The Hon. (Dr.) Dammika Patabendi - Minister of Environment
The Minister stated that the Central Environmental Authority granted Initial Environmental Examination approval for the farm in 2016, while its Environmental Protection Licence is issued by the BOI with CEA concurrence under Gazette No. 2265/18. He said the farm’s licence was last valid from January 2023 to January 2024, but CEA has not concurred in a further licence due to liquid and solid waste disposal issues. Following complaints and a media report alleging discharge into Keselgamu Oya, CEA and BOI agreed on directives, an action plan, joint inspections and water sampling, with possible legal action by BOI if required measures are not implemented.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 Hon. Speaker, the answers are as follows.
¶ 02 (a) (i) Initial Environmental Examination (IEE) approval was granted by the Central Environmental Authority (CEA) on 16.11.2016 (Ref. CEA/CPO/NW/OTHER/125/16). Under Gazette No. 2265/18, this farm requires an Environmental Protection Licence (EPL). As it operates under the BOI, issuance of the EPL is done by BOI with CEA concurrence.
¶ 03 (ii) IEE conditions included: - Wastewater: Channel liquid wastes (animal effluent and urine) to a biogas unit, and then treat effluent via an effluent treatment system; provide runoff/collection for wash-downs. - Solid waste: Manage via composting.
¶ 04 (iii) As per CEA concurrence letter CE/NW/PAW/08/BOI/80/2021 dated 31.01.2022, the BOI issued EPL CE/NW/GRID 22/LE-1991/23 valid 31.01.2023 to 30.01.2024. Currently, due to issues in liquid and solid waste disposal, the CEA has not concurred for a further EPL.
¶ 05 (iv) EPL issuance is by BOI; BOI conducts follow-up and guidance.
¶ 06 (v) Following a media report (08.01.2024) alleging discharge into Keselgamu Oya, a field inspection by the CEA Nuwara Eliya District Office (18.01.2024) observed potential discharge to the environment. The CEA Central Provincial Office informed BOI (31.01.2024). On 08.01.2026, CEA discussed complaints with BOI senior management and decided: 1) BOI to issue directives for pollution control; 2) BOI to obtain from the farm a proper action plan for a structured follow-up regime and ensure implementation; 3) Given multiple farms along Keselgamu Oya, BOI and CEA to jointly inspect, collect water samples, and take steps to control any ongoing pollution; 4) If the action plan is not implemented, BOI to initiate legal action.
¶ 07 (b) Not applicable.
Provenance
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- Hansard, Thursday, 22 January 2026 ·No. 23203 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Cite as: The Hon. (Dr.) Dammika Patabendi - Minister of Environment. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 22 January 2026. No. 23203. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/22435