HEC: Combined action urged to implement National Action Plan

DWC Director General Sooriyabandara, commenting on electric fences erected by the private sector, claimed that according to their inspections, 583 of the 2009 privately built and maintained electric fences were faulty

As environmentalists call for the swift implementation of the National Action Plan to reduce the Human-Elephant Conflict (HEC), the Wildlife Conservation Department (DWC) emphasises that the success of any plan hinges on the collaboration of all stakeholders—government departments, agencies, and environmentalists—on a unified platform.

DWC Director General Chandana Sooriyabandara said the department had already taken every measure necessary to resolve the human-elephant conflict, but what was required was the support of other stakeholders and state agencies.

“The DWC alone cannot mitigate the issue,” he said.

He said the department had held talks with relevant stakeholders for years on the subject but had not held specific discussions with all stakeholders on a comprehensive plan to mitigate the crisis.

Centre for Environmental Justice (CEJ) Executive Director Hemantha Withange told the Sunday Times that on a Court of Appeal request in 2019, the CEJ had prepared a set of 30 proposals to mitigate the human-elephant conflict and obtained the Attorney General’s assurance that it would ask relevant departments and state agencies to implement the proposal.

The court called for the proposals when it took up the case of multiple elephant deaths in Habarana.

Elaborating on the case, Mr. Withanage said the AG informed the court that the Government’s Analyst had not been able to find out the cause of the deaths of the elephants and, therefore, the case could not be continued further. The AG also told the court that the DWC had done everything possible to mitigate the human-elephant conflict and that very little was left to be done.

The court then asked the CEJ whether it could prepare a proposed plan to mitigate the human-elephant conflict.

However, most environmentalists call for the implementation of the National Action Plan. They said both human rights and environmental groups should come together to push the authorities to implement the National Action Plan without delay.

Environmental researcher Supun Lahiru Prakash, who is also the convener of the Biodiversity Conservation and Research Circle (BCRC), stressed the need for the full and proper implementation of the National Action Plan prepared by a committee appointed by the then-President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.

He said the action plan handed over to the then-President in December 2020 emphasised the appointment of a presidential task force to implement this action plan. However, instead of a task force, the present president, Ranil Wickremesinghe, appointed a committee to facilitate and supervise the implementation of the National Action Plan, which comprised input from experts, researchers, and heads of the relevant government agencies.

“This committee lacks the power to demand action and enforce implementation. It only makes requests and suggestions. Besides, the committee was not given enough funds to operate. As a result, the National Action Plan is not fully implemented,” Mr. Prakash said.

He said that civil society and environmental groups should collectively push for the implementation of the National Action Plan instead of their own proposals.

Meanwhile, DWC Director General Sooriyabandara, commenting on electric fences erected by the private sector, claimed that according to their inspections, 583 of the 2009 privately built and maintained electric fences were faulty.

The inspection was carried out against the backdrop of 72 elephant deaths last year due to electrocution. The number exceeds the total deaths in the last four years.

The DWC inspection also revealed that only 147 private electric fences conformed to the DWC’s standards and had been approved by them.

The DWC had advised the private electric fence users to rectify the faults. The department has urged them to shut down their electric fences until they rectify the faults.

He also said that people can use hanging electric fences as long as they stick to the specifications of the DWC. However, if any person illegally taps high-tension electric wires or taps wires from residents to operate electric fences, the department would take take strict action against them.