20 more forest reserves gazetted

The Government has declared 20 more forests covering 9,538.68 hectares as forest reserves under its Vanaspathi programme, bringing the total number of forests declared as reserves over the past two years to 113, Environment Minister Dr Dammika Patabendi said yesterday (28).

Addressing the media in Colombo, Dr Patabendi said the 20 forests were gazetted on 26 September at the Sri Lanka Forestry Institute in Nuwara Eliya.

Located across six Districts, the newly declared reserves have increased the total area covered by the 113 reserves to 71,990.26 hectares, equivalent to around 179,975.65 acres, he said.

He said the reserves include water catchment areas, water sources and forests located above 5,000 feet, as well as forests with significant biodiversity, tourism and archaeological value.

Forests that serve as elephant habitats are also among the newly declared reserves, which he said would support elephant conservation and efforts to address the human-elephant conflict.

Dr Patabendi said the Government also aims to increase the country’s forest cover through the Vanaspathi programme.

He stressed that declaring forests as reserves did not mean separating them from communities, but involving the public in their protection and conservation.

“We want to involve the public in protecting these reserves and create a culture of protecting forests in our country through public participation,” he said.

He said the declaration of the forests as reserves would also increase the Government’s responsibility to establish their boundaries, ensure their legal protection, prevent illegal encroachments and destructive activities, collect biodiversity data and protect them from forest fires.