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Clinical waste washing ashore: Reasons yet unclear

21 Aug 2021

By Yumiko Perera Clinical waste items along with other waste material had washed up ashore in the Wellawatte beach over the past week, polluting the beach as well as the surrounding sea, The Sunday Morning learnt.   While separate investigations have been launched by the Central Environmental Authority (CEA) and the Marine Environment Protection Authority (MEPA), according to the Minister of Environment, it is still unclear as to how the clinical waste material had made it to the Wellawatte beach in the first place.   Speaking with The Sunday Morning, MEPA Chairperson Attorney-at-Law Dharshani Lahandapura stated that MEPA has launched a probe to determine how the waste material had made it to the beaches.  "The MEPA was notified that there is an accumulation of clinical waste along the Wellawatte beach, and I went there and inspected the situation myself. However, from what I witnessed, there was a very minimal amount of clinical waste, a few syringes here and there, but it is still uncertain whether these had been discarded after being used at a hospital or a medical institution, or if the syringes had been used for another purpose," she noted.  Waste through Wellawatte canal? Moreover, Lahandapura went on to state that the MEPA has reasons to believe that the waste material may have made it to the beach through the Wellawatte canal, eventually being released into the ocean, and ultimately making it to the Wellawatte beach, The Sunday Morning learnt. "We are still in the process of observing the situation and it is too early to give a concrete conclusion as to the origin of the source," Lahandapura noted.   Further adding that the clean-up of the waste material on the Wellawatte beach has commenced and that the MEPA has made great progress on that front, Lahandapura reiterated that the findings in this regard would be presented as soon as possible and that the situation is being monitored for the time being.  Ministry on the case Meanwhile, speaking with The Sunday Morning, the Minister of Environment Mahinda Amaraweera stated that following the incident, he had requested a comprehensive report from the Central Environment Authority (CEA) to be submitted in this regard.   "I received information that someone, a group, or an institution had discarded clinical waste on the Wellawatte beach, polluting not only the beach but the sea, and I have requested the CEA and MEPA to probe into the matter. Once the reports are submitted, we would let the media know," the Minister noted.   Puts public at risk Furthermore, if this has indeed been an instance where a medical institution or someone else had recklessly released clinical waste to the environment, they would be held accountable, the Minister of Environment reiterated.   "Clear-cut instructions have been given on the proper disposal of waste material, be it clinical waste, facemasks, or any other waste material. However, due to the ignorance of some individuals, there is a significant impact on both the environment as well as the health and the safety of the public, especially given the situation the country is facing at present," the Minister of Environment noted in conclusion.   Several attempts by The Sunday Morning to get in touch with CEA Chairman Siripala Amarasinghe and CEA Director General Hemantha Jayasinghe for more insight, proved futile.


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