Embarking on a visionary restoration journey, Talawakelle Tea Estates PLC (TTE PLC) and WNPS PLANT jointly initiated one of the largest ecosystem restoration projects in recent times. This exciting but challenging, project in the central highlands aims at reforesting and creating a continual 13 km long forest passage bordering the Nanu Oya and Agra Oya banks, and will be supported by potentially different partners for each segment of the corridor, a WNPS news release said.

Celebrating World Environment Day on June 5, and the theme of this year- land restoration, desertification, and drought resistance, TTE PLC and WNPS PLANT launched the project with a tree planting program on the Somerset and Bearwell estate segments. The project will run through twelve estates under TTE PLC – Somerset, Bearwell, Dessford, Radella, Palmerston, Great Western, Mattakelle, Calsay, Clarendon, Holyrood, Wattegoda and Logie, and will create connectivity to the Great Western Mountain range forests.

The project spreads over four to five years and easily requires over 50,000 native trees and would create between 150 to 200 acres of new forest in the process. Giving life and hope to many wild species in the region, the initiative employs local community for the physical work, creates new plant nurseries and will have a baseline biodiversity study done as part of the process, the release explained.

“Restoring lands and bringing back biodiversity is critical for us to re-balance our hill country ecosystems. We desire to enhance the quality of life for all communities in and around our plantations, and protecting water sources, preventing flooding and helping people live in harmony with all species is very much a part of this vision.

“This initiative will yet again demonstrate our commitment and we are pleased to partner with WNPS PLANT on this ambitious multi-partner project” said Mr. Senaka Alawattegama, Director/ Chief Executive Officer of Talawakelle Tea Estates PLC.

The tree planting event brought together key figures and officials from the Central Environmental Authority, Forest Department, and Nuwara Eliya’s Assistant Divisional Secretary, along with key officials and volunteers from TTE PLC, WNPS, PLANT and the WNPS Youth Wing. The initially planned restoration work on the Somerset estate segment is funded by Avanti and Murtaza Esufally, whose generosity and social consciousness made a conservation dream a reality. The project invites added partners to join and take on the different segments in a similar fashion.

Speaking at the event, WNPS Senior Manager – Administration and Sustainable Initiatives, Ms. Rangika Perera called out the rich 130-year history of WNPS and outlined the PLANT vision of building connected forest corridors around the south-western parts of Sri Lanka and creating a social movement which anchored on private sector participation and land ownership. She iterated the importance of focusing on our future generations within the actions we take today.

Talawakelle Tea Estates PLC (TTE PLC) is renowned for its high-quality Ceylon tea and is owned by Hayleys Plantation Sector, which is one of the most awarded and certified plantation companies in the world. TTE PLC owns 16 estates, and some spread over Nanu Oya, and the Agra Oya. As part of their commitment towards restoring nature, TTE PLC has made it a priority to protect these natural spaces. Maintaining the riparian forest ecosystem associated with the upstream influents is crucial in safeguarding the overall health and function of the river.

WNPS PLANT is Sri Lanka’s largest private sector led ecosystem restoration initiative and aims at creating a reasonably connected forest corridor network, exclusively targeting the endemic rich southwestern quarter of the country (see www.plantsl.org). Recognized for its restoration work backed by solid science, PLANT mainly focuses on assisted natural regeneration and the natural regeneration of ecosystems.

Supported by many partners and working in over 20 locations already, PLANT focuses only on plant species that are native and typically found in that specific region or climatic zone and such efforts have further contributed to the continuous growth and success of WNPS PLANT. The WNPS (Wildlife and Nature Protection Society) and PLANT (Preserving Land and Nature (Pvt) Ltd) signed an MOU with the Hayleys Plantations in early 2023 to protect over 2,500 acres of land jointly and has been working continually on different initiatives since then.

Dr Roshan Rajadurai, Managing Director of Hayleys Plantation Sector expressed his appreciation to the teams for their commitment and hard work. “We began this journey with a clear vision of making a transformative impact on conservation, knowing full well that as a leading plantation company, we had a major obligation to Sri Lanka considering the land footprint that we are custodians for. Our entire Plantation sector has committed to deepen our conservation work through the engagement with PLANT and we see exciting outcomes through the progress so far” he added.

“Hill country wildlife is already challenged by increased incidents of conflict, and human populations continually keep encroaching into wilderness spaces for commercial and residential needs. By planting native species and creating corridors, PLANT and our partners aim to boost biodiversity, restore natural habitats, provide animal passages, improve water quality, and promote sustainability in this environmentally valuable region” said Sriyan de Silva Wijeyeratne, Chairman of PLANT.

Over the next few years, this project will continue to be a major focus of both parties as they battle against natural and man-made challenges. They feel that partners coming together to support a large project of this nature, is the only way forward in making impactful interventions of scale within Sri Lanka.