Jaffna cleans shoreline of damaged corals

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 02 March 2005, 05:09 GMT]
Fisheries societies in Vadamaradchchi division, with funding assistance from the non-governmental organization Sewa Lanka, have initiated a project to remove debris from damage coral reefs found scattered in coastal areas due to tsunami disaster to allow normalization of fishing activities, sources said.

Coral reefs, by dissipating wave energy, provide a natural barrier to sea erosion in coastal areas. The recent tsunami had damaged sections of coral reefs along the northern coastal areas extending from Thondamannaru to Munai point in Point Pedro, making it hard for fishermen to move their boats to sea, sources said.

Heavy machinery is also being used to remove the coral debris, sources said.

Sri Lanka Army (SLA) has deployed large number of its personnel along the coast to supervise the implementation of the project, sources said.