Cash-strapped Forest Department and Disaster Management Centre (DMC) authorities are struggling to douse forest fires ravaging the Badulla, Puttalam, Vavuniya, Hambantota districts and many areas.
Air force assistance was sought to douse a fire spreading rapidly in the Badulla District’s Ella area. A Bell 212 helicopter was deployed with seven Bambi bucket operations taking place to contain the fire that was engulfing the tourist hotspot.
Badulla District Disaster Management Centre Assistant Director E M L Udayakumara said villagers are setting fire to the savannas, hunters are taking advantage of the dry weather, and campers and holiday makers ignore the winds when setting campfires and lighting cigarettes.
“We have instructed estate managers to have a fire belt in the boundaries of their plantation lands. Announcements are also to be made in places of worship within estates on the consequences of kindling fire in forest lands,” he said.
He said once a fire starts spreading it is extremely difficult to get fire trucks to mountainous terrain.
“Disaster management and army personnel go to the areas and attempt to douse using tree branches. This is a tedious process,” he said.
According to the Puttalam District Disaster Management Centre, more than 200 acres of coconut lands have been destroyed by forest fires in the district. The fire has affected cashew cultivation areas and the coir industry.
In Maduragama, a coir export factory was gutted after sparks from a nearby forest area engulfed the stock of coir. Fire engines of the North Western Naval Command and the Puttalam Municipality rushed to the area but the factory was ablaze.
About 25 acres of the Thambapanni estate belonging to the Chilaw Plantations too, were affected by a similar fire, damaging coconut and cashew cultivation.
The dry weather is also contributing to forest fires in Northern regions. A coir factory in Vavuniya caught fire as a result of a bordering forest fire. Similarly, a forest reserve at Nedunkulam in Vavuniya spread to the adjacent paddy fields. Police Special Task Force and military personnel together with the Vavuniya Municipality fire fighters collectively worked to control the flames.
Environmentalist Jayantha Wijesinghe of the Rainforest Protectors of Sri Lanka said there have been a number of forest fires in the Ella, Haldumulla, Wellawaya, Balangoda areas during the past week.
“This is the hottest month after many years, and the longest drought period for some areas with no rains for the past three months. Losing close to 10,000 acres of forest cover to fires should be taken seriously by the Government. The Forest Department, along with the DMC, area local government, forest and wild life officers should be proactively involved in preventing and mitigating forest fires,” he said.
He said mapping forest fire hotspots, cutting fire belts, introducing spot fines, setting up village committees are some measures that need to be taken without delay.
“The areas on fire in the Uva Province are rich in biodiversity. These fires, if they continue, will lead certain rare herbs to become extinct. Wildlife, too, will be threatened,” Mr Wijesinghe said.
Hunters, forest honey collectors, sand miners, campers, farmers and cattle owners are among the suspects, he said.
Nishantha Edirisinghe, Additional Conservator General of Forests, said fire belts, though costly, are the best way to control fires in mountainous areas.
He said those starting a fire in a forest reserve are liable to a fine of up to Rs 100,000 on conviction and an imprisonment of not less than one year. For anyone convicted of setting fire to a conservation forest, the fine can go up to Rs 200,000 with or without imprisonment.
Disaster Management Centre Director-General, retired Major General S Ranasinghe said forest fires are a growing burden to authorities due to the cost involved. “As dozers and backhoes are not permitted to build fire gaps, obtaining manual labour is a hard task with limited financial resources. Lack of manpower is a issue for Forest Department officials,” he told the Sunday Times.
He said dousing the Ella fire by the Air Force cost close to US$ 10,000 (Rs 3.2 million) with one operation costing about US$ 2,100.
“All forest fires in the country are man-made. Though there are legal provisions, it’s difficult to catch the culprits without proof. An action plan is underway to establish intelligence teams,” he said.
He said District Secretaries will be instructed to make sure that every estate maintains its own fire belt, and every district to have a fire prevention standard operating procedure (SOP).
