Sri Lanka at risk of becoming a desert within 15 years - President

Sri Lanka is at risk of becoming a desert within the next 15-20 years if the country’s forest cover is not preserved, says President Maithripala Sirisena.

The president stated this addressing an event held at the Dunumadalawa Forest Reserve in Kandy yesterday (06).

The event was organized in view of the removal of pine trees in the forest reserve and commencement of local forest plantations.

Commenting further, President Sirisena said the forest cover in Sri Lanka, which is currently at around 28 percent, is decreasing annually by 1.5 percent.

If the forest cover continues to shrink, the country will inevitably become a desert within the next 15-20 years, the president emphasized.

He stressed that everyone should be unconditionally committed to preserving the forest cover in Sri Lanka for the country’s future generations.