O
the
d y
plai s
a ou d
Hamba tota,
the
vegetatio
ca
look
u ema kable
at
fi st
gla ce.
Tho y
sc ub,
patches
of
g ass
a d
scatte ed
t ees
cove
la d
that
has
al eady
bee
eshaped
by
fa ms,
oads
a d
la ge
i f ast uctu e
p ojects.
Yet
this
ough-looki g
la dscape
is
pa t
of
the
eve yday
a ge
of
hu d eds
of
S i
La ka
elepha ts.
They
feed
he e,
move
th ough
it
a d
use
its
emai i g
wate
sou ces
as
they
c oss
a
la dscape
i c easi gly
sha ed
with
people.Now
pa ts
of
that
habitat
a e
bei g
clea ed
fo
a
pla ed
sola
e e gy
pa k.
Seve tee
sepa ate
p ojects
a e
bei g
developed
i
the
same
wide
a ea,
each
assessed
i dividually.
That
has
aised
a
difficult
questio :
what
happe s
whe
a
collectio
of
small
p ojects
becomes
o e
la ge
developme t
f om
the
elepha t’s
poi t
of
view?
Hamba tota’s
sola
ambitio s
collide
with
the
habitat
eeds
of
400
elepha ts
Hamba tota
sits
i
S i
La ka’s
elatively
d y
southe
zo e,
whe e
ai fall
is
lowe
a d
su light
is
ple tiful.
Those
co ditio s
make
it
a
att active
locatio
fo
sola
ge e atio .
The
dist ict
al eady
hosts
e ewable
e e gy
facilities,
a d
the
gove me t
is
looki g
to
expa d
elect icity
p oductio
f om
sou ces
that
ca
educe
elia ce
o
impo ted
fossil
fuels.But
the
sc ub
fo ests
a d
g assla ds
that
make
the
a ea
useful
fo
sola
developme t
have
a othe
fu ctio .
Elepha ts
eat
the
vegetatio .
They
move
betwee
patches
of
sc ub,
g assla d
a d
wate ,
ofte
t avelli g
beyo d
the
bou da ies
of
fo mally
p otected
wildlife
a eas.
As
epo ted
by
The
Su day
Times
S i
La ka,
i
Hamba tota,
mo e
tha
400
elepha ts
a e
estimated
to
depe d
o
this
mixtu e
of
habitats.Fo
people
livi g
ea by,
that
elatio ship
has
become
i c easi gly
difficult.
Whe
feedi g
a eas
disappea
o
outes
a e
blocked,
elepha ts
do
ot
simply
va ish
f om
the
la dscape.
They
ca
tu
up
i
cultivated
fields,
villages
a d
eve
built-up
a eas
i
sea ch
of
food
a d
space.
Elepha t
habitat
lost
i
Hamba tota
The
dist ict
has
u de go e
substa tial
cha ge
ove
the
past
few
decades.
Po ts,
ai po ts,
oads,
ag icultu e
a d
settleme ts
have
take
ove
pa ts
of
the
fo me
wilde ess.
As
epo ted,
almost
8,100
hecta es
of
elepha t
habitat
have
bee
lost
to
majo
developme t
i
the
egio ,
acco di g
to
co se vatio ists.
Global
Fo est
Watch
data
also
i dicate
that
Hamba tota
lost
about
5,900
hecta es
of
t ee
cove
betwee
2001
a d
2024.T ee
cove
figu es
do
ot
tell
the
whole
sto y,
though.
Much
of
the
la dscape
used
by
elepha ts
is
ot
de se
fo est.
D y
sc ub
a d
ope
g assla ds
ca
appea
deg aded
to
people
looki g
fo
la d
to
develop,
while
still
p ovidi g
food
a d
moveme t
space
fo
wildlife.Co se vatio
scie tist
P ithivi aj
Fe a do,
who
has
studied
the
moveme ts
of
elepha ts
i
the
egio ,
says
the
sc ub
vegetatio
is
a
t aditio al
feedi g
habitat
fo
elepha ts
livi g
i
S i
La ka’s
d y
zo e.
Clea i g
it
ca
the efo e
emove
useful
habitat
eve
whe
the
la d
does
ot
esemble
the
lush
fo ests
that
a e
usually
associated
with
wildlife
co se vatio .A
elepha t
that
loses
o e
feedi g
a ea
may
have
to
t avel
fa the
to
fi d
a othe .
If
fe ces
o
othe
developme ts
i te upt
its
usual
oute,
the
a imal
ca
be
pushed
towa ds
fa mla d
a d
settleme ts.
I
a
dist ict
al eady
st uggli g
with
huma -elepha t
co flict,
that
ca
c eate
a othe
poi t
of
f ictio .
Hamba tota’s
150MW
sola
pla
aises
elepha t
habitat
co ce s
The
p oposed
developme t
is
expected
to
p oduce
a ou d
150
megawatts
of
elect icity.
It
is
ot
bei g
p ese ted
as
o e
e o mous
p oject
o
pape ,
howeve .
I stead,
the
sola
pa k
is
divided
i to
17
smalle
u its
bei g
developed
by
diffe e t
compa ies.U de
S i
La ka’s
e vi o me tal
app oval
system,
la ge
developme ts
ca
equi e
a
mo e
comp ehe sive
e vi o me tal
impact
assessme t,
while
smalle
schemes
may
go
th ough
a
i itial
e vi o me tal
exami atio .
The
i dividual
sola
p ojects
i
Hamba tota
eceived
app ovals
th ough
the
latte
oute,
acco di g
to
e vi o me tal
campaig e s.
Each
p oject
could
the efo e
be
co side ed
withi
its
ow
footp i t.A
he d
does
ot
stop
at
the
edge
of
o e
developme t
because
the
ext
pa cel
has
bee
assig ed
to
a othe
compa y.
Fe ces,
clea ed
vegetatio ,
access
oads
a d
othe
i f ast uctu e
ca
collectively
alte
how
a imals
move
th ough
a
much
la ge
a ea.Hema tha
Witha age
of
the
Ce t e
fo
E vi o me tal
Justice
a gues
that
this
combi ed
effect
should
have
bee
assessed
as
a
whole.
The
p ojects
a e
ow
bei g
developed
alo gside
o e
a othe ,
a d
togethe
they
could
clea
about
202
hecta es
of
sc ub
habitat,
he
says.The e
is
a
fu the
figu e
f om
the
commu ity
campaig
that
is
la ge
still.
Sajeewa
Chamika a
of
the
Moveme t
fo
La d
a d
Ag icultu al
Refo m
says
as
much
as
405
hecta es
of
elepha t
habitat
could
ultimately
be
affected
by
the
wide
clea a ces.The
diffe e ce
eflects
the
way
the
p oject
a ea
a d
its
impacts
a e
bei g
cou ted.
Eithe
way,
the
dispute
is
ot
simply
about
a
few
isolated
sola
i stallatio s.
S i
La ka’s
2021
elepha t
a ge
was
c eated
to
p otect
vital
habitat
S i
La ka
i t oduced
the
co cept
of
Ma aged
Elepha t
Ra ges
to
deal
with
p ecisely
this
p oblem:
elepha ts
do
ot
live
exclusively
i side
atio al
pa ks
a d
othe
p otected
a eas.
The
app oach
was
i cluded
i
the
cou t y’s
elepha t
co se vatio
policy
i
2006.
It
ecog ised
that
la ge
umbe s
of
elepha ts
occupy
la dscapes
whe e
people
also
fa m,
build
homes
a d
ca y
out
othe
activities.The
aim
was
ot
to
f eeze
these
a eas
completely.
Huma
activity
could
co ti ue,
but
la d
use
was
supposed
to
be
ma aged
i
a
way
that
etai ed
habitat
a d
co ectivity
while
educi g
co flict.
Scie tists
used
adio
colla s
o
elepha ts
i
2010
to
u de sta d
whe e
diffe e t
he ds
moved
a d
which
a eas
they
depe ded
o .
Those
obse vatio s
helped
ide tify
the
la dscape
that
should
fo m
the
Hamba tota
Ma aged
Elepha t
Ra ge.
It
took
mo e
tha
a
decade
fo
the
a ge
to
be
fo mally
decla ed.Whe
it
was
gazetted
i
2021,
the
desig ated
a ea
cove ed
23,746
hecta es,
with
a
sepa ate
866-hecta e
allocatio
fo
Mattala
I te atio al
Ai po t.
The
effective
MER
a ea
was
the efo e
about
22,880
hecta es.Fe a do
says
that
was
al eady
smalle
tha
the
la dscape
o igi ally
ide tified
as
ecessa y
fo
elepha t
ma ageme t.
Some
a eas
used
by
elepha ts
had
bee
left
out
because
developme t
i te ests
we e
give
p io ity.
Hamba tota’s
sh i ki g
elepha t
a ge
is
aisi g
fea s
fo
fa me s
Co se vatio ists
say
pa ts
of
the
a ge
have
bee
alte ed
ove
time,
i cludi g
du i g
the
co st uctio
of
bou da y
fe ces.
Fo
them,
the
issue
is
ot
simply
that
the
MER
is
smalle
tha
o igi ally
p oposed.
It
is
that
a eas
that
elepha ts
co ti ue
to
use
may
g adually
fall
outside
the
p actical
p otectio
offe ed
by
the
desig atio .Some
of
the
la d
ow
bei g
clea ed
fo
sola
developme t
is
said
to
ove lap
with
a eas
that
we e
pa t
of
the
o igi al
p oposals
fo
the
a ge.
Chamika a
says
co ti ued
e c oachme t
has
al eady
squeezed
elepha ts
i to
smalle
a eas.
Clea i g
a d
fe ci g
those
emai i g
patches
could
leave
the
a imals
with
fewe
optio s
fo
movi g
betwee
feedi g
g ou ds.
Fa me s
livi g
alo gside
the
a ge
a e
watchi g
this
closely.
