Govt. refutes claims that Sri Lanka’s forest cover has reduced to 16%

Govt. refutes claims that Sri Lanka’s forest cover has reduced to 16%

January 9, 2023   01:33 pm

The Conservator General of Forests, K.M.A Bandara has refuted media reports implying that Sri Lanka’s forest cover has reduced to 16%.

He said this in response to a query made regarding the media report on the instructions of President’s Secretary Saman Ekanayake, the President’s Media Division (PMD) reported.

The Presidential Secretariat had focused its attention regarding these reports published in the media, it added.

The assessment of forest cover is carried out every five years and the census conducted in 2020 is scheduled to be completed in June this year. According to the census conducted in 2015, the natural forests of Sri Lanka stood at 29.15% (1,912,970 hectares) of the total land extent, according to the PMD.

The Conservator General of Forests also said that although there has been some reduction in the amount of forests due to various development activities and other human activities in the country, there has definitely been no decrease in the amount of forests up to 16% as stated in the media reports.

According to media reports, if the forest area in Sri Lanka is 16% of the total land extent, then the existing forest area in the country should be 1,040,000 hectares. This means that 872,970 hectares of forests should have been destroyed during the seven years from 2015, which is 124,710 hectares per year and 341 hectares of forest destruction per day, it mentioned further.

He also said that the method used to assess the forests should have been described in the presentation of data on forests. Basic points such as the definition of forests, the method of estimating forest size, and the estimation of forest size should have been mentioned in the report. However, there is no source from which the relevant data was obtained in the media reports suggesting that the forest cover had decreased.

The Conservator General further stated that if there is widespread forest destruction, as reported in the media, it should have been observed by the Department of Forest, the Department of Wildlife Conservation, the Sri Lanka Police, and the Sri Lanka Air Force, which monitors forests from the air. However, such extensive forest destruction has not been reported to any of these institutions. He also stated that the Forest Department is updating forest maps and that no such forest destruction was observed during those activities.

--PMD--

Disclaimer: All the comments will be moderated by the AD editorial. Abstain from posting comments that are obscene, defamatory or slanderous. Please avoid outside hyperlinks inside the comment and avoid typing all capitalized comments. Help us delete comments that do not follow these guidelines by flagging them(mouse over a comment and click the flag icon on the right side). Do use these forums to voice your opinions and create healthy discourse.

Most Viewed Video Stories

LIVE🔴 Ada Derana Prime Time News Bulletin 6.55 pm

LIVE🔴 Ada Derana Prime Time News Bulletin 6.55 pm

2024 General Election: Latest situation in Colombo District as voting continues

How to correctly cast your vote at the 2024 Parliamentary Election (English)

2024 Parliamentary Election: Ada Derana prepared for comprehensive coverage (English)

LIVE🔴 Ada Derana Prime Time News Bulletin 6.55 pm

LIVE🔴 Ada Derana Lunch Time News Bulletin 12.00 pm

Substandard medicine imports: Court orders to record statements from 18 former Cabinet members (English)