Research in forest restoration in Suduwelipotha, Weddagala
Ruk Rakaganno – The Tree Society of Sri Lanka in collaboration with the Forest Department, John Keells Foundation (JKF) & Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts (CHML) commenced the restoration of a 25-ha degraded plot of land allocated by the Forest Department, located in the Suduwelipotha Village, about 1.5km from the Weddagala-Sinharaja Road. Such restoration sites provide living laboratories where tropical research could flourish. EcoServ would joined hands with Rukrakaganno and John Keells to kick start research activities at this site, which is of special significance given its proximity to the Sinharaja Rainforest. Our research aimed to provide the much-needed scientific information on biodiversity-ecosystem functioning as well as on restoration ecology, which would be critical for future rainforest restoration actions in the country.
A joint project to monitor airborne toxicants in the Pipeline
This project will focus on collecting real time air pollution data and to correlate trends with ecological end points. An innovative IoT remote sensing device which has the potential to collect real time continuous data on particulate matter (2.5 and 10 pm), volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and SOx, NOx, CO2 along with temperature and humidity, will be used for this purpose. We intend to use machine learning algorithms which would assist in predicting future air quality levels. The system will be initially set up in paddy fields and data collected will be useful in assessing levels of pollutants in such agricultural landscapes. Ecological parameters will attempt to characterize insect / faunal assemblages in paddy fields and relate any changes to the measured ambient parameters.
The project is through a grant received by Dr. Dushani Palliyaguru from the HealthSurveil LC, Texas, USA, and will be done in collaboration with Dr. Vindhya Fernando and Prof. Mayuri Wijesinghe.
Outreach Programmes: University of Colombo staff/students engage in field work at Suduwelipotha
(1) The fourth year zoology honours students following the Wildlife Management course of the Faculty of Science, University of Colombo, accompanied by Prof. Mayuri Wijesinghe and Mr. Dushy Perera were were in Suduwelipotha from 5-7 of April 2022 for field work.
Work involved included a bird & butterfly survey, frog sampling, pitfall and small mammals trapping, and nematode sampling
School children engaged in creative work
2. Second programme for Gateway College is planned for the 5th of September 2025