Respite, for Now, for Bird Migration Hotspot at Heart of Sri Lanka’s Wind Power Dispute

After protests against wind farm break out in Mannar, govt puts project on hold and starts talks

In Mannar Island, northern Sri Lanka, villagers have been staging a protest for nearly two weeks demanding a halt to the second phase of a 50 MW wind power project, arguing that it is an environmental disaster and poses an existential threat to their livelihoods. The protest is widely supported. Young people and religious leaders have joined in, raising their voices, and the government put the project on hold and started talks with residents. Do…

Respite, for now, for bird migration hotspot at heart of Sri Lanka’s wind power dispute

MANNAR, Sri Lanka - Under the blanket of darkness, giant trucks rumbled through the narrow roads of Sri Lanka's Mannar district, their headlights cutting through the night. On their trailers lay colossal white columns and blades longer than a fishing trawler, bound for the island's windswept northwestern coast. By dawn, word had spread that construction had begun on a new wind farm with 10 massive turbines. For many locals, this was not progress…