Category: Environment

Foreign Minister calls for greater resilience to climate change impacts

Minister of Foreign Affairs Dunya Maumoon has called on the Maldives to build individual and collective resilience to face rising seas and extreme weather events associated with climate change.

In a statement issued on Friday commemorating the tenth anniversary of the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami, Dunya said: “Floods and rising sea levels threaten the loss of our livelihoods, our homes, our cultures and our very existence.”

“The words of scientists that have for years warned of frequent natural disasters due to climate change, are undoubtedly proving to be true.”

The Maldives must take action at home to build resilience, and continue to urge other countries to do their part to combat climate change, Dunya said.

Although the Maldives has urged the international community to reach a strong and legally binding agreement to reduce carbon emissions, President Abdulla Yameen’s administration has begun exploring for oil in the Maldives.

In October, Fisheries Minister Mohamed Shainee said a research vessel has found hydrocarbon source rock in the Maldives.

December 26 is marked in the Maldives as National Day of Unity to celebrate the collective tsunami relief effort.

“What we saw that day was the true spirit of oneness, our common history and the bonds that bind us together like no other,” Dunya said.

At a ceremony to mark the tenth anniversary of the tsunami on Thursday, Housing Minister Dr Mohamed Muizz admitted government negligence in the delays in constructing permanent housing.

Muizz said the government has now completed a majority of the 338 remaining houses for families made homeless by the tsunami. He claimed there are no families living in temporary shelters at present.

The 338 houses include 41 on Thaa Atoll Madifushi, 87 on Gaaf Alif Dhaandhoo, 50 on Gaaf Alif Nilandhoo, 76 on Gaaf Alif Vilingili and 84 on Gaaf Alif Maamendhoo.

Only 51 houses remain unfinished. These include one house on Dhaandhoo, five on Nilandhoo, 12 on Villingili, and 33 on Maamendhoo.

Muizz said the government hopes to complete all houses by the end of 2014.

The housing projects in Thaa and Gaaf Alif atolls were initially commissioned to Maldivian company Vimla and an unnamed foreign company.

The government this year handed over the projects to the Maldives National Defense Forces (MNDF), state-owned Maldives Transport and Contracting Company, the Maldives Road Development Company, and several local companies.

The government is to give these families a grant of MVR 25,000 to buy furniture as they move into their new homes.

In his speech, Muizz also claimed the opposition had obstructed the construction of the permanent housing by vandalising buildings. He did not provide additional details.

President Yameen at the National Day of Unity function urged Maldivians to control negative emotions such as anger, hatred and envy in order to work towards sustainable unity.


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Nolhivaranfaru ground water contaminated as flooding causes septic tank overflow

Severe flooding on Haa Dhaal Atoll Nolhivaranfaru Island has caused a sewage overflow resulting in contamination of the island’s ground water.

According to Nolhivaranfaru Councilor Adham Jaufar, torrential rains on December 18 and 19 caused damage to septic tanks on the island resulting in sewage overflowing in bathrooms and onto the streets.

The Health Protection Agency (HPA) has issued an alert expressing concern over health risks due to contaminated water, and urged Nolhivaranfaru’s residents to pay attention to cleanliness to avoid the spread of water-borne diseases.

“We appeal to the public to use chlorinated well water in all areas of the island, to only use boiled water or rainwater that has been stored safely for cooking and drinking and to pay particular attention to general cleanliness. We note it is important to wash hands with soap after using the bathroom or before cooking,” a statement by HPA said.

The National Disaster Management Center (NDMC) has said it has distributed chlorine to disinfect wells and puddles on the streets, and the HPA conducted an awareness campaign on health risks.

Although the 1,030 strong population have access to potable drinking water, the sewage overflow has left 47 households without any water for bathing or washing, Jaufar said.

Over 50 residents staged daily protests this week over the lack of safe water, but suspended activities today after an environment ministry team arrived on the island to inspect damage.

Protestors have warned they would resume demonstrations within three days depending on the outcome of the visit.

The Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF) has drained water from the streets and is now in the process of cleaning and draining overflowing septic tanks.

Jaufar said Nolhivaranfaru requires a sewerage system to prevent sewage overflow in the future.

The worst affected areas are at a lower elevation than the rest of the island, and residents of the 47 houses have to periodically drain septic tanks to avoid overflows, Jaufar said. Maldivian islands are on average only one meter above sea level.

Meanwhile, the NDMC has allocated 100 tonnes of water for Nolhivaranfaru, but the water has not yet been transported to the northern island as there are no mechanisms to store water there.

Head of the Environmental Protection Agency Ibrahim Naeem said the agency is waiting on a report from the ministry team on the extent of the damage.

In addition to a sewerage system, the island would also needs an artificial drainage system, Naeem said.

According to Jaufar, the government had promised a sewerage system in 2012, allocating funds for the project in 2012, 2013, and 2014. But there has been no progress yet.

In early December, a fire at Malé’s desalination plant left the capital’s 130,000 residents without running water. The government declared a crisis, set up water distribution centers throughout the city, and requested foreign governments for assistance.

India, China, and Bangladesh airlifted bottled water, and India sent in ships equipped with desalination plants to produce water for the capital.

Normal operations resumed at the Malé water plant on December 13.

In June, residents of Laamu Atoll Gan also staged protests over a sewage spill on the island following severe damage to the island’s sewerage system.


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Solar panels providing 50 percent of Thinadhoo’s electricity

Fifty percent of the electricity needs on the island of Thinadhoo in Gaaf Dhaalu Atoll are now being provided by solar panels.

Roof-mounted 250kWp (kilowatt peak) photovoltaic (PV) systems were installed in the regional hospital and mosque on the island today.

Speaking at a ceremony in Thinadhoo this morning to mark the grid connection of the solar panels, Minister of Environment and Energy Ibrahim Thoriq observed that the PV system was the largest of its kind in the atolls.

Along with a 308kWp system installed earlier, Thoriq noted that solar panels in Thinadhoo could now generate 50 percent of electricity used daily.

Thoriq also noted that the Maldives was heavily dependent on imported oil for its energy needs, which was a burden on the domestic economy.

“In 2013 alone, about MVR6 billion was spent on importing petroleum products,” Thoriq reportedly said.

According to the energy ministry, the solar PV component of the ‘Clean Energy for Climate Mitigation Project’ was carried out in two phases.

The first phase involved the installation of 308kWp solar photovoltaic systems in 3 buildings, explained the ministry – Thinadhoo School, Aboobakuru School, and the Powerhouse Building. During phase two, 250kWp solar photovoltaic systems were installed in two additional buildings – the Dr Abdul Samad Memorial Hospital and mosque.

“In addition to the solar PV component, energy conservation and efficiency activities were also carried out as part of this project. In this regard, energy audits of 20 different places were conducted, which includes government buildings, private offices and households,” said a ministry statement.

Based on the findings of the audits, energy efficient inverter air conditioners LED bulbs and LED tube lights were provided to the selected buildings.

Additionally, 5,000 LED bulbs were distributed to households in Thinadhoo under the energy efficiency demonstration component.

At today’s ceremony – which was attended by Progressive Party of Maldives MPs Ahmed Nihan and Saudhulla Hilmy as well as Fenaka Corporation Managing Director Mohamed Nimal – Thoriq reiterated the government’s objective of generating up to 30 percent of electricity used during daylight hours in all inhabited islands within the next four years.

Diesel fuel currently accounts for the bulk of the energy supply in the country – about 82.5% in 2009.

According to the Maldives Customs Service, of the MVR7.2 billion (US$466.9 million) worth of goods imported in the first quarter of 2014, one-third was spent on petroleum products.

The Maldives’ 109 resorts use 49 percent of the US$470 million diesel imported into the country annually. The figure amounts to over a third of the country’s GDP. The capital Malé uses 90 percent of the inhabited islands’ energy consumption.

A 100 percent solar-powered luxury resort called Gasfinolhu is meanwhile scheduled to open for business in January 2015.


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Maldives should forget about mitigating climate change, says Bluepeace

The Maldives should forget about stopping the effects of climate change and focus instead on adaptation, says environmental NGO Bluepeace.

“Mitigation is something we have to forget about at the national level,” said Bluepeace Executive Director Ali Rilwan.

Rilwan’s comments come after the conclusion of UN climate change talks in Peru, which have resulted in an agreement slammed as “very weak” by environmental groups.

“We don’t have much faith,” said Rilwan, citing the international community’s failure to follow through on previous commitments. “Locally, we have to look at adaptation. Maldives is the most low-lying country – we have to have dry land.”

As talks concluded in Lima, a delegation of cabinet ministers headed to Beijing for economic talks that will include plans for oil exploration in Maldivian territorial waters – a policy Rilwan described as “ironic”.

China-Maldives Joint Committee on Trade and Economic Cooperation

“On paper, there are a lot of adaptation programmes, but in reality you don’t see it happening,” he said, perceiving a lack of concern about climate change within the Maldives.

Former President Mohamed Nasheed, who has gained international acclaim as an environmental activist, has recently expressed his concern that the chance to mitigate the effects of climate change has been missed.

“The world has lost the window of opportunity to mend its ways,” he told the International Bar Association in October, suggesting Maldivians were likely to become the world’s first climate change refugees.

“Big emitters have sentenced us. The world temperature will rise, and the seas will rise over our nose.”

“And what restitution, if any, can be made for the damage done to us – damage we warned about, but did not cause? I fear that these questions will be answered one day, not in the abstract, but in a court of law. And I fear that we, the people of the Maldives, will be the star witness.”

Lima Declaration

The Lima Declaration sets out a framework which further differentiates developing and rich states, as well as retaining plans for a “loss and damage” scheme to provide financial support to “vulnerable” developing nations.

However, plans to determine what information countries should provide in future emission reduction pledges were watered down after fierce negotiations.

The word “may” instead of “shall” was eventually used in the final text regarding quantifiable information to show how states intend to reduce emissions targets.

WWF officials have said the declaration text “went from weak to weaker to weakest and it’s very weak indeed”, while Friends of the Earth International said fears the talks would fail to deliver “a fair and ambitious outcome” had been proven “tragically accurate”.

The reduction pledges are required prior to the COP 21 climate change talks in Paris next December, which will seek to decide upon a new framework for a universal and legally binding agreement on climate change.

Maldivian representatives in Lima told the conference this week: “We do not want to be in Paris to get perished”.

Maldives delegation at UN climate conference in Peru

Noting the recent pledges to the Green Climate Fund – intended to raise $100 billion a year by 2020 – Ambassador Ahmed Sareer said that “as a small island developing state that is constantly facing an existential threat, the current pledges are simply not enough”.

Officials from the environment ministry were not responding to calls at the time of press.

The Maldives has recently become chair of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS), while former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom has called on larger nations to allow vulnerable states to take a lead in climate change policy.

Ambassador Sareer said this week that the Maldives’ share of global emission is negligible, and that the government of Maldives was striving to make the country resilient.

The Ministry of Environment and Energy reported that Sareer also attended a number of fringe events in Lima, telling attendees at a Japanese event of the Maldives’ plans to reduce dependency on fossil fuels.

As part of a move to reduce this dependency – which consumes around 30 percent of the country’s GDP – the current government has pledged to work with international groups to explore the potential of oil and gas reserves in the country.

Minister of Fisheries and Agriculture Shainee told media that the government would discuss the issue with two Chinese companies this week as a delegation headed to Beijing for the first China-Maldives Joint Committee on Trade and Economic Cooperation.

India has already offered to assist in oil exploration within Maldivian territorial waters, while a seismic survey was carried out by a German research vessel in August.


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“We do not want to be in Paris to get perished,” Maldives ambassador tells climate change convention

The Maldives has urged the world to take reach a strong and legally binding climate change agreement at the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference.

Speaking at the plenary meeting of the 20th Conference of the Parties to United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Lima Ambassador Ahmed Sareer emphasised on the need for a negotiated text in order to arrive at a strong agreement in Paris in 2015.

“We do not want to be in Paris to get perished,” said Sareer.

The Maldives mission to the United Nations reports that Sareer told the meeting that the Maldives, as a small, low-lying island state, is among the most vulnerable and least defensible countries to the projected impacts of climate change.

Touching on the ongoing water crisis in Malé, Sareer said that the situation “is a stark example of the vulnerability of small island developing states like the Maldives that has no natural fresh water sources”.

A fire in the capital’s only desalination plant left 130,000 people without running water last week, requiring international relief efforts to deal with the crisis.

Unusual in the crowded capital, water shortages have become commonplace in the country’s outer atolls – a combination of periods of drought and groundwater contaminated by the 2004 tsunami.

Noting the recent pledges to the Green Climate Fund – intended to raise $100 billion a year by 2020 – Sareer said: “as a small island developing state that is constantly facing an existential threat, the current pledges are simply not enough”.

The Maldives has recently become chair of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS), while former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom calling on larger nations to allow vulnerable states to take a lead in climate change policy.

Ambassador Sareer said that the Maldives’ share of global emission is negligible, and that the government of Maldives was striving to make the country resilient.

Former President Nasheed – who gained international acclaim for his efforts at the 2009 climate change conference – recently told the International Bar Association (IBA) that he feared Maldivians could become the world’s first climate change refugees.

“When I was elected president, I caused some controversy by saying we would someday have to leave our islands. I was hopeful then that we would be able to change the way our story ends. But I fear it is too late now for the Maldives,” he told the IBA’s showcase session on climate change and human rights.

The 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference – or COP21 – will be held in Paris between November 30 and December 11 next year.

The COP21 organising committee has said that: “By the end of the meeting, for the first time in over 20 years of UN negotiations, all the nations of the world, including the biggest emitters of greenhouse gases, will be bound by a universal agreement on climate.”


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Rare sightings expected at second Whale Shark Festival

Gangehi island resort in Alif Alif Atoll welcomed an unusual tourist this week, as a baby whale shark was temporarily accommodated before being released in the same spot it had been caught by fishermen earlier in the day.

The 1.5ft shark – named ‘Noomaa’ or Blue Flower by its hosts – was hailed by marine experts as “extremely rare” and a sign that there may have been a change in breeding cycles.

“The sighting of a neonate [newborn] whale shark in the Maldives is hugely exciting because of how rare such encounters are – there has only been a handful of neonate encounters recorded globally,” said Richard Rees, director of the Maldives Whale Shark Research Programme (MWSRP).

But whether Noomaa – who could grow up to 12 metres long, and weigh up to 21 tonnes – will be seen again remains a mystery, explained Rees, as little is known about the animals behaviour and breeding patterns.

However, guaranteed sightings of the species can be expected further south in Alif Dhaalu Dhangethi this weekend when three of the gentle giants – the largest known fish species – will swim through the streets.

The model sharks – designed and created by the local artists – will be joined by a giant green turtle, butterfly fish, and a manta ray as part of the second annual Maldives Whale Shark Festival.

Organised by the MWSRP, the festival represents the culmination of five months of community engagement which has produced artwork celebrating the atoll’s marine diversity.

Started as a scientific expedition in 2006, MWSRP has grown to become the only long-­term organisation dedicated to study the iconic, yet vulnerable whale shark species in the Maldives.

Since that time, the programme has logged over 1,500 encounters with whale sharks as well as helping to establish the world’s first training manual to educate industry stakeholders on sustainable whale shark tourism.

A proliferation of boat strike incidents in the increasingly crowded Alif Dhaalu atoll demonstrates the need to protect the creatures as they play an increasing role in the tourism industry.

“The community needs to be invested in the preservation of this iconic fish.  It’s essential that there is a good level of awareness as to the value of the whale shark to South Ari atoll and the country as a whole,” explained Rees.

“That’s what this festival is all about, raising awareness in a creative and fun way. Everyone who values the whale shark and it’s habitat, coming together and celebrating the largest fish on the planet and its significance to them and their region.”

A core part of the programme’s attempts to advance the field of whale shark knowledge while advocating for sound conservation policies involves encouraging community and industry stakeholder participation.

“This is  just  the  beginning – we  plan on putting  the  festival  on the cultural calendar for the Maldives, bringing people from across the country and the world together to celebrate the rich marine and cultural diversity of the archipelago,” explained Festival Director Chloe Osborne.

The Maldives is unique as the only place known to have year-round whale shark populations, which have been protected under Maldivian law since 1996, and are classified as vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) – also a partner in Saturday’s festival.

This weekends efforts will help in the continued endeavour to uncover the answers to many of questions that remain about the lives of these ocean giants.

“The whale shark is a particularly challenging creature to research because of the amount of time it spends at depth and far out to sea. But anything we can learn helps us to make decisions about how to protect it,” said Rees.

Indeed, Noomaa’s surprise visit to Gangehi resort this week has raised more questions than it has answered – including whether he has headed south to attend this weekend’s festival.

While it could be surmised from Noomaa’s appearance that the Maldives must be a pupping site for whale sharks, Rees noted that it was also possible that he was swept into the archipalego by ocean currents and perhaps chased into shallow waters by predators.

“Truth be told no one really knows where whale sharks breed but it’s thought that it occurs deep down and far out to sea.”

“We hope that like many of the individual whale sharks we see Noomaa becomes a regular visitor to Ari atoll.”

The Maldives Whale Shark Festival carnival will take place in Alif Dhaalu Dhangethi this Saturday (December 6) at 1pm.


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Fully solar powered Maldives resort sets new standard in green tourism

Arriving at Gasfinolhu Island, the eye is greeted by solar panels, thatch roofs, white sand and turquoise water. Solar panels shade the long walkway onto the island and cover the roofs of all the utility buildings.

The sparsely vegetated sandbank, approximately 40 minutes from Malé, is the first 100 percent solar-powered luxury resort in the world.

Standing inside the resort’s silent powerhouse, Gasfinolhu owner ‘Champa’ Hussain Afeef said, “The happiest moments are when I can see that the lights are still functioning after all the diesel generators have been switched off.”

Gasfinolhu’s 6,500 square meters of solar panel are capable of producing 1100 Kilowatts at power peak. The island at full occupancy only requires 600 Kilowatts at peak load.

Afeef, one of the pioneers of tourism in the Maldives, said he had first thought of the project in 2009 when Maldives announced it would become the world’s first carbon neutral country in 2020.

“We wanted to do something different. I believe renewable energy is not just the future for tourism, but for all other industries as well,” he said.

Pioneers

Praising the project, Environmental Consultant Ahmed Shaig, says Gasfinolhu sets very high standards for the tourism sector.

The resort’s power system is entirely automated, with computers programmed to switch between direct solar power, battery power, or diesel generators, as required.

Excess power generated during the day is stored in an extensive battery system, capable of powering the resort throughout the night. Three diesel generators are also on standby in case there are successive days of rain and the batteries run out.

In addition to the solar power system, Gasfinolhu also relies on a centralised chiller system that uses chilled water to cool air for air-conditioning.  Its harbor is set close to the reef’s edge to facilitate the shifting of sand in the lagoon with the monsoon, thereby minimising beach erosion.

A zero waste management system will also be installed on the island in the future, Shaig said.

Debunking myths

According to Ibrahim Nashid, the chairman of Renewable Energy Maldives Pvt Ltd, Gasfinolhu demonstrates that “it is possible to provide power from indigenous energy sources without compromising luxury comfort.”

The project also debunks several myths on the use of solar energy in the Maldives, Nashid said, stating that critics believe solar power is not suitable in the Maldives due to lack of space and its salty environment.

“They also say that it would deter from aesthetics on a luxury resort, but Gasfinolhu destroys all of these myths. Its architecture is beautiful, some have said it’s the solar paneled spaces on the island that are the most beautiful,” he said.

The Maldives’ 109 resorts use 49 percent of the US$470 million diesel imported into the country annually. The figure amounts to over a third of the country’s GDP. The capital Malé uses 90 percent of the inhabited islands’ energy consumption.

If the resorts and Malé transition to renewable energy, it frees up state funds for health and education, and increases the country’s energy security, Nashid said.

“Others will follow”

According to Afeef, Gasfinolhu will recover the US$8 million spent on the solar system within six to seven years.

Without solar power, Gasfinolhu would spend over US$1.5 million for fuel to power its 22 rooms on the beach front and 30 water bungalows. A typical resort with 200 or 300 beds would spend over US$4million fuel a year, he said.

“I hope this initiative will turn out to be a success. And I hope to see more and more resort developers employing such technologies in the future,” he said.

However, he noted already existing resorts would not find it cost-effective to transition to solar power all at once.

The transition would have to come gradually, by redesigning and converting facilities that consume electricity most such as laundry, desalination plant and kitchen to solar power first, he said.

“Everything is a risk. Someone has to do it first. Then, others will follow.”

The resort, developed by Global Pvt Ltd will be operated by Club Med and will open for business in January 2015.


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Addressing challenges of small island states critical in protecting ozone: Environment minister

Minister of Environment and Energy Thoriq Ibrahim has called on the international community to give due consideration to the specific challenges faced by Small Island Developing States (SIDS) in phasing out harmful emissions.

Speaking during the 26th Meeting of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol, Thoriq said that the needs of the fishing industry should be addressed when assessing compliance with hydrocholrofluorocarbon (HCFC) reductions under the protocol.

The minister noted that “addressing HCFC uses for the cooling needs of the fisheries sector and related facilities would be critical for the compliance of SIDS under the Montreal Protocol,” explained the environment ministry.

One of the most vulnerable nations to the effects of climate changes, the Maldives relies on fishing for around 98 percent of its exports.

The Maldives is currently the Chair of the Alliance of Small Island States – formed of 39 low-lying coastal and small island countries, many of whose economies depend on fishing.

The Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer – the first treaty to achieve universal ratification – obliges signatories to freeze the consumption and production of HCFCs, which contribute to global warming and climate change, between 2013 and 2015.

Having largely replaced the more harmful CFCs, HCFCs are now used as refrigerants in refrigerators and air conditioning units.

Thoriq noted that the phasing out of HCFCs had seen a subsequent rise in the use of the alternative compound – hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), reiterating the Maldives’ support to address the rise of HFCs, which still contribute to global warming despite not being harmful to the ozone layer.

United Nations Environment Programme estimates suggest that HFCs are 1000 times as harmful as carbon dioxide and could, within 30 to 40 years, wipe out all the progress achieved in avoiding carbon emissions under the protocol.

“In this regard, the Minister noted that the Montreal Protocol was suited to take on the task given its expertise and track record in the successful implementation of global environmental agreements,” read a press release from the Ministry of Environment and Energy.

Responding to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report in March this year, Thoriq called for a cap on global temperature rise, pledging to increase renewable energy to 30% in the next 5 years.

While Thoriq stated his belief that “averting catastrophe is still possible,” former President Mohamed Nasheed has expressed fears that Maldivians could become the world’s first climate change refugees.

“The world has lost the window of opportunity to mend its ways. Big emitters have sentenced us. The world temperature will rise, and the seas will rise over our nose,” Nasheed told the International Bar Association last month.

Thoriq has previously noted that 90 percent of islands in the Maldives are affected by coastal erosion, while former environment minister Mohamed Aslam has found that 50 percent of islands in Huvadhoo atoll shrank in size between 1969 to 2013.

Last month the ministry launched the ‘It’s cool at 25’ campaign calling for a more energy efficient use of air-conditioning units in the Maldives , with Thoriq noting that the country had one of the highest rates of energy use per capita in the South Asia region.


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MTCC not responsible for severe sand spill on Komandoo reef, says environment minister

The state owned Maldives Transport and Contracting Company (MTCC) will not be penalised for a severe sand spill on the reef of Komandoo Island in Shaviyani Atoll, Environment Minister Thoriq Ibrahim told parliament today.

The sand spill – which has destroyed large swathes of the island’s reef – was caused by a storm surge, Thoriq said.

The MTCC – in charge of a coastal protection and land reclamation project on the island – had implemented the required measures to prevent sand spills, but bad weather and swells caused the erosion of reclaimed areas and washed piled up sand onto the reef, Thoriq said.

Speaking to Minivan News today, Komandoo MP Ahmed Nashid blamed the MTCC’s slow progress for the sand spill, claiming the sand piles had been left on the island’s shores since 2012.

If the project had been completed on time, the spill would not have taken place, he suggested.

Minister Thoriq told the Majlis this morning that the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) had acknowledged sand had spilled onto the reef.

“However, the island council’s members said the spill was not reported in case it may halt the project,” said Thoriq.

MP Nashid had summoned the minister for questioning, asking if the ministry had done a survey of damages and if the MTCC would be penalised for the spill.

Thoriq said the environment ministry had not been informed of the spill prior to Nashid raising the issue, but had monitored the area afterwards. An EPA team had visited the site and found the MTCC had followed all environmental procedures outlined in the environmental impact assessment report, he explained.

According to Thoriq – who said the exact date of the spill was unknown – explained that the sand had now washed off into the ocean with currents and the reef was showing signs of regeneration.

If any party reports environmental violations, the EPA will inspect site and take required action, he added.

The ministry does not have the capacity to monitor all ongoing projects, and will only begin an inspection if a violation is reported. But the ministry does take punitive action against companies who violate EIAs, he insisted.

The government intends to carry out projects to address erosion in seven islands this year, the minister told MPs, with approximately 97 percent of inhabited islands in the Maldives reporting severe erosion.

The government will spend MVR116.3 million (US$ 7.5 million) on protecting 3,482 meters of shore in the seven islands, he said.

In May, environmental NGO EcoCare accused Netherlands based Boskalis of committing environmental crimes after it caused sand to be deposited onto Baa Atoll Eydhafushi Island during a reclamation project.

The company’s rainbow technique for reclamation had also covered houses and vegetation on Eydhafushi and Raa Meedhoo Island with sand and water.

Minivan News was unable to reach the EPA to confirm if action had been taken against Boskalis for damages.

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