Sri Lanka aiming to boost coral ecosystems

COLOMBO (News1st);The Ministry of Wildlife and Forest Conservation says that the program to restore the coral ecosystem in the Hikkaduwa Marine National Park is currently underway.

Hikkaduwa National Park Custodian Asanka Gunawardena stated that the current living coral percentage is about 10% compared to before.

"It was in the year 1998 that  the warmest recorded water currents came to the southern coast of Sri Lanka," he said. 

"Those warm water currents were a reason for the partial destroyal of our coral reefs. After that in about two more such situations, warm water currents caused our coral reefs to be destroyed further," stated the National park Custodian.  

He continued to state that two selected locations of the National Park are being utilized to reforest corals.