Deforestation is clearing Earth's

forests on a massive scale, often

resulting in damage to the
quality of the land.
SOME FACTS ABOUT THE CAUSES OF
DEFORESTATION

There are many root causes to deforestation which

include globalization, urbanization and corruption.
The largest direct cause to deforestation is
agriculture. (Subsistence farming 48%, commercial
agriculture 32% , logging 14%, fuel wood
removals 5% )
Wild fires and over grazing are some of the more
unintentional causes of deforestation.
 Deforestation is one of the main causes which enhance the
greenhouse effect.
Tropical deforestation is responsible for approximately 20%
of world greenhouse gas emissions.
Ground water which is extracted by the trees are cut down, it
results to a drier climate.
Deforestation increases the amount of soil erosion by
increasing the amounts of soil lost and decreasing the amount
protected.
The destruction of forests also lead to the threat
endangering different species of plants and animals.
It has been estimated that we are losing 137 plant, animal
and insect species every single day due to rainforest
deforestation
 HABITAT LOSS
GREEN HOUSE
EMISSIONS

Soil erosions

Drier climates
 DEFORESTATION IN SRI LANKA

Deforestation is one of the most serious environmental

issues in Sri Lanka. In the 1920s, the island had a 49
percent forest cover but by 2005 this had fallen by
approximately 20 percent. However with a long history of
policy and laws towards environmental protection,
deforestation rates of primary cover have actually decreased
35% since the end of the 1990s thanks to a strong history
of conservation measures.
 SOME FACTS ABOUT THE CAUSES
DEFORESTATION IN SRI LANKA

Increase in population.
Utilization of resources of man.
More industrialization.
Direct felling of trees by people.
Timber used for industries.
Wood used as fuel.
For medicinal herbs.
Use of forests as a source of income.
Clearing forests for slash and burn cultivation.
Construction of roads, electricity lines, dwellings, etc.
Insect hazards.
Natural disasters e.g. forest fires, land slides, storms etc.
 INDUSTRIALIZATION

GLOBALIZATION

FOREST FIRES
CUTTING DOWN TREES
 STEPS TAKEN IN THE CONSERVATION OF FORESTS
IN SRI LANKA

Maintenance of national forest reserves to establish the

continuation of life of the surface of the earth.
Under the participatory forest project, planting is done in 12
districts with government aid. Fruits and timber in private lands jak
and cashew are grown under forest cover.
Protection of slopes through replanting of forests :- pines, albecia,
and eucalyptus in the wet zone; planting teak in the dry zone; forest
plantations on the upper mahaweli, uda waluwa and naula hills.
Make use of SALT method in cultivation of slopes protection of
coastal mangroves and protection of wetlands.
Making people aware about the results of destruction of forests.
MAJOR PROJECTS UNDERTAKEN
IN SRI LANKA AGAINST
DEFORESTATION.

1.CTC
2.RUK RAKA GANNO
In the late 1980’s CTC undertook the initiative to combat deforestation through the
planting of Eucalyptus trees. As firewood was once used to cure tobacco leaves, CTC
took on the environmental responsibility of maintaining the natural forest cover and
biodiversity of the land through this pioneering project.
They have launched this variation of life forms within a given ecosystem what is
called biodiversity and it is often used as a measure of the health of biological
system – in the tobacco growing areas of the Central Province which includes Naula,
Galewela, Hewaheta and Walapane.
In this manner they are growing around one million trees in over 1,250 acres of
land. CTC’s biodiversity project receives technical expertise from International
organizations such as Earth watch Europe, Fauna and Flora International, the Royal
Botanical Gardens Kew and the Tropical Biology Association.
The tree Society was formed in 1975 to create environmental Awareness of the
value of trees and forests. Today, it is firmly committed to the conservation of
forests and biodiversity and an appreciation and conservation of the fauna and
flora particularly the trees of this country. They work mainly with rural people who
live close the forests.
Ruk Rakaganno has been lobbying policy makers since 1975 on Environmental
matters and works closely with the Forest Department. he Organization has
considerable experience in conducting workshops, Seminars, Tree planting
programs in the provinces and has links with rural NGOs.
Ruk Rakaganno formed the Women's Environment Centre in 1992 in order to give
a voice to the concerns of rural women at the rapid loss natural resources
particularly due to deforestation.
 RECYCLING

The average paper consumption per person in Sri

Lanka is about 7 kg per annum out of which only 2
kg is collected for recycling. Most government,
commercial and financial institutions presently
dispose their confidential documents and paper
waste by burning or dumping as garbage. Neptune
Papers came forward offering institutions a FREE
document shredding service which ensures security
of confidential document disposal without the need
of destroying documents through burning, thereby
reducing pollution & saving the felling of trees and
protecting the environment. This endeavor has
resulted in wide spread support which has resulted
shredding over 2,500,000 kg of confidential
documents per annum.
 Elephant dung is a renewable source of raw material,
unlike wood pulp, the traditional raw material for
paper, which denudes forests. This makes it an
environmentally responsible alternative to ordinary
paper.
Elephant dung is a waste product and is free. Making
paper from it makes good business sense.
Such paper is made in places like Sri Lanka and
Thailand where elephants are often viewed as
agricultural pests. Making paper from their dung
enables locals to see elephants as assets rather than
liabilities. In fact, many elephant reserves in these
countries are using the income from elephant dung
paper to support their elephant conservation efforts.
 ELEPHANT DUNG PAPER

SHREDDING
SALMAN ILHAM ABUBAKAR
ROYAL COLLEGE
slmnilham@yahoo.co.uk