Environmental activist Sajeewa Chamikara has raised serious concerns over the large-scale wind power development projects currently underway on Mannar Island, stating that they pose significant risks to both the island’s human population and its ecologically sensitive environment.
Chamikara, representing the Movement for Land and Agricultural Reform, criticised the plans drawn up by the Sustainable Energy Authority (SEA), the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB), and funded by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), alleging they were developed with little regard for local livelihoods or environmental integrity.
“These wind power projects are designed solely with electricity generation in mind, with no meaningful assessment of the ecological or social consequences. Our research reveals that the ADB’s proposals prioritise private sector investment over a just transition to renewable energy,” Chamikara told The Island.
The activist pointed out that over 53% of Mannar Island was declared an “Energy Development Zone” in 2014, a move that has since triggered severe socio-environmental imbalances on the island — home to more than 66,000 people and a range of fragile ecosystems including mangroves, lagoons, and Ramsar-designated wetlands.
Chamikara alleged that the 100 MW Thambapavani Wind Power Project, along with its associated high-voltage transmission infrastructure, had already inflicted irreparable damage to critical habitats such as the Vankalai Ramsar Wetland, while also violating international environmental conventions, including the Ramsar Convention, the Bonn Convention on Migratory Species, and the Paris Agreement.
“The project’s Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) were deeply flawed. They failed to account for impacts on migratory birds, nesting turtles, wetlands, and local fishing communities. The result has been ecosystem destruction and rising social unrest,” he noted.
He also accused companies such as Hayleys Fentons and Liege Capital Holdings of pushing forward with new wind power developments without proper environmental approvals or Cabinet-level transparency, in violation of national legislation including the National Environmental Act, the Coastal Conservation and Coastal Resources Management Act, and the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance.
Chamikara has called on the government and the ADB to immediately suspend all ongoing and proposed wind energy projects on Mannar Island until a comprehensive, independent, and participatory environmental review is conducted.
“Renewable energy is essential but it cannot come at the cost of the very ecosystems we depend on. We need clean power, but not through dirty processes,” he said.
Leave a comment