LG bodies play vital role in protection of environment - Kurunegala PS Chairman

Stanley Seneviratne Kurunegala north group corr

Although the Word Environment” is not mentioned in the Local Government enactments, Local Authorities in Sri Lanka were playing an important role in the management and protection of the environment, long before the Central Environment Authority was established in 1981.

In fact before the Central Environment Authority was set up the main statutory authorities which looked after the environmental aspects of the community life locally were the Local Authorities, said Patrick Karunasinghe, Chairman Kurunegala PS.

He was addressing the Jana Hamuwa soon after he commenced the massive Sramadana project launched by the Environmental Protection Unit of the PS under the ‘Keep the Environment “Clean” the concept of the Chairman held at Goluwamulla-Thalampitiya village.

He said that at that time there was no need to pay special attention to environment’ as such.

However matters delated to environment were implemented through activities on environmental sanitation, public health, road development drainage, abatement of nuisance, physical planning, control and regulations of dangerous and offensive tracks, control of unauthorised constructions (etc).

Karunasinghe said during the last three decades, “environment”, has become a very important subject area which receives special attention not only at national level but also at regional and international levels.

He observed that with the establishment of the Central Environmental Authority in 1981, under the provisions of the National Environmental Act No. 56 of 1980 and a separate Cabinet Ministry for Environment in 1990 the role of Local Authorities in management and protection of environment, at local level was receiving more recognition.

A scheme of decentralisation of environmental functions, was formulated in 1993 and is being implemented, with the active participation of Local Authorities.

In order to facilitate and strengthen the environmental role of Local Authorities some of the powers, including the power to issue Environmental Protection Licences for low polluting industries, have been delegated to Local Authorities by the Central Environmental Authority in terms of section 26 of the National Environment Act.

Speaking on the observations of the Presidential Commission of Inquiry on Local Government Reforms, Chairman Karunasinghe said that the commission has observed that environmental matters form a part of the functions of local authorities.

The ultimate goal of the activities within the purview of the Local Authorities, namely, health, roads, disposal of garbage, cleanliness and drains, markets etc. is to build up a good environment conducive to the comfortable living of the people. Therefore Local Authorities cannot dissociate themselves even for a while from environmental activities, whatever institutions are set up for the purpose.

The very fact that some of the powers of the central environment authority have been delegated to Local Authorities shows that even those central organisations cannot directly perform functions independently dissociating form local authorities.