Proposed energy plans by SLSEA, CEB, and ADB endanger Mannar Island’s communities and biodiversity.
Published
It has been discovered through our studies that the people and the bio-community of the Mannar Island are faced with an enormous danger due to the wind power project plans that have been prepared jointly by the Sri Lanka Sustainable Energy Authority, the Ceylon Electricity Board and the Asian Development Bank. All the plans for wind power plants that have been prepared by these institutions have been based solely on the studies that were aimed at producing energy. When preparing those plans, no attention has been given to the future survival of the people living on the Mannar Island or to the survival of its bio-community as well as to the nature of the land use of the Mannar Island or the present national plans for it.
The Asian Development Bank has prepared the research reports that are required for making the Mannar Island a green energy hub considering that providing loan assistance is the number-one priority. Moreover, its key objective is to open up investment opportunities for companies to establish wind power projects on the Mannar Island. It is a serious gap that the Asian Development Bank, in its approach to sustainable energy, has not paid any attention to the Principle of Just Transition. Therefore, in making the Mannar Island a sustainable energy hub through wind power plants, attention has not been paid to its impacts on the fishing community, fishing resources, farming community, cultivated lands and its eco-systems. Not only that, the Asian Development Bank has prepared plans to make the Mannar Island a sustainable energy hub without paying any attention to the international conventions binding upon the biological community of the Mannar Island.
Violation of the Principle of Just Transition to clean energy
"Just transition to clean energy" is about ensuring fairness and equity while avoiding inequalities and negative impacts by focusing on the communities that get economically affected, displaced and deprived of rights in the transition to clean energy. Further, all the affected parties should be represented at the center of decision-making mechanisms of this transition.
This is a concept contained in the Paris Agreement. On 21 September 2016, Sri Lanka ratified the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, which was adopted by 196 member states at the 21st Conference of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change held in Paris, France, on 12 December 2015, and therefore, Sri Lanka should pay special attention to the conceptual principle of 'just transition' specifically contained in this agreement.
At the 26th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, a set of general principles related to 'just transition in accordance with the Paris Agreement' was declared. Accordingly, multilateral development banks including the Asian Development Bank have committed to protect the principle of climate change mitigation and just transition.
However, neither the Sustainable Energy Authority nor the Ceylon Electricity Board seems to be paying attention to these principles when Sri Lanka is shifting towards sustainable energy. Further, even the Asian Development Bank has not paid attention to this issue when providing loan assistance to make the Mannar Island a sustainable energy hub. As a result, the people of the Mannar Island are faced with a number of issues at present.
Plans of the Sri Lanka Sustainable Energy Authority to destroy the livelihoods and natural resources of the Mannar Island
After the Sri Lanka Sustainable Energy Authority declared the Mannar Island as an energy development area, the attention of investors was directed to the implementation of wind power projects in the Island that would affect the livelihoods of the people there. An area of 76.11 square kilometers of the Mannar Island, which is located within the Mannar Town Divisional Secretariat Division of the Mannar District, was declared as an Energy Development Area by Gazette Extraordinary No. 1858/2 dated 17th April 2014, which was published in terms of Section 12(1) of the Sri Lanka Sustainable Energy Authority Act No. 35 of 2007. The total land area of the Mannar Island is about 143.21 square kilometers, and accordingly, 53% of the total land area of the island has been declared as an Energy Development Area.
In declaring Mannar Island as an energy development area in this manner, the Sustainable Energy Authority has ignored many facts about the island. The population of the Mannar Island is about 66,087. More than 17,835 families live on this island, and there are about 12,840 housing units. Most of these islanders are engaged in the fishing industry and a large number of people are engaged in both agriculture and fishing. The Mannar Island is considered as the second largest fishing area in the Northern Province. Its annual average fish harvest is about 17,500 metric tons.
In addition to these livelihoods of the Mannar Island, there also are many natural ecosystems associated with. Many natural ecosystems such as mangrove forests, salt marshes, thorny scrub forests, coastal plant communities and sand dunes can be seen on this island. These natural ecosystems have been declared as protected areas under the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance. Under this, the seagrass beds, mudflats, coral reefs, sandbanks and reef ecosystems in the shallow sea area connected to the Mannar Island have been declared as protected areas.
The salt marshes and the mangrove ecosystems that extend along the southeastern edge of the Mannar Island have been declared as the Vankalai Sanctuary and have been given the protected status. This sanctuary, which is 4,839 hectares in extent, was declared by Gazette Extraordinary No. 1566/3 dated 8 September 2008 in terms of Sub-section 2(2) of the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance. Because of the ecological and biological values of this wetland sanctuary, the 4,839-hectare Vankalai Sanctuary was declared on 10 July 2010 as the internationally important fourth Ramsar Wetland in the country under the Ramsar Convention on the Wetlands of International Importance Especially as Waterfowl Habitats, which was adopted on 2 February 1971 to which Sri Lanka became a party on 15 June 1990. The lagoon and large shallow marine area of the Mannar Island connected to this sanctuary, which covers an area of 29,180 hectares, has been declared as the Vidatalthivu Nature Reserve by Gazette Extraordinary No. 1956/13 dated 01 March 2016 published in terms of Sub-section 2(1) of the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance.
Apart from that, a large area of mangroves, salt marshes, thorny scrub forests, sand dunes and shallow seas on the northwestern edge of the Mannar Island, which covers an area of 18,990 hectares, has been declared as the Adam's Bridge Marine National Park by Gazette Extraordinary No. 1920/03 dated 22 June 2015 in terms of Sub-section 2(2) of the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance.
This Marine National Park and Nature Reserve has been declared based on the Integrated Strategic Environmental Assessment Report for the Northern Province - 2014 under the financial assistance of the United Nations Development Programme and Environment Programme.
As per the Land Use and Land Cover of Sri Lanka Report published in 2019 by the Land Use Policy and Planning Department, the Mannar Island has salt marshes spread over 914 hectares and mangrove forests spread over 25 hectares. In addition to these, there are about 1,050 hectares of thorny scrub forests. Of these, the salt marshes and mangrove forests are breeding grounds for fish, crabs and shrimp species living in the shallow sea. The livelihood of the fishing community and the fishing industry on this island depend on these ecosystems.
There are about 20 long-net fishing piers on the coast around the Mannar Island. All of these piers are those that have been declared under the Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Act. This has not been taken into consideration when declaring energy development areas.
In addition to the fishing industry, people on this island also engages in agriculture as well. Cultivation of short-term crops including vegetable, peanut, and onion is widespread on this island. In addition to these, the islanders are engaged in many jobs related to the palmyrah industry, too.
While people of the Mannar Island have established their livelihoods in this manner, there are several long-term plans in place in order to provide them with a planned economy. Under these plans, the entire Mannar Island has been declared an urban development area by Gazette Extraordinary No. 759/1 dated 22 March 1993 in terms of the Urban Development Authority Act No. 41 of 1978 as amended. Accordingly, the Mannar Development Plan 2021 - 2030 has been prepared in terms of Sub-section 8(a) of this Act, and this plan has been published as an approved plan by Gazette Extraordinary No. 2236/24 dated 13 July 2021. Under this plan, the Mannar Island has been zoned, and its southern coast has been allocated for sustainable energy projects and the northern coast has been allocated for development of the fisheries industry.
It is regrettable that the Sri Lanka Sustainable Energy Authority has not realized that, by using a large area of land of an island with multiple uses and with approved plans for the future economic development of its people for the construction of wind power plants, the natural systems and the livelihoods associated with them will be destroyed and poverty will increase due to the collapse of development plans aimed at economic development of the people. The entire society agrees that meeting the energy requirement through wind power plants is a very correct method. However, the Sustainable Energy Authority has not realized that, if resorting to that method is done in a way that it results in harmful effects on the entire system, there is no use in generating sustainable energy in that manner. Thus, the people of the Mannar Island and its biological community have had to experience adverse impacts of these harmful sustainable energy generation plans of the Authority.
Plans of the Asian Development Bank that have destroyed the livelihoods and the biodiversity of the Mannar Island in violation of international conventions
The report for the Proposed Wind Farm in Mannar Area, which was prepared in 2012 under the Green Energy Development and Energy Efficiency Investment Programme of the Asian Development Bank revealed that wind farms could be constructed across the entire Mannar Island and 375 megawatts of electricity can be generated from that. The Environmental Impact Assessment Report prepared in 2017 for the $157 million loan from the Asian Development Bank for the construction of the 100 MW “Thambapawani” wind farm project on the southern coast of Mannar Island, too, has emphasized the potential for constructing a 375 MW wind farm on the Mannar Island.
When preparing these reports, the Asian Development Bank has violated a number of international conventions. Three conventions namely the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance Especially as Waterfowl Habitat, which was adopted on 2 February 1971, Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (Bonn Convention), which was adopted on 23 June 1979, and the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, which was adopted on 12 December 2015, have been violated. Moreover, the Prevention Principle or the Precautionary Principle, which is an international legal principle, has not been taken into account.
The high-voltage power transmission line system, which connects the electricity generated by the “Thambapawani” wind farm to the national grid, which was planned based on the preliminary studies, feasibility studies and loan assistance of the Asian Development Bank, has been constructed across the Vankalai International Ramsar Wetland in accordance with the agreements with the Asian Development Bank.
According to the findings of the studies that have been conducted by the Ceylon Bird Club since 1983, about 2 million coastal migratory wetland birds are reported to be living in the two main wetland systems, the Vankalai Sanctuary and the Vidatalthivu Nature Reserve connected to it located in the southeastern part of the Mannar Island and in the entire wetland system of the Mannar Island.
According to the report titled "Status of Water birds in Asia, Results of the Asian Water birds Census, 1987-2007" published by the Wetland International in 2009, the Mannar Island has been identified as one of the main areas with the highest number of wetland birds in the country.
Moreover, millions of wintering migratory birds from Northern Siberia arrive in Sri Lanka via the Central Asian Flyway, and a large number of them enter the country from Mannar Island. It is the first stopover for these migratory birds on their continuous flight. By constructing a wind farm system on such a unique island, the migration routes of these migratory birds have been completely obstructed and their feeding grounds have been degraded, and as a result, the birds that have migrated from the Arctic to the Antarctic for millions of years for wintering have lost their home within a very short period of time. The Asian Development Bank cannot shift from them the blame for planning and implementing such a massive and destructive project and for violating the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance Especially as Waterfowl Habitats.
In addition to these, the coastline around the Mannar Island is an area where three of the world’s eight species of sea turtles – the green sea turtle (Chelonia mydas), the hawksbill turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata) and the olive ridley sea turtle (Lepidochelys olivacea) – lay their eggs. The “Thambapawani” power plant project, which has been built along a 12.5 - kilometer stretch of coastline on the southern coast of the island with the assistance of the Asian Development Bank, has resulted in a rapid decline in the number of turtles reported to be coming to this beach to lay their eggs. Our studies have revealed that there are several reasons for this: the continuous noise of the wind turbines and the lighting of this area at night as well as the 14 - kilometer long road along the coastline to access the wind turbines have obstructed and fragmented the nesting areas of the turtles. As a result, turtles no longer use this beach for laying their eggs.
The Asian Development Bank has violated the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (Bonn Convention) by preparing the plan for the construction of wind farms that have caused the loss of habitats for turtles and migratory birds that migrate for wintering and by providing loans for implementing the plan.
When implementing the “Thambapawani” wind farm project, salt marshes, mangrove lagoons and 26 canals that connect them with the ocean have been filled and blocked in order to make way for the wind turbines and the road network that connects them. As a result, during the period when the Mannar Island receives the highest rainfall from the northeast monsoon, i.e. in the months of December, January and February, the surrounding villages get completely inundated as the natural flow of rainwater through the canals and lagoons have been blocked. Over the past few years, more than 400fishing families have been affected by continuous flooding. The people of this island get their daily water needs, including drinking water, fulfilled by obtaining water from wells. After these wells become submerged, it is costly to restore them. We have further discovered through our studies that, in addition to these stressful conditions, the wind farms also cause various obstacles to the fishing community in engaging in their fishing activities on the southern coast of the Mannar Island.
Accordingly, the “Thambapawani” wind farm project has deprived the people of the Mannar Island of the opportunity to free living, to live in a place of their choice, and to engage in a profession without being affected. It is a violation of the principle of 'just transition' as stated in the Paris Agreement on Climate Change. The Asian Development Bank cannot avoid responsibility for this damage either.
In the feasibility studies carried out by the Asian Development Bank for the wind farm project, they have failed to carry out an assessment about the possibility of causing obstructions to the migration routes of the migratory birds, the impact on the feeding grounds of coastal wetland birds, and the impact on the livelihoods of these islanders from the “Thambapawani” project. The Precautionary Principle is important for making predictions of any development process that may affect the continued, balanced existence of the environment and for preparing alternatives or mitigation measures or compensation methods. This principle was defined by the United Nations as Principle 15 of the Rio Declaration which was made at the Rio Conference on Environment and Development in 1992.
It states that, in cases where there are threats of serious or irreversible damage, no mitigation measures should be abandoned on the grounds of delay in taking action to prevent environmental damage, lack of capital or full scientific certainty, or gaps in information. This principle was given a broader interpretation at the 1998 Wingspread Conference on the Precautionary Principle. According to this interpretation, when an activity poses a threat of harm to human health or to the environment, precautionary measures should be taken even if a cause-and-effect relationship has not been fully established scientifically. In this context, the proponent of an activity, rather than the public, bears the burden of proof. The process of implementing the Precautionary Principle should be open, informed, and democratic, and should involve the parties likely to be affected. It should also include examining the full range of alternatives to a given action. By ignoring this, the Asian Development Bank has committed a historic mistake by endangering the survival of natural systems and the livelihood of the people.
As an institution that has been lending to this country since 1966, and has granted loans worth about USD 12.7 billion for 522 projects since its inception until the end of 2024, and as a development bank that has granted loans to 57 projects in the energy sector, the Asian Development Bank has a special responsibility for ensuring the future survival of Sri Lanka. They cannot commit such mistakes that destroy the future survival of the people and natural resources of the country. The reason for this is that the sustainable existence of the Asian Development Bank depends on the labour and taxes of the people and survival of the natural resources of this country.
The livelihoods on the Mannar Island are being destroyed by wind farms under the plans of the Asian Development Bank's
The Environmental Impact Assessment Report prepared for the first wind farm project on the Mannar Island under the technical guidance of the Asian Development Bank was opened for public comments in 2017. According to this plan, 56wind turbines were to be installed on the southern coast of the Mannar Island. However, following the advocacy of environmental organizations including the Ceylon Bird Club and the Center for Environmental Justice and by local residents, as well as the technical comments that followed, this project was implemented to generate 103.5 MW of electricity using 30 wind turbines with a capacity of 3.45 MW each on a 12.5 km long coastline from Thoddavelli to Palavi, at a distance of between 150 and 160 meters from the shore. It has been constructed in the Grama Niladhari Divisions of Thoddavelli, Thullukuduyiruppu and Kaddakarandiyiruppu on the Mannar Island.
The loan agreement for this project was signed with the Asian Development Bank on 22 November 2017. The total cost of this Project was USD 256.7 million, which was higher than the initial plan, and the construction work of the project was carried out with a loan of USD 200 million from the Asian Development Bank and the remaining USD 56.7 million from the Sri Lanka Electricity Board. Accordingly, this project named “Thambapawani”, was inaugurated on 08December 2020. The wind turbines for this project were supplied by a company named Vestas, a Danish wind turbine manufacturing company.
Initially, the public had been informed that about 1.5 acres of land would be used for the installation of one wind turbine, but at the time of implementation of this project, 6 acres of land had been acquired to install one turbine. A large area of land has been acquired along the southern coast of the island to construct the 14-kilometer long main road to access these turbines, and 26 canals that connect the lagoon system to the ocean have been blocked during this construction. Consequent to this, the system that existed for draining away the rainwater has been completely blocked, and it has not only created a flood threat, but also adversely affected the breeding process of fish species, crabs and shrimp species that come to the lagoon eco system from the shallow ocean to lay their eggs. According to the small-scale fishing community of the island, the fish harvest in the shallow sea has decreased significantly after the implementation of this project.
People have been deprived of a large area of land on the southern coast of the Mannar Island for the construction of wind turbines, access roads and high-voltage power lines connecting electricity to the national grid. This affects the current and the future livelihoods of the people. Without taking this situation into consideration, environmental impact assessment reports have been prepared for several other projects based on the plans made by the Asian Development Bank.
The Environmental Impact Assessment Report for the “Mannar Wind Power Project - Extension of Phase I” was opened for public comments in October 2022. According to this report, the total area of land that would be acquired for this project is 182 acres which consist of 139 acres of land for the construction of 21 wind turbines – 6.63 acres for each turbine – and 43 acres for the construction of 11.5 km of roads to connect these turbines. The southeastern part of the southern coast of the Mannar Island as well as an area extending about one kilometer inland from the coast.
Subsequently, the Environmental Impact Assessment Report titled “Proposed 250 MW Wind Power Project - Mannar Phase III” was opened for public comments in January 2024. According to this report, Adani Green Energy Sri Lanka Limited was set to implement this project in Mannar as an investment project worth USD 420 million. Under this project, it had been planned to generate electricity with 52 wind turbines of 5.2 megawatts each, and the turbines of this project were to be installed in the center and the northern coast of the Mannar Island. According to this project, about 7 acres of land are to be acquired for the installation of each turbine. Accordingly, it had been proposed to acquire 500 acres of land for the entire project. The investment company of this project has been the subject of intense controversy in the past, but this project plan has not been withdrawn yet.
Meanwhile, a project to generate 20 megawatts of electricity using 4 wind turbines is being implemented on the Mannar Island at present. However, there has been strong public opposition against this project recently due to the serious impact these wind farms would have on the Mannar Island.
This project is being implemented as an investment project of the Liege Capital Holding Pvt. Ltd, located at No. 66, Galpoththa Road, Nawala, Rajagiriya. It is being implemented as a project named Windscape Mannar of the Ceylex Renewables Pvt Ltd, which is associated with the said company. Rs. 6.5 billion has been obtained as a loan from the National Savings Bank and the Commercial Bank for this project.
No information has been published about the cabinet approvals or environmental approvals for this project, and it has been unable to obtain information about this project from government institutions. However, the relevant project is being implemented.
Illegal Wind Power Plant Project of the Hayleys Company is being Accelerated
Meanwhile, Hayleys Fentons Company (YHKEF) is taking steps expeditiously to commence a 50 MW wind power plant project on the Mannar Island. This Company is making arrangements to commence the construction work of this project stating that it is a USD 50 million investment project, that the formal agreement to provide electricity to the Ceylon Electricity Board at USD 4.65 cents per unit was signed at the Ministry of Energy on 28 May 2025, and that the Cabinet approval has been granted to this Company to implement this project at the Cabinet meeting held on 6 January 2025. Accordingly, Haywind One Ltd., a new company established under Hayleys Fentons Limited for this purpose, is preparing to carry out the construction work of the project. This is a fully owned subsidiary of Hayleys Ltd. This project consists of 10 wind turbines and it has been planned to complete the construction work within 18 months after the construction work has been commenced. About 70 acres of land will have to be acquired on the Mannar Island for the construction of the wind turbines for this project alone. In addition, more than 30 acres will have to be acquired further for the construction of access roads.
However, no environmental impact assessment report or environmental approval obtained for this project has been published. When examining the reports related to cabinet decisions, no evidence is found that such approval has been given. Despite this situation, on what basis the company signed the power purchase agreements with the Ceylon Electricity Board is questionable. Meanwhile, the President having discussions with the people's representatives and religious leaders of Mannar about the issue of the wind power plant and delaying the wind power plant project for a month and trying to resolve the issues makes it appear that this project is being implemented illegally. Moreover, it appears that attempts are being made to implement this project without proper environmental clearance or approval. In addition, it also appears that attempts are being made to hide the cabinet approval related to this project from the people. As far as all these facts are considered, it is apparent that efforts are being made to implement this project in violation of the fundamental rights of the people.
Legal framework related to wind farms on the Mannar Island
As there is a large coastal zone surrounding the Mannar Island, the Coast Conservation and Coastal Resources Management Act No. 57 of 1981, as last amended by Act No. 49 of 2011, is of vital importance in the construction of wind power plants on this Island. In terms of this Act, the approval of the Department of Coast Conservation and Coastal Resources Management is required for the construction of wind power plants in this coastal zone. According to this Act, Coastal Zone means "that area lying within a limit of three hundred metres landwards of the Mean High Water line and a limit of two kilometers seawards of the Mean Low Water line and in the case of rivers, streams, lagoons, or any other body 6f water connected to the sea either permanently or periodically, the landward boundary shall extend to a limit of two kilometers measured perpendicular to the straight base line drawn between the natural entrance points thereof and shall include the waters of such rivers, streams and lagoons or any other body of water so connected to the sea".
According to Sub-section 14(1) of this Act, no person shall engage in any development activity other than a prescribed development activity within the Coastal Zone except under the authority of a permit issued in that behalf, and in terms of Sub-section 16(1), the applicant may be required to furnish an environmental impact assessment relating to such development activity in order to get the approval for obtaining a permit under 40(1).
In terms of Section 26A, it has the power to stop any development activity that causes or is likely to cause damage to the coastal zone or its resources and in case of continuation of such activity, it has the power to issue an order temporarily suspending the relevant activity on an application made in a Magistrate's Court. In case of failure to comply with such order, a fine of Rs. 10,000 per day may be imposed and relevant action can be taken for contempt of court.
In addition to this, when constructing wind power plants in the land area outside the coastal zone of the Mannar Island, environmental approval should be obtained in terms of the National Environmental Act No. 47 of 1980 as amended by Act No. 53 of 2000. According to the provisions of Gazette Extraordinary No. 772/22 dated 24 June 1993 published under Section 23W of this Act, before using forests in an area of land exceeding one hectare for any non-forest related purpose or before constructing power plants exceeding 50 megawatts, environmental approval should be obtained for the same subject to the Environmental Impact Assessment process. Apart from that, since the Vankalai Sanctuary that has been declared under the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance is located on the south-eastern edge of the Mannar Island, according to the provisions of Gazette Extraordinary No. 859/14 dated 23 February 1995 published under Section 23X of the National Environmental Act, environmental approval should be obtained subject to the Environmental Impact Assessment process before implementing any type of development project within or within 100 meters from the boundary of a sanctuary.
In accordance with Section 23AA of the National Environment Act, in the event of an illegal implementation of a project without obtaining approval under the proper environmental impact assessment process, a person shall, on conviction before a Magistrate’s Court under Section 31 of the Act, be liable to a fine not exceeding Rs. 15,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 2 years or to both.
The legal provisions of the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance are important when establishing wind power plants on the Mannar Island as there are two national reserves declared under the Act No. 02 of 1937, namely the Vidatalthivu Nature Reserve and the Adam’s Bridge Marine National Park located on the south-eastern and north-western edges of the Mannar Island. In terms of Sub-sections 9A(1) and (2) of the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance No. 02 of 1937 as last amended by Act No. 07 of 2022, prior written approval of the Director General of Wildlife Conservation should be obtained before carrying out any type of development activity within one mile from the boundary of a Nature Reserve. Such approval should be obtained subject to the Environmental Impact Assessment process as stipulated in the National Environmental Act.
In addition to these acts and ordinances, in terms of the Project Procedure Orders No. 01 of 2000 published by Gazette Extraordinary No. 1152/14 of 04 October 2000 under Sections 43A and 47 of the Antiquities Ordinance No. 09 of 1940as amended, an archaeological damage assessment should be carried out and archaeological approval should be obtained before clearing areas exceeding one hectare for the implementation of a development project.
Many environmental crises arise due to the construction of wind power plants in violation of these acts and ordinances and the rule of law and many fundamental rights of the people of the Mannar Island have also been violated.
Depriving the people of Mannar of their rights through wind power plants
As provided in Article 27(14) of the Directive Principles of State Policy and Fundamental Duties section under Chapter 16 of the Constitution of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, “The State shall protect, preserve and improve the environment for the benefit of the community.” Accordingly, all state institutions are required to implement laws and regulations in order to protect, preserve and improve the environment. All state institutions are also obliged to make decisions that do not affect the survival of the environment. Not only that, it is stated in Article 28(f) under this Chapter that it is the duty of every person in Sri Lanka to protect nature and conserve its riches. Accordingly, every citizen has the power to intervene in protecting the environment, to direct state institutions to implement laws and policies for the same, and to implement laws for conservation as well as to take action against activities that cause damage to nature.
However, when implementing the wind power plant projects on the Mannar Island, the Sustainable Energy Authority or the Central Environmental Authority or the Department of Coast Conservation and Coastal Resources Management have not paid any attention to these provisions in the Constitution. Had they paid attention to those Constitutional provisions, the wetland systems and the people of Mannar Island would not have suffered such a tragic fate because of these wind power plants.
In terms of Article 12 of the Constitution of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, which relates to the Fundamental Rights set out in Chapter III, adjudication and implementation of the law and the protection of the law should be impartial. The wind power plant projects of the Mannar Island have deprived the fishing community and the islanders of the Mannar Island their fundamental rights of the right to information, the freedom of peaceful assembly, the freedom to engage in lawful occupation, profession and trade, and the freedom to reside in a place of their choice as enshrined in Article 14 of the Constitution. The people have been provided with false information in the preparation of environmental impact assessment reports for these wind power plants, true facts have been concealed, opportunities to express their views against these projects have been denied, opportunities to freely engage in the fishing profession have been denied by the obstruction of access roads to the beach, and the freedom to reside in a place of their choice has been denied due to the noise, vibration, and continuous shadows created by the rotation of the blades of wind turbines. Moreover, the people on the Mannar Island have also been deprived of their freedom to reside in a place of their choice due to the threat of flooding during the rainy season by the blockage of the canals on the island.
As a country that became a member of the United Nations in 1955, Sri Lanka is committed to protecting the human rights set forth in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which was adopted and proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly on 10 December 1948. Article 3 of this Universal Declaration states that everyone has the right to life; Article 7 states that everyone is equal before the law and is entitled without any discrimination to the protection of the law; Article 13 states that everyone has the right to freedom of expression within the borders of their country; Article 17states that everyone has the right to own property alone as well as in association with others; and Article 19 states that everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression and the right to receive and impart information and ideas without interference. However, the wind power plant projects have deprived the people of the Mannar Island of their right to live and residence due to the impact on their livelihoods including fishing, and due to the threat of floods and the oppression caused by the wind turbines. As a result, the people on this Island also losing their property rights, too. The people have also been restricted from obtaining information about any matter, including the approval, implementation, transfer of land, conditions given, and obtaining cabinet approvals for these projects. No government institution provides accurate information to the people about these projects. When protesting against these situations, people are arrested by the police and are subjected to court proceedings. All these are tragedies that these people have had to face due to the establishment of wind power plants. In this way, the people of Mannar Island have lost both fundamental rights and human rights due to these wind power plants.
Sustainable energy in the world, the World Bank and the future of the country
According to the Progress Report for 2024 of the Ministry of Energy, Sri Lanka's total electricity generation capacity by the end of 2024 is 5,841 MW. Out of this, the electricity capacity generated by sustainable energy sources such as hydropower, wind power, solar power, wood fuel, biofuels and municipal waste is 3,658 MW. This is as high as 63% of the total electricity generation. According to the Long-Term Generation Expansion Plan 2018-2037 of Ceylon Electricity Board, wind power and solar power will be the main sources of power generation in the renewable energy sector until 2037. Through this, the goal of reducing carbon dioxide emissions in the energy sector by 20% as per the Paris Agreement on Climate Change can be achieved easily.
The national electricity supply in Sri Lanka, which was 29% in 1990, has been able to be increased to 99.58% by 2018. The amount of carbon dioxide emitted per year in the generation of electricity in Sri Lanka is about 7 million metric tons. Out of the total of 16.7 million metric tons of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere from fuel combustion in this country per year, 44% is released from power generation. This is a very small amount of 0.05% compared to the amount of carbon dioxide emitted by the other countries in the world. The amount of carbon dioxide emitted by countries such as China, the United States and Japan per year is about 9,135 million, 5,176 million and 1,187 million metric tons respectively.
At present renewable energy is produced in the world by six renewable energy sources, namely sunlight, biofuels, geothermal energy, ocean waves, wind power and hydropower. According to the statistics of the International Renewable Energy Agency for 2025, the total renewable energy capacity in the world is 4.45 million megawatts. Out of this, 1.13million megawatts of power is generated by wind power plants and 1.87 million megawatts by solar power plants. By 2030, it is expected to generate 2.2 million megawatts by wind power plants and 7 million megawatts by solar power plants.
Accordingly, there seems to be a rapid development in these energy sectors. This can minimize the release of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere from the combustion of fossil fuels and thereby climate change can be controlled.
This is true, but the establishment of renewable energy plants in this country is taking place at the expense of the most sensitive ecosystems of forests, wetlands and shallow seas. It is a question of whether the expected benefits of renewable energy can be achieved through this. This not only sets the stage for climate change, but also undermines the country’s food sovereignty as many food production sectors, including agriculture, fisheries, and livestock, get affected due to the destruction of natural systems. The solution for this would be to increase food imports or to expand croplands to increase production, and to destroy forests and wetlands to facilitate that. This cycle continues resulting in a severe disaster for the country.
The report titled Offshore Wind Roadmap for Sri Lanka was published in June 2023 under the Offshore Wind Development Programme – World Bank Group of the World Bank. This report of the World Bank indicates that wind power plants can be installed in about 14,195 square kilometers of the shallow sea coast of the northern, western and southern parts of Sri Lanka and an electricity capacity of 56 gigawatts can be generated by them. However, this shallow sea coast is a region that is very rich in marine biodiversity. Marine ecosystems such as coral reefs, sandbars, reefs, seagrass beds, and mudflats are very abundant in such areas. These ecosystems act as breeding and feeding grounds for marine species of fish, turtles, and marine invertebrates such as shrimps and crabs. The fishing industry and the fishing industry based livelihoods of the fishing community, as well as the food sovereignty of the country depend on the existence of these ecosystems. These plans have put this entire system at risk of collapse.
Not only the Asian Development Bank but also the World Bank is rapidly pushing our country into the grip of the wind power market. It is necessary to take cheaper measures such as prevention of siltation of the reservoirs and development of water catchment areas not only for securing the existing sustainable energy sources of hydroelectric power generation but also for ensuring power generation, water security for agriculture and the people thereby minimizing climate change, for protecting the rights of the people and for ensuring biosecurity through the protection of natural ecosystems. However, the Asian Development Bank and the World Bank are working to deprive us of all these things by fastening us upon the energy market. Not only the officials, but also all the other parties involved have taken the present government into their grasp. They fail to understand this because the capture of the sustainable energy market is being carefully managed by the Asian Development Bank and the World Bank and sustainable energy companies. Attempts are being made to deprive the country of its energy sovereignty and to create a mechanism in which everything will be determined by the market companies. We, as a country, must try to prevent this from happening.
To enable this, the hydroelectric power system established in the country, which is operating on old, outdated technologies, must be made more efficient and updated. Moreover, wind power plants should be established only in suitable locations where the harmful impact will be minimum, and solar power plants should be established in soil mining areas, granite mining areas, and on the rooftop of houses and buildings. Construction of solar power plants on sensitive ecosystems including forests and wetlands and floating solar power plants on tanks or reservoirs must be stopped. Further, sustainable energy projects should not be implemented in an ad hoc manner creating conflicts between those projects and the people, and the benefits that can be obtained by establishing those projects in appropriate locations should not be deprived to the people by establishing them in inappropriate locations.
Map No. - 1
Wind power plants that have been built and proposed to be built covering the Mannar Island (Construction of power plants has been completed on the southern coast of the island)
Map No. - 2
How the migratory birds arriving in Sri Lanka via the Western Flyway enter the country through the Mannar Island
Map No. - 3
How the wintering migratory birds arrive in Sri Lanka via the Central Asian Flyway from Northern Siberia
Map No. - 4
Areas where the highest number of coastal birds is reported from.
Photo - 1
Turbines of the Thambapawani Wind Farm Project built on the southern coast of Mannar Island
Photo - 2
Hayleys Company and the Ceylon Electricity Board enter into an agreement for the purchase of electricity proposed to be generated by the wind farm project.
Sajeewa Chamikara
Movement for Land and Agricultural Reform