Another polythene ban

In Sri Lanka things often start with a bang but ends with a whimper. Projects and plans are announced with much fanfare by State functionaries but the enthusiasm and drive that was initially evident lose steam midway without any tangible result. One recalls the directive by the Transport Ministry not so long ago making it compulsory for motorists to obtain clearance certificate on pain of banning vehicles that emit foul smoke to the environment.

But today we see vehicles still chugging away issuing black smoke causing air pollution while the police look on helpless. We hope and pray that the latest edict issued by a State functionary would not suffer the same consequence.

According to Western Province Environment Minister Udaya Gammanpila the WP has decided to ban all polythene decorations in the Province. “Hereafter any decorations made of polythene will not be allowed at public places, he said addressing an Environment Day function. The Provincial Minister also rightly attributed the aggravation of the problem to politicians who use polythene on a large scale for election decorations.

He said the public in general were also not aware of the dire consequences of polythene use especially in the context of the phenomenon known as global warming.

Today at a time when the world is on the brink of an environmental catastrophe threatening entire civilizations due to global warming caused by greed of the industrial West a small country such as Sri Lanka could contribute in whatever small way if not to reverse the trend at least to delay the inevitable by taking whatever small measure necessary to save and protect our environment. In our own country too overemphasis on development and rapid urbanization has taken a heavy toll of our environment.

Time was when we had a pristine landscape where the gushing waterfalls, rolling streams and the verdant pastures drew even the envy of visitors from the west. However, today most of our waterways have run dry and the seasons become erratic due to the destruction of the country’s forest cover and the large scale encroachment of reserves.

In a timely move the Water Management Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva has ordered the eviction of all squatters near our reservoirs, who it is found have been clearing the surrounding jungles for Chena cultivation. Bold action is called for if we are to save the country from further environmental degradation.

Unlike most other politicians, Minister Gammanpila is known for his seriousness in any undertaking and someone who has the courage of his conviction. It is therefore hoped that he would take proper follow up action to ensure that the ban is strictly implemented. We say this because earlier there was a ban on the use of a specific texture of polythene. Even supermarkets were ordered to use a specific genre of polythene to minimise the ill-effects. It is not clear how far the ban was successful.

The polythene ban should be extended to all other provinces if we are going to avert serious environmental consequences.

The indiscriminate dumping of polythene in nature reserves as Horton Plains and places of popular pilgrim sites such as Sri Pada has also affected our bio diversity. It has also now come to light that the blockages caused by polythene played no small part in the recent flooding in the city on an unprecedented scale.

To follow up on the ban, a comprehensive program should be launched islandwide to educate the public on the dangers posed by polythene to our environment as well as the damage to biodiversity and the imbalance of nature.

Special awareness programs should be conducted in schools in this regard so that the younger generation would be fully apprised of the negative fall-out from polythene use. Above all, politicians should show the way by acting in an exemplary fashion and abiding by the law of the land with regard to polythene ban.