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Austrian Sri Lankan Elephant Research & Conservation Project

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Austrian Sri Lankan Elephant Research & Conservation Project Austrian Sri Lankan Elephant Research & Conservation Project (ASERC) Year 2008 Annual Report 1. Introduction In Year 2008 ASERC carried out in Sri Lanka three recurrent community development programmes linked to conservation, partnered with a parallel broad based renewable energy rural electrification project run separately and supported a few other activities. However, due to the somewhat volatile political situation, the visit of the Austrian counterparts for a workshop on elephant reproduction and health issues had to be postponed. It is expected that the country outlook will be stable by the latter part of 2009 and some of the postponed training and research activities, and new activities, can be carried through. A description of the activities is detailed below. The ASERC website www.aserc.org gives the background to the project. 2. Science (Biology), Maths and English Tuition Programme for Year 10/11 Students - Project No. ASERC CDP01 The level of teaching in subjects such as Science (Biology), Maths and English is poor in rural schools situated in human elephant conflict areas. Competence in these subjects will enable rural children to be more inquisitive and aware of their surroundings, leading them to be sensitive to the environment and be prepared to become part of the mainstream of society through better education, instead of being marginalised as at present. This programme is aimed at Year 10 and 11 students of Laginagala Junior School in the vicinity of the northern part of Uda Walawe National Park. Around 50 students take part in this special revision programme conducted on Saturdays as a full day programme. The teaching is conducted by the teachers of the same school who work during the Saturday holiday. The teachers are paid an allowance and the students are provided with a nutritious mid-day meal. Year 2008 was the first full year of the programme that began in October 2007. Therefore, the full impact of the programme can be assessed by the public examinations being conducted in December 2008, the results of which are due in March 2009 (The General Certificate of Education, Ordinary Level Examination.) The national average pass rate is around 60% of the student population with the rural schools like Laginagala Junior School having much lower pass rates. Depending on the improvement, the programme will be repeated beginning March 2009. The year 2007 pass rate was the same as the national average in spite of only two months of revision classes under this programme. Year 2008 End Report__121608 (2).doc Page 2 Fig. 1 Classes in Session at Laginagala Jnr. School 3. School Field Excursions to Uda Walawe National Park and Elephant Transit Home – Project No. CDP02 The people around the periphery of Uda Walawe National Park are virtually all rural farmers. Their awareness of the value of the park has a direct impact on the health of the park. Unfortunately, most people who live around the park would never have even visited the park. This programme planned to organise field excursions for Year 10 and above students of, ten schools in the vicinity of Pokunutenna, on a school by school basis. The newly constructed Visitor Information Centre at Uda Walawe National Park will provide valuable information to the students on the ecology of the park. In addition they will be shown and introduced to the programme of the Elephant Transit Home where orphaned elephants are cared for and released back to the wild and be taken on a tour inside the park. It is planned as a full day programme. The day following this programme a workshop sponsored by IUCN will be held to build on the field trip knowledge and have formal lectures on the ecology of the area. Each batch will comprise of about 50 students. The fist trip was held in January for students of Laginagala Jnr. School. Unfortunately, due the prevalent political situation in the country the programme is currently temporarily suspended as no risk can be taken with children since this is an optional voluntary activity sponsored outside the national school curriculum. Year 2008 End Report__121608 (2).doc Page 3 Fig. 2 First, School Field Excursion Programme Trip – At Uda Walawe National Park Visitor Centre 4. Spreading the use of the Tripwire Elephant Alarm System – Project No. CDP03 The tripwire elephant alarm system utilizes a trip line approach to signal elephant intrusion and was conceptualized and tried out by a couple of the ASERC founders some years ago at the ASERC Field Station in Pokunutenna bordering Uda Walawe National Park. Metal wire or fishing line of length up to 400 m and of 1 mm diameter is drawn by inserting the line through eyelets fixed at a height of about 1.5 m, on wooden stakes spaced about 3 m apart. One end of the line is connected to the pole of an electrical toggle switch, which is mounted on the last stake. An electrical cable extends from the switch to the watch hut in the field where an „AA‟ battery powered bicycle horn connected. The moment the line is pulled due to an elephant crossing it, the switch trips, making an electrical connection that sets off the horn. The line is connected to the pole of the switch so that the line breaks near it after tripping. Along the path of the line, the scrub has to be cleared and a footpath constructed. This allows the villager to get to any point along the line within minutes of the alarm signalling an elephant‟s crossing, thus allowing him to chase it away Year 2008 End Report__121608 (2).doc Page 4 before it begins to feed. The cost of making one section is under €40. If protection is required for lengths in excess of this, several sections of line can be used, with two sets each connected to one switch, back to back. After snapping, the line can easily be reconnected to the switch, providing repeated, inexpensive protection. Fig. 3 Tripwire System Set Up Year 2008 End Report__121608 (2).doc Page 5 Communities where the human-elephant conflict is prevalent are typically hamlets or villages with around 25 to 50 houses and a mixed rice paddy and chena (slash and burn) cropland of up to 20 ha. Elephants usually enter the crops from somewhat predictable crossing points along the sides that border the forest. While this system has been in use at the original location Pokunutenna and a few other places for many years now, it was thought to spread the use of the system further by installing and supervising systems in other areas, over a two year period. One of the enterprising villagers of Pokunutenna, Ariyaratne, was entrusted with this task. By the end of 2008, eleven new systems were introduced in the Neralu Wewa area on the north eastern border of Uda Walawe National Park. A l i n k t o a Fig. 4 Tripwire Installations in Neralu Wewa Area n A night video of an elephant approaching and crossing a tripwire system and how the farmers upon being alerted try to chase it by flashing the torches and lighting an elephant flare is given below. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lpMqaARo3XU A day time simulation sequence of a tripwire alarm in operation is depicted by the following links to a series of videos. 1. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8zGZOMgh0vU 2. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sFxxI91Oy50 3. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uOleQZ22-5M 4. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sC6npB--7mc Year 2008 End Report__121608 (2).doc Page 6 5. Rural Electrification Programme of Lanka Gasifiers Ltd. (LGL) Lanka Gasifiers Pvt Ltd (LGL) is a company that provides distributed energy solutions that the rural populations can implement for themselves. Currently, LGL designs, develops, manufactures and deploys Biomass Gasifier Generators. LGL having implemented Sri Lanka‟s first village biomass electrification systems now implements such projects through independent entrepreneurs or developers. LGL provides a broad range of services to potential entrepreneurs or developers and through them to the rural people. LGL functions on the model of a For Profit Social Enterprise (FOPSE.) The dry zone planes where LGL implements its projects are also the home to the Elephant – where they share parts of the landscape with the people. Coexistence is always a challenge. Good lighting keeps elephants away by and large and this is one of the factors that rally the people around an electrification project. Therefore, it is natural that LGL encourages conservation and elephant conservation in particular, as part of its broader mission. With some of the founders of both ASERC and LGL being common and considering the synergies between the two entities, LGL partners with ASERC and in addition provides pro bono logistical support to ASERC work in Sri Lanka. LGL website www.lankagaslk.com gives the details of its activities 6. Other Activities 6.1. Second Edition of Sinhala book on Yala East area by Mr. Gaminie Samarakoon Mr Gaminie Samarakoon is an experienced and dedicated wildlife officer who is currently an Assistant Director in the Department of Wildlife Conservation. A decade or so ago he published an interesting Sinhala book giving the history, legend and status of the Yala East area that became a national park in 1969. In the mid eighties, the area had to be abandoned due to terrorism. This was published at a time when it was assumed that the area would never be redeemed. But, due to the untiring efforts of many, it was possible to reopen the park in 2003. In 2006, under the auspices of ASERC, funds were found to reconstruct the Ranger Office at the eastern entrance to the park and therefore ASERC has a special association with this area.
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