation were damaged due to the recent fire.
According to the department, the fire which erupted on the 22nd at around 11 a.m. was doused only in the afternoon the following day.
According to department statistics, at least 156 forest fires were reported islandwide last year, with 80 of them in the Badulla district. In 2017, there were 70 forest fires, half of them in the Badulla district.
Meanwhile, environmentalist Supun Lahiru Prakash, pointed out that the biodiversity is destroyed by alien invasive plant species which alter the balance of nature due to forest fires.
“The recently discovered geckos live mostly in isolated hills and such fires tend to destroy new and endemic species,” he said.
Mr. Prakash warned that soil erosion, reduction of water capacity and quality in reservoirs, and destruction of agricultural land are consequences of fires caused by humans.
“Legal action is never taken against people who vandalise the environment and it is a sad plight of the country when the environment is not given priority,” he said.
According to him, the government has failed to allocate funds to create fire belts in forests during the dry season.
“These fires induce climate change and increases carbon dioxide and reduces oxygen in the atmosphere,” he said.
OIC of the Tourist Police, Prabath Withanage, said that the tourism industry has not been affected due to the recent forest fire at Ella.
“The fire was started in an isolated place where there are no human activities,” he said.
