Archive for Environment
May 18, 2010 at 9:58 am · Categories: Colombo, Environment, Satire | by Banyan News Reporters
18 May 2010: Colombo, Sri Lanka: The unusually heavy rain and storm activity over Sri Lanka during the past few days could be the result of another international conspiracy against the resurgent island, a citizens’ science group says.
“The timing and intensity of the inclement weather is too much of a coincidence, just when we were preparing to celebrate our armed forces’ great victory over the LTTE exactly one year ago,” said the Vidyartha Patriots’ Institute for Science and Society (VPISS).
They added: “We suspect that a foreign hand, possibly a western country, may have tampered with our seasonal rainfall patterns. We ask the government to investigate if this could be the case.”
While the south-west …
May 2, 2010 at 8:11 pm · Categories: Colombo, Development, Environment, Media and Communications | by Groundviews
Renton de Alwis was one time Chairman for Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau. As noted on this website, he has over 35 years experience in marketing, communications and tourism related areas, having worked in an international environment covering over 30 countries.
In this interview we talk about the future of tourism in Sri Lanka. Renton comes out strongly in favour of the greening of Sri Lanka and eco-tourism in line with our traditions and culture. I asked him about the Akon incident, but he said he didn’t know enough to comment. After speaking at length about the environment, …
March 20, 2010 at 7:00 am · Categories: Batticaloa, Development, Environment, Jaffna, Peace and Conflict, Politics and Governance, Post-War | by Devanesan Nesiah
[Editor's note: Devanesan Nesiah provides a rejoinder to Tissa Devendra's vehement response to his article 'Rebuilding Sri Lanka' that was published first on Groundviews and then later in the Island.]
The venomous response of Devendra in the Island of 16th March does not merit a reply but I need to set the record straight. As I said in my original entry, “The primary fault is with neither the visitors nor the locals” which is very different to what Devendra seeks to imply. He takes offence over my citing the critical observations of a very distinguished Sinhalese. Rebuilding Sri Lanka requires self-critical acknowledgement of the damage done to the Sri Lankan nation over the decades by the racist policies of Sinhalese, Tamil …
March 9, 2010 at 2:24 am · Categories: Colombo, Environment | by Nalaka Gunawardene
Piyal Parakrama on Sri Lanka 2048 TV show
Piyal Parakrama’s smile was regular and genuine, but it could be also be a bit misleading. Those who engaged him found that there was a keen mind, passionate heart and a sharp (yet always courteous) tongue behind that disarming smile. Opponents dismissed him lightly at their peril.
In public and media debates, Piyal could float like a butterfly and sting like a bee. That flutter and buzz are now abruptly silenced with his sudden death on March 3 at age 49. Another public spirited player has left the stage all …
March 3, 2010 at 11:30 am · Categories: Batticaloa, Development, Environment, Jaffna, Peace and Conflict, Politics and Governance, Post-War, Trincomalee | by Devanesan Nesiah
A perceptive and sensitive Sri Lankan has noted;
“It is reported that the people of the North, especially in the Jaffna district, have developed a feeling of dissatisfaction, disaffection and contempt towards the people of the South, who post the end of the war are now engaging in pilgrimage and sightseeing related visits to the North in large numbers, and in the process totally disregarding the need for privacy, encroaching on meagre infrastructure resources and services of the district, causing significant negative impact on the environment/cleanliness and pollution in the area, and behaving in a manner unacceptable by the cultural and religious values of the Northerners.
These negative feelings are expressed in relation to the following issues highlighted in support of the …
November 23, 2009 at 8:20 am · Categories: Colombo, Environment | by Daya Dissanayake
Some of the recent deaths of animals in captivity in our zoological gardens, had been blamed on the visitors.
The real blame should be accepted by the authorities who manage these prisons. Who collect innocent animals from around the country, and from around the world and who keep these animals in small cages for life. The only escape for the animals is through death. Death would be a really welcome relief for them.
These animals and birds are captured, separated from their parents and siblings and separated from their habitat, their food, their playgrounds, their hunting grounds. We bring animals who live in very cold climates and also from tropical rain forests and deserts. We bring animals who are used to changing …
October 23, 2009 at 5:45 pm · Categories: Disaster Management, Environment, Human Rights | by Nalaka Gunawardene
The President Mohamed Nasheed of the Maldives in an exclusive interview with Nalaka Gunawardene
[caption id="attachment_1821" align="alignnone" width="425" caption="Nalaka Gunawardene (left) and President Mohamed Nasheed in Male, Aug 2009"]
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The Indian Ocean archipelago of the Maldives is the smallest country in Asia – it packs 325,000 people into a land area just under 300 square kilometres. With an average ground level of 1.5 metres (5 feet) above sea level, it is also the lowest country on the planet, and now on the frontline of climate change impact. As the polar ice …
September 16, 2009 at 7:00 am · Categories: Batticaloa, Disaster Management, Environment | by A Little Batti
The following is an except from a letter I wrote about the recent Tsunami Early Warning Test last week. I hope the readers of Groundviews find it interesting. I have to preface this by saying I am a Westerner, one of the few, living in Batticaloa, where I have been since shortly after the 2004 tsunami.
The excerpt:
The second exciting and panic-inducing event was the botched Tsunami Early Warning Test last Thursday, the 10th. The papers had announced that the new warning towers would be tested on the 19th, so you can see the first problem. Second, no one I talked to knew where these towers were. Turns out that there are three in the District: one in Kallady, about a …
September 15, 2009 at 7:00 am · Categories: Colombo, Economy, Environment | by mihiriw
Sri Lanka on the nuclear map
Recently Sri Lanka has shown increased interest in using nuclear energy for future power generation. The Atomic Energy Authority (AEA) of Sri Lanka is in the process of seeking cabinet approval to initiate a programme for ‘Nuclear Energy for Peaceful Use’.
Initial explorations in Sri Lanka have shown that some areas of the Southern and Western coastline have thorium deposits, which can be used as a nuclear fuel. India, which utilizes thorium for large-scale energy production has entered discussions on how it could assist Sri Lanka to develop thorium based energy.
This article argues that nuclear energy is not a viable option for energy generation in Sri Lanka as it is not safe, cost effective or emission …
September 11, 2009 at 7:00 am · Categories: Colombo, Environment | by Lalith Gunaratne
It was almost a decade since I had been involved with climate change activities, so I was happy when I was invited to a capacity building session held in Kathmandu in July by the Climate Action Network South Asia (CANSA). CANSA is part of a global network of NGOs addressing climate change issues in the region.
I was eager to learn about the current science of climate change and how well nations around the world are responding to it. To my dismay, I found that global carbon dioxide emissions have increased by 70% in the last 20 years. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) states that the evidence is even stronger that human factors have exacerbated the climate change process. In …
