• Supun Prakash on how deforestation is fuelling Sri Lanka’s human-elephant crisis

As Sri Lanka joined 140 other nations in voting for a landmark United Nations resolution affirming that states have a legal obligation to address climate change, environmentalists welcomed what appeared to be a strong commitment to climate justice.

Yet thousands of kilometres away from the halls of the UN General Assembly, a different story continues to unfold.

Across parts of Hambantota and Ampara, forests and grasslands that sustain some of Sri Lanka's most important elephant populations are under increasing pressure from land clearing and agricultural expansion. For conservationists, this contradiction raises a pressing question: how can a country pledge climate action internationally while allowing the destruction of ecosystems that act as both carbon sinks and wildlife refuges?

According to elephant researcher and conservationist Supun Lahiru Prakash, the consequences of these decisions extend far beyond biodiversity loss.

“The climate crisis and the human-elephant conflict are often discussed as separate issues, but in reality they are deeply interconnected,” he said. “When we destroy forests and grasslands, we are not only displacing wildlife. We are weakening the country’s natural ability to cope with climate impacts.”

The cost of losing Wattamadu

One of the most contentious proposals concerns approximately 4,000 acres of the Wattamadu grasslands in Ampara, a landscape that supports around 350 wild elephants.

For Prakash, the outcome of converting the area into agricultural land is highly predictable.

“If those grasslands are handed over for cultivation, the immediate result will be habitat loss for the elephant population that currently depends on that ecosystem,” he explained. “These animals cannot simply disappear. They will be forced to move into surrounding areas where people live and farm.”

The result, he warned, would almost certainly be an escalation of human-elephant conflict.

“When elephants lose access to their feeding grounds and movement corridors, they begin searching for resources elsewhere. That often means entering agricultural lands and villages. As a consequence, crop damage increases, property damage increases, and unfortunately injuries and deaths among both humans and elephants become more likely.”

Sri Lanka already records some of the highest human-elephant conflict fatalities in the world. Prakash believes continued habitat fragmentation risks pushing the crisis to even greater levels.

“In practical terms, we are creating conditions that make conflict inevitable. It becomes a predictable outcome of poor land-use decisions.”

Hambantota’s shrinking elephant landscape

The situation is not confined to Ampara.

Recent reports have highlighted extensive land clearing in areas such as Seenukkugala, Orukengala and Kapapuwewa near the Hambantota Managed Elephant Reserve, where large tracts of elephant habitat have reportedly been converted for development projects.

Prakash said these areas form part of a broader ecological network essential for elephant survival.

“Elephants require large landscapes. They move across extensive ranges in search of food, water and mates. When habitat is fragmented piece by piece, it may seem insignificant in isolation, but collectively it disrupts entire elephant populations.”

He compared the process to removing pieces from a complex machine.

“Every forest patch, grassland and corridor performs a function. Once those components are removed, the entire system begins to fail.”

Nature’s first line of defence

Beyond wildlife conservation, Prakash argues that protecting forests and grasslands is also critical for climate resilience.

The devastation caused by Cyclone Ditwah offered a stark reminder of how vulnerable Sri Lanka has become to extreme weather events.

While climate change is increasing the intensity and unpredictability of storms, healthy ecosystems continue to provide natural protection against their impacts.

“Forests are not simply collections of trees,” Prakash said. “They regulate water flows, stabilise soil, reduce erosion and help absorb excess rainfall during extreme weather events.”

When these ecosystems are removed, the effects can be severe.

“The loss of forest cover increases the likelihood of flooding, landslides and soil degradation. During major rainfall events, there is less natural capacity to slow water movement across the landscape.”

Grasslands perform a similarly important function, particularly in dry-zone ecosystems.

“Grasslands are often overlooked because people tend to focus only on forests,” he said. “But they are equally important ecological systems. They support biodiversity, maintain hydrological processes and provide feeding grounds for wildlife.”

The destruction of such habitats, he argues, weakens the country's natural defences just as climate-related disasters are becoming more frequent.

A contradiction in climate policy

Sri Lanka's support for the UN climate resolution and its Nationally Determined Contributions under the Paris Agreement signal an official commitment to increasing forest cover and improving climate resilience.

However, Prakash believes these commitments must be matched by action on the ground.

“There is a growing disconnect between what is being promised internationally and what is happening domestically,” he said.

“If we genuinely accept that climate change is a national priority, then protecting forests, grasslands and elephant habitats must be treated as a national priority as well.”

For him, conservation is not merely about protecting wildlife.

“These ecosystems are part of the country's life-support system. They provide water security, climate regulation, disaster risk reduction and livelihoods. Their value extends far beyond biodiversity.”

The domino effect

Prakash describes the relationship between deforestation, climate vulnerability and human-elephant conflict as a cascading ecological domino effect.

The clearing of forests leads to habitat loss. Habitat loss drives elephants into human settlements. Conflict escalates. At the same time, the removal of natural ecosystems increases exposure to floods, droughts and extreme weather.

“What we're seeing is not a series of isolated environmental problems,” he said. “They are interconnected consequences of the same decisions.”

As Sri Lanka seeks to position itself as a supporter of climate justice on the international stage, Prakash argues that the country's greatest test lies much closer to home.

“Climate action cannot exist only in speeches, policies or votes at the United Nations,” he said. “It must be reflected in how we manage our forests, our grasslands and our wildlife habitats.”

“The future of both people and elephants depends on the choices we make today.”