Case Study: of the Negombo harbour free of polythene and plastic

The Negombo Harbour in Sri Lanka is one of the main destinations for the fishing industry in Negombo, which is considered a traditional fishing town in Sri Lanka. Thousands of boats go to sea from the harbour to fulfil the requirements of local and foreign fish market and the harbour can be identified as a main area that contributes towards the pollution of the ocean as a result of the usage of polythene and plastic in the fishing industry. Janathakshan’s project on No Polythene and Plastic was introduced to the Negombo harbour with the intent of helping different stakeholders including the Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, Harbour Cooperation, Marine Environment Protection Authority (MEPA), Negombo Municipal Council, Sri Lanka Navy, Coastal Guards and Multiday Boat Owners Association to better understand the crisis and the preventive measures that can be taken to curb the consequences.

The usage of polythene and plastic is very high among the fishing community. While at sea, fishermen use PET bottles to store water throughout their journey that is about 45 days. While at sea, they use polythene to wrap fish and cool with ice to reduce putrefaction.

Prior to the implementation of the project, the fishermen used to release all used PET bottles and polythene to the sea after consumption. On occasion, a small portion of the polythene used to wrap fish was sent to the Municipal Council along with the garbage and some were burned at night. After the project implementation, a PET bottle collector was established to collect PET bottles. Several meetings and campaigns were organised to educate and create awareness among fishermen into adopting these eco-friendly practices. Moreover, management was encouraged to sell polythene and plastic for recycling purposes. According to the interviewers, they have sold more than 5,000 kg of polythene at the price of LKR 40 per 1 kg during the last year thereby generating an additional income of LKR 200,000.

The project has been created many direct and indirect advantages for the people and also the environment. Both polythene and plastics are among the most versatile materials for all types of biomes and organisms especially in the sea. This project was addressed to reduce the negative consequences by enhancing bio productivity with minimum discharge of polythene and plastics.

After the establishment of bottle collector, within a span of 6 months management observed that fishermen bring back 50% of PET bottles without dumping it to the sea and put it into the collector.

The Sri Lankan Coastal Guard acts a main role with the evaluation process of plastic bottles before and after the journey of fisherman. Thus, this project was focused on the social development by promoting living standards of several people including workers in harbour, fisherman and polythene and plastic buyers.

Mr Saman Ranjith (54) and Mr Srikanthan (33) are two workers in the harbour who gained direct benefits from the project. Other than their duties, they clean the polythene by washing them with water before selling to the buyers. After selling they get an extra income of 10% of the money the management earns by selling polythene. According to the Mr Lal all the money that earned by selling polythene and plastic are collected to an account used by the Welfare Society in the harbour. If they have more money in the account they divide it among the staff members of the Harbour Cooperation at the end of the year.

Story by: Lakshitha Chathuranga/Senashia Ekanayake
Pictures by: Yasith Perera

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