Save coconut industry

So the Government has at last banned the felling of coconut trees with a view to arrest the decline in the coconut crop and the attendant high prices of coconuts in the local market. This step was long overdue given the fate that has befallen our coconut industry in general and coconut plantations in particular. Today coconuts that were in abundance is fast becoming a luxury with reports of the coconuts being rationed in some areas. Hence the decision of the Government to ban the felling of coconut trees is a prudent move in the interim. More concrete steps will be needed if we are to save the coconut from becoming extinct in this country.

Addressing a media briefing Coconut Development and Janatha Estate Development Minister Jagath Pushpakumara said in future the approval of the Coconut Cultivation Board would have to be sought for felling of coconut trees. Even though this amounts to a case of closing the stable doors once the horse has fled the move could serve as a first step in salvaging what is left of our coconut plantations not to mention a national heritage.

Today one has only to drive along the coastal stretch leading to Chilaw and Puttalam to witness the massive devastation caused to once rich and fertile coconut plantations. One can encounter only a barren landscape stretching mile after mile. The once lush coconut plantations have made way for housing schemes, factories and even tourist hotels. What is left is also gradually being denuded and earmarked for similar purposes.

The receding coconut plantations had been a gradual process. It would be correct to state that this phenomenon began with the open economy and the resultant demand for space for commercial purposes. Today one could see large-scale factories occupying once verdant coconut lands.

The high fertilizer costs had also made owners of coconut estates to sell these lands or parcel them out for housing schemes where each unit could be sold at a huge profit. Not only in the coastal areas this phenomenon could also be witnessed in the entire North Western Province that make up the coconut triangle which if not arrested quickly would lead to the country very soon being denuded of all coconut plantations making extinct not only an integral part that make up traditional Lankan cuisine but also an item intrinsic to our culture and ethos.

While banning the felling of coconut trees is a prudent move to deal with the immediate crisis, attention should also be focused on replanting. All barren coconut land should be replanted with special incentives given to their owners. Now that felling of coconut trees are being banned they would readily grab the opportunity of turning these plantations to be profitable, leading to increased production.

Coconut land that are neglected or abandoned should be acquired by the Government and proper attention given to produce higher yields. The increase in the production of local liquor with the population increase is also one of the reasons for the short supply of coconuts in the local market. It would therefore not be out of place to slap an extra levy on such liquor products and the income used towards developing the coconut industry.

Desperate measures are called for to arrest the high price of coconuts in the local market which in some areas are as high as Rs 60 a nut. Therefore there is need to save what remains of the coconut crop to cater to the ever increasing consumer demand. In this context it would also not be out of place to ban the plucking of young coconuts, kurumba, which is a popular pastime of village youth. Desperate situations they say calls for desperate measures.

Today not only coconut plantations there is rapid denuding of all existing land of their trees and vegetation. Among these are the all important forest cover that has not only caused the drying up of waterways and canals but has also led to the present human-elephant conflict that has assumed serious proportions.

As with the case of coconut plantations the main reason for this too is greed. This has not only led to ecological imbalance but also resulted in economic consequences as the present coconut crisis has demonstrated. Therefore urgent action is needed for saving the country from being turned into a veritable desert by putting a halt to all indiscriminate felling of trees and the destruction of forest cover.

During the tenure of the United Front Government in the '70s a ban was imposed on the felling of jak trees in household premises. Such curbs are needed in the present day if we are to bequeath this country as our fathers and forefathers knew it to the next generation. If need be, stringent laws should be introduced to deal with the situation. This and other drastic measures are the only way to prevent this country from being turned into a barren wasteland.