Coastal Fishers Suffer Due to Pollution

There is serious difficulties faced by coastal fishers due to floating of aquatic weeds from the adjacent inland fresh water bodies. It is reported the Bolgoda lake in the Panadura area covered with Water Hyacinth[Japan Jabara] and these weeds floated to the sea with the floods which floated to the sea in Moratuwa and ajacent areas.
I quoted this from Daily Mirror today.

Fishermen in Moratuwa dismayed over aquatic weeds.


By Kassapa Ellepola
Local Fisher Communities in the Moratuwa area were dismayed over their failure to capture enough harvest as a result of a large amount of plants and aquatic weeds covering the sea bed making it difficult for fishermen to use their nets, disappointed fishermen stated.

Anil Nihal Fernando, a local fisherman said the recent heavy rain had washed all plants and other aquatic weeds (Japanjabara) in rivers and river beds to the sea where local fishermen were finding it extremely difficult to fish.

He said that this situation had directly put lives of around 1000 people and indirectly over 30,000 people in misery.

“We have been troubled for more than four days. We normally use 11 nets per day, but now we only can use around two nets per day and still many plants get tangled in the nets making it difficult to fish,” he said.


He said they had informed the officials to help them get rid of these plants and added that they were still waiting for a response from them.

“The fishing industry in the coastal area from Moratuwa to Panadura has been affected by these aquatic weeds. The fish are also leaving the waters and heading for other areas as there is not enough sunlight for them,” he added.

An officer attached to the Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources said this situation was experienced each year and these weeds would be washed away by the ocean currents.

( Daily Mirror Online - 23 November)


Herman Kumara, 23 November 2009