BUMPY RIDE!

The international airport at Weerawila has not as yet been approved by the Central Environmental Authority and environmental activists are on a collision course.

By Salma Yusuf

The foundation stone has been laid with much fanfare and plans are underway to establish Sri Lanka’s second international airport at Weerawila, about 10 km from the town of Hambantota in the south.

There is, however, one crucial issue – the Central Environmental Authority (CEA) has yet not said, “Yes” or “No” to the airport project estimated to cost US$150 million, as the process of checking out the impact on the environment has not been completed yet.

CEA Director-General Mervin Gunasena

The CEA will approve or reject the Weerawila airport project only after receiving the recommendations of the Technical Evaluation Committee which is still awaiting the report of the Central Engineering Consultancy Bureau (CECB), CEA Director-General Mervin Gunasena told The Sunday Times on Wednesday.

Explaining the evaluation and approval process, Mr. Gunasena said the mandatory Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) on the airport project was conducted by the CECB on the request of the Ministry of Ports and Aviation. Subsequently, the CECB submitted its report to the CEA and was opened for public comment, for a month. The public comments have now been forwarded to the CECB, which has to incorporate them into its report and make recommendations and observations to the Technical Evaluation Committee (TEC). The TEC will then make its recommendations, after which the CEA will evaluate them and come to a decision whether to approve the project or not.

Environmentalists, meanwhile, are up in arms about the location of the airport in Weerawila, claiming that of the three sites, Gonnoruwa, Weerawila and Udamathtala, checked out for the airport project, Gonnoruwa would have been the most suitable.

Voicing serious concerns, environmental activist and lawyer Jagath Gunawardena said the proposed site at Weerawila is bordered by the Bundala National Park, the wetland in the country which has the richest bio-diversity. “Bundala is the only place in Sri Lanka where all the resident species of water birds can be observed,” he stressed, explaining that as a birdwatcher for three decades, “I can personally vouch for this fact”.

The Weerawila airport site

According to Mr. Gunawardena, Bundala is a feeding and resting place for thousands of migratory water birds and an important breeding ground for certain resident water birds. The Bundala Wilmanna Sanctuary is also an important wetland habitat site. On the other side of the airport site is the Weerawila Tissa Sanctuary, he says, explaining that an airport in the area would create a two-fold environmental problem. “Bird life will be disturbed due to the sounds and vibrations of aviation activity. Consequently, the importance of these habitats will diminish, which, in turn, will adversely affect both domestic and international tourism,” he said.

A model of the proposed airport. Pix by J. Weerasekera and M.A. Pushpa Kumara

As the airport site lies within the paths of both resident and migratory birds, there is a risk of bird-aircraft collisions during landing and take-off, he emphasized, also pointing out that it falls within the elephant migratory routes. “If this area is developed, there will be an emergence of a new human-animal conflict,” he said.

The need for a second international airport is not being contested, says Mr. Gunawardena, adding that the issue is the location. “The EIA does not even meet the basic requirements spelt out in the National Environment Act (NEA), as the evaluation is unsatisfactory. The reptile species mentioned in the EIA are just two, whereas even in a home garden in that area, I can vouch for the fact that there will be a minimum of five such species.”

An important factor is that the EIA has not taken into consideration the presence of any migratory birds in the area. “This may have been a deliberate omission or the study may have been conducted at a time when migratory birds were not present. Either way, this reflects on the credibility of the environmental impact assessment,” Mr. Gunawardene added.

A Ports and Aviation Ministry spokesman told The Sunday Times that the ministry is the policy maker. “We made the decision to construct the second international airport and the implementation has been given to Airport and Aviation (Sri Lanka) Ltd. It is up to them to ensure that all procedural matters are passed before they begin implementation.”

The decision of the CEA will be respected by the ministry since no such project can begin without its approval, he added.
Meanwhile, numerous telephone calls and a fax requesting an appointment with the Chairman of Airport and Aviation (Sri Lanka) Ltd to discuss this crucial issue proved futile.