Press briefing of Cabinet Decision taken on 2019-06-18

Prohibition of the import of Mechanical Chain Saws with a view to preventing deforestation

- By now, the forest cover in the Island is 29.7% of the total landmass and action is already being taken to implement various programmes with a view to increasing the said area up to 32% by the year 2030. Unauthorized felling of trees has been identified as the major cause for deforestation and as has been observed it is the use of the mechanical chain saws which could be carried easily which help largely for deforestation. As such, since more than 82,000 mechanical chain saws have been registered at present, the proposal made by H.E. the President Maithripala Sirisena, in his capacity as the Minister of Mahaweli Development and Environment, to take appropriate measures under the Imports and Exports Control Act, No.1 of 1969 to prohibit the importation of mechanical chain saws, with a view to preventing deforestation and increasing the forest cover, was approved by the Cabinet.