The lesser of two evils

Tuesday, 5 June 2012 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

UNWISE policies can result in chaos, yet that does not prevent their adoption. Cabinet approval was given a few weeks ago to end permits for transportation of sand. The Cabinet paper was ironically submitted by the Environment Minister, resulting in a massive boost to illegal sand mining.

It was reported recently that illegal sand mining has increased following the Government’s decision to cancel sand transportation licences, despite Sri Lanka being a signatory to protect the environment and with the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development taking place later this month.

The Government explanation hinged on the fact that massive corruption took place in allocating said licenses and therefore making transportation free would result in a boost to the local building industry. Corruption exists in most forms of society in Sri Lanka, but that does not mean one can cut off the nose to spite the face. Instead of reducing illegal sand mining, it has in fact increased exponentially with legal sand miners seeing their income decrease radically.

Illegal sand miners were arrested in Deduru-Oya on Friday by officers attached to the Kurunegala branch of the Bribery and Corruption Commission under the supervision of Kurunegala Division Police Superintendent Cecil de Silva. At the time of the arrest three backhoes used for sand mining and large piles of sand had been confiscated, while Police said that due to the use of heavy machinery, the river banks had eroded. Police had also found 25 lorries ready to transport sand to various parts of the country.

The illegal sand mining had been coordinated by a wealthy businessman in the Mawathagama area, reports said. Due to the relaxing of sand transport laws, sand that is mined illegally can now be lawfully transported throughout the country. This is simply one instance of how ill-thought-out policies have destroyed the environment of Sri Lanka.

With the increase in illegal sand mining, their legal counterparts are seeing their incomes vanishing. Newspaper reports have quoted that three cubes of sand, which could previously be sold for Rs. 10,000,, now fetch a price of Rs. 6,500. One can argue that this is good for the consumer, but there can be little to gain for the environment.

Illegal sand mining causes deep and long lasting issues not just for the communities the rivers support, but also the rest of the country. Low water quality, floods, degradation and loss of fish, dwindling marine life and loss of habitats are just a few of these consequences. Basic results that the Environment Minister would know if he had bothered to consider them before presenting the Cabinet paper.

The Kelaniya River has also faced deep environmental issues, with the latest being a scramble to mine gold along its shores. Previously, the unlicensed gold mining led to massive environmental damage as people employed by unscrupulous businessmen used mercury to bind tiny particles of gold into larger nuggets and then released the contaminated sand back into the river.

Licensing is a deeply corrupt practice in Sri Lanka but its presence is useful as a containment mechanism. Flawed as it is, licensing is the lesser of two evils in Sri Lanka and is needed to keep the larger floodgates of corruption, mismanagement and wastage at least partially closed.