'Pick up your litter' say young zoologists, after clean-up project on Adam’s Peak

More than 300kg of plastics and polythene was collected from Adam’s Peak by the Young Zoologists' Association (YZA), in a waste collection and clean-up operation conducted on the last day of the Sri Pada season, which fell on Vesak day.

The collected waste material was handed over to the recycling centre maintained by the Central Environmental Authority (CEA), says YZA President Ishanda Senevirathne.

Being an area rich with many endemic fauna and flora species, Sri Pada's Peak Wilderness Nature Reserve had a truly fascinating ecosystem, which also held significant religious and cultural values.

Every year, Adam’s Peak was visited by thousands of local and foreign pilgrims.

Due to constant human activities, the area had been subjected to severe ecological degradation, and polythene and plastic dumping was a major issue.

A team of researchers from the YZA conducted a rapid survey at the trail to investigate harmful human activities, Mr Senevirathne told the Sunday Times. The team was able to identify deforestation, open burnings, littering, soil erosion, and water pollution among the threats caused by human activities.

Shops on the Adam’s Peak trail were identified using GPS markers, which were expected to be developed into a map that would facilitate future research, Mr Senevirathne said.

The YZA urged people to be responsible when visiting Adam’s Peak and take active measures to reduce the use of environmentally harmful substances. They also extended their gratitude to Unilever Sri Lanka for supporting the cleaning operation.