Financial Times

The trials and tribulations of illegal sand mining

By Robert Ingall

Rivers have always been an integral part of men and women's means of living; they are the reason so many cities, towns and villages were built on their banks. But it seems in Sri Lanka they offer a source of income that is not just killing their beauty, but the source of income and the quality of drinking water for those that live next or near their banks – not to mention corrupting the youth.

The reason is both legal and illegal sand mining due to a serious lax of coordinated regulations and listening when it comes to those that hold the cards and those that suffer.

The sand is wanted for construction -- and why not you might ask as that sector provides eight percent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP). The problem is that the riverine community is losing out on what they thought was a reliable resource of water.

Illegal mining going on along the Deduru Oya river, which was once fast-flowing but now is barely more than a trickle.

Even before the tsunami, there was a need for sand, and the cheaper the better. For that you cannot blame those that dig it and those who need it. The problem is the scale of the mining, where rivers have changed appearance, from being fast flowing and deep, to meandering and slothful. Not to mention the danger with bridge and electricity pylon foundations being laid bare.

A field trip was organised on the behest of the Reverend Malagane Attadassi of the Bingiriya Temple in Kurunegala District. Those who took part came from a variety of organisations, such as Lanka Jalani, the Japan Water Forum, the Associated Development Research Consultants, NGO Forum on ADB, to Golden Key Minerals Ltd. And what did they see?

The measuring scale on Deduru Oya Bridge showing how much the water has dropped.

The initial stop was the Deduru Oya Bridge in Puttalam District, but what was this reporter missing? It was soon explained that if you looked at the foundations, should they be normally seem or not? What was seen (see picture) were the foundations, and the fact that when the bridge was first built, the bank was between six to nine metres further in. The sand excavation had taken place over a couple of decades but it was difficult to imagine the river in its former glory.

The problem is that the water table has dropped, meaning that wells have also dropped, some to practically nothing, allowing saline water to seep in thus further depleting drinking water (see box), plus the coconut trees have suffered (and the area is a major plantation zone) due to their fibrous roots -- meaning they spread out rather then go deep. Thus a serious drop in water means a serious risk to a flourishing crop.

What is disappointing is that it is illegal to mine sand within a kilometre of the bridge due to the safety reasons, and there is a sign, but it seemingly doesn't matter -- you could see excavated sand dunes just 400 metres away.

When it comes to any law over a river there doesn't seem to be one for what happens beyond the banks. What goes on as soon as you hit water is left to no-one basically -- something that really needs to be changed. The licensing for the mining is real enough, but even the Geology Survey and Mines Bureau (GSM) get a hard time for that process.

It seems that the sand is meant to be for local use, but due to demand a tidy profit can be made by those that dare. Amounts allowed to be mined and the routes taken, to enforce checks, seem to be so lax that a licence saying 10 cubes (about 100 cubic feet, but seemingly closer to 80) can be taken over10 days is translated by the men on the job to as much as 10 cubes per day if possible.

As usual the problem is getting those that are meant to regulate to do so. But because the money is so good – labourers can earn Rs 1,500 per day – nobody, especially the police, want to upset the locals, even though they are breaking the law. The reason? There is the real possibility of local officials getting transferred if the complaint goes high enough -- where that height tends to do with the politics of the matter.

As for the profits to be made: a cube of sand can fetch Rs 5,000 to Rs 5,500 in Colombo. Once the labourers and the transportation fees are paid, around Rs 2,000 can still be cleared.

The startling realisation of the size of the illegal mining problem came when visiting the river again at Vilathewa, Welattawa, in Kurunegala District . On arrival, there was just a mass of people excavating, and all illegally. The river looked like it had given up and was just going thought the motions.

The scale of the mining was too obvious to see: there was an electricity pylon that was basically bare to the bottom of its foundations. What that means is that if the mining goes on it will probably topple over and there goes the power supply to a neighbourhood or two; but do those that mine care, obviously not. On top of that was the coconut plantation, next to lack of bank, now about 25 feet above the river level. The roots don't venture that deep.

But as these sights were seen there was the over all impression that such activity shouldn't be banned, due to the need of the commodity, but it should be regulated. If not there really could be serious damage to the ecological system.

An interesting tale was told at this site. If we had not arrived with the Rev. Atthadassi it seems the miners might have taken serious offence to our rather large group suddenly arriving, taking pictures.

Anura Dayananda, Regional Mine Engineer for the GSM, said that there were just two people, with one vehicle, to cover two districts – Kurunegala and Puttalam – which he admitted wasn't enough to fight the illegal mining. However, he did tell those that were present that what they were doing was illegal and called the police, leading to a number of the workers to amazingly vanish -- which conveniently brings up another point.

The road to get to this site was long and very rough, especially when the tarmac ended. This means that even if the police were called, all it needed was one lookout with a mobile phone and, voila, enough time to vacate the crime scene.

But back to Mr. Dayananda, he said that to get a licence the Divisional Secretariat had to be satisfied that there would be no harm to the environment or social well-being to those living in the vicinity. The licences, once agreed to, last three months, six, or one year. His major complaint while waiting for the police to arrive was that there just weren't enough people on the ground to control the situation.

Mr. Dayananda did admit that when he visited such sites he used the friendly approach to ensure there was no violence, plus he admitted that even if he gets the illegal miners to go one day, they will only return the next, whereas he'd be somewhere else. The miner knew that. His answer to the problem; ensure the police play a bigger part as they have the manpower.

The problem there was, as the excavation site was so remote the police would have to permanently post someone there, which was just inconceivable.

At the site, Kusum Athukorala, President Network of Women Water Professionals in Sri Lanka came out with a classic. She said the illegal mining business was called “Going to Italy”, because both the mining and working in Italy were so lucrative.

The last place visited was Sengala-oya, where a dam was being built. The reason was that the old way of having a wooden angled dam was useless due to the drop in the water level. The dam being was there to raise the level to water 1,000 hectares of arable land fed via a channel that the angled dam used to. It was obvious that the mining had also taken place here, but the reason it stopped? The land is close to the temple run by Rev. Atthadassi, and his pressure did work, well, to be honest there was small-scale mining still going on.

So what can be done? According to those on the field trip, it's a matter of regulation, meaning depth of mining, quantity of removal and checks on routes have to be enforced, much of which was discussed at a meeting with local community leaders at the temple (see box).

Looking for a way forward

Once the field trip was over a discussion was held with experts in the field, community leaders, local officials and environmentalists, plus children from the local school. The following are some of the grievances, the arguments put forward and the replies, when applicable. It was presided over by the Reverend Malagane Attadassi, who led by example with his thoughts on sand mining.

The amounts of sand that is legally allowed to be taken, via licences, should be better stipulated. As an example, if a person is licensed to remove 10 cubes over the period of a month, what is to stop him moving that amount per day for a month? The repl was that the present rules were too lax, where exact amounts should be stipulated over exact time period, and then following exact routes so that the trucks can be checked.

To focus on the problem in the area, a general advert was put in the paper and local people were encouraged to air their thoughts. All the ideas put forward were put into a booklet and sent to the relevant politicians. As yet, there has been no reply.

For the 6,000 families living in the region using water taken from tube wells, there have been complaints that as the water levels have got so low, saline water can now de tasted. The worry here is that if the salinity rises much more, a vital source of water will be gone.

The main pump to extract water for use in the area recently fell into the river as a result of the mining. When it was moved further inland, there were complaints about the salinity. It is now even further inland, but the local villagers worry about the water being taken from them to be used elsewhere, leaving them with a shortage.

The Reverend Attadassi said that the licences should be more specific when it comes to sand mining, such as how deep excavation can go and how much can be dug, as well as being dependant on the quality of the roads to the sights, plus the security. In reply, Anuru Dayananda, Regional Mine Engineer, Geology Survey and Mines Bureau, said that such requirements were not the responsibility of his department but a matter for the local government.

There was hope though, as a judge has demanded a case study on the effects sand mining has on the environment in a court case taking place in another district. Once completed it was hoped that it could be used as a base for all future licence applications.

The senior monk bemoaned the fact that this concern over sand mining, both illegal and legal, has been going on for five years, where even though progress has been made, that progress should have been much further along.

There was also a problem for the police as they weren’t sure which licences were real and which forged.

When licences are given, they should be posted at either temples or local government buildings so that people know where the illegal mining is taking place.

When a tender is put forward for a licence, all scenarios should be looked at before any being accepted.

For instance, if a council says that a road is in no condition to have the traffic on it, the licence should be withheld until that road is suitably repaired.

The Reverend Attadassi also stated that as far as he was concerned, the sand was firstly for the river, secondly, for the local people, and thirdly for the country in general.

He also showed a recent advert in a Sinhala paper from a governmental environmental agency stating that there was a need for more sand in the construction industry due to the financial worth it brings to the country, but there wasn’t a single mention about the effects sand mining has on the environment, which seems rather strange for such an agency.

With the region producing 64,000 kilograms of paddy a year, worth Rs 276 million, this way of life could disappear with the water.

No-one seems to be looking for any alternatives to sand or to the way it is produced for the construction industry as the government has no policy for such alternatives.

Then came the first question from the school children present.
The young man said even though he was in junior school some of his class mates were mining for sand because the money was so good; while an older student said that kids his age were also taking advantage of the Rs 1,500 on offer.

He said with the money they were hanging out in “Chinese Houses” drinking alcohol and taking drugs.

The school has already been highlighted on a TV programme over the use of drugs, which could lead to future disintegration of the social society.

The final word should go to a speaker for the local school’s environment society, who asked the assembled people to quickly work out a solution to protect the environment for the young. As she said: “We have seen more and more damage being done to the environment, but what future can we expect if things like this are allowed to go on?” (RI)

To do that, of course, isn't easy as it involves politics and lobbying. But what's happening here is not an isolated incident; it's happening all over the island. And if it continues at the rate it is there will be serious consequences when it comes to the water supply for humans, animals and crops. For the information garnered I would like to especially thank Ranjith Ratnayake, Consultant for Lanka Jalani, Mr. S. M. S. B. Niyangode, Chairman, Lanka Jalani, and Kusum Athukorala.

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