The Central Environmental Authority (CEA) said yesterday (16) they have not established a direct link between the recent landslides in Ambuluwawa and the cable car project undertaken by Amber Adventures, although a final decision on resuming construction has yet to be made.
CEA Director General Kapila Mahesh Rajapaksha told The Daily Morning that work on the project was temporarily halted following complaints from local residents alleging environmental risks. “We received numerous complaints claiming that the cable car project was causing landslides and other hazards. After reviewing those concerns, we instructed Amber Adventures to suspend construction pending further assessment,” he said.
He noted that both the CEA and the National Building Research Organisation (NBRO) conducted separate investigations into the matter. According to Rajapaksha, the NBRO report indicated that tower construction had contributed to soil erosion in some areas and revealed deficiencies in proper irrigation systems. However, he added, “They have reported that no direct connection between the landslides has been identified with the cable car project, other than these conditions.”
A meeting was convened in the first week of February 2026 to gather public complaints and suggestions. The CEA subsequently requested Amber Adventures to submit a report addressing the identified issues. That report was received on 12 February, and the CEA is currently analysing its contents.
“We are yet to decide whether we are going to let them restart the project or not. So far, we haven’t identified a reason to totally stop the project,” Rajapaksha stated. However, he noted that further assessments may be required. “We have suggested that we should further assess with the NBRO and a few geology experts from the GSMB as to whether the mother rock has been damaged even to some extent by the construction of the upper part of the area. That would be a long process, and hence, we haven’t decided yet whether we should be stopping the project till we receive the report or not.”
China’s Amber Adventures (Private) Limited has officially withdrawn from the Ambuluwawa Cable Car Project. The Company informed thus to the Board of Investment on 13 January, citing “regulatory obstruction and arbitrary State action”, including the suspension of construction by the CEA. The firm had invested US $ 3.5 million of its total $ 12.75 million investment, secured during Sri Lanka’s 2022 economic crisis through a consortium from Sri Lanka, China, and the US.