A petition has been filed requesting the Court of Appeal to order the government to draft a legal framework banning the import of garbage and waste materials to Sri Lanka.

The petition was filed by the Centre for Environmental Justice citing the Director General of Sri Lanka Customs, the Central Environmental Authority and the Attorney General as the respondents.

The petitioner says information has revealed that hundreds of containers containing waste materials imported from a foreign country are currently stockpiled in the island.

Pointing out that importing garbage from other countries is against the law, the Centre for Environmental Justice alleges that the authorities have not taken proper measures to identify the persons responsible for the relevant shipment.

The petitioner further pointed out that importing garbage to Sri Lanka is a massive detriment to the ecosystem of the country.

Hence the petitioner seeks the Appeals Court to order the Central Environmental Authority and Sri Lanka Customs to draft a legal framework to prevent such illegal shipment of garbage to Sri Lanka in the future.

The petitioner has further requested the Appeals Court to take necessary legal actions against the persons responsible for the relevant garbage shipment and to order the respondents of the petition to refrain from dumping the imported garbage stock to other places.