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TRINCOMALEE BAY SPECIAL MANAGEMENT AREA Page | 39
170. Impacts associated with whale and dolphin watching can be direct impacts on the
whales and dolphins themselves. It is therefore imperative that the development of Whale
Watching should meet international standards both to preserve the welfare of the animals
watched and the safety of the watchers. International guidelines have been established for
the industry and these need to be fully implemented.
171. The Secretary of the Tourism Minister 4 has indicated that, by 2012, the SLTDA hopes
to transform Trincomalee into a major tourist hub. SLTDA plans to set up restaurants and
restrooms along the stretch of highway between Habarana and Trincomalee. Some 500
acres of State land are to be allocated to the SLTDA at Kuchchaveli, north of the popular
Nilaveli beach. SLTDA has received 75 bids for the 65 available lots to construct fully fledged
hotels in the area. These hotels are to be constructed with around 1,500 to 2,000 rooms and
other facilities.
172. A Conceptual Zoning Plan is currently being prepared for the area by the SLTDA with
the assistance of the Urban Development Authority (UDA). The resorts will be developed
according to the SLTDA guidelines. Blue Chip Company Aitken Spence owns some 105
acres at Nilaveli. Currently the only hotels of any standard in the region are the Nilaveli
Beach Hotel, Blue Oceanic at Uppuweli and the Welcombe Hotel 5 near the inner harbour.
173. Hotel sources indicated very recently a very high rate of room occupancy with 10,000
– 20,000 visitors visiting Trincomalee annually at the weekends, particularly on long
weekends. Large visitor numbers will provide substantial economic benefits to the local
economy through the employment needed to provide them with goods and services.
e. Seashell mining and grinding
174. The mining of dead seashells for grinding and use as a calcium carbonate
supplement in poultry feed started almost a decade ago. The seashell mining started as a
subsistence livelihood and more recently developed as a micro enterprise. Initially there were
less than 5 grinding mills but the industry has flourished due to higher demand during the last
5 years. Ground material is marketed at three different grades for poultry farmers as an
additive to provide calcium mineral to formulate the poultry feed. The industry supplies
supplement to poultry feed manufacturers in different parts of the country and there are some
other limited uses as well.
175. Seashell deposits are available at Kaukauna village of Kinniya DS division close to
the mouth of Thampalagamam bay. There are more than 120 seashell collectors currently
involved in this industry. Around 50 boats are engaged in seashell mining and 36 seashell
grinding mills are operating in the vicinity of the mining area.
176. National Aquatic Research Agency (NARA) conducted a rapid assessment of the
status of seashell mining, in October 2007. Discussions with NARA officers revealed that
about 1200-1600 bags of seashells are collected daily and about 28,000 bags monthly. The
approximate weight of a bag is about 50 kg. NARA studies revealed that dead seashells are
available in 3 locations in the bay and large heaps of dead seashells can be observed in
these three locations.
177. Seashell mining and grinding creates secondary environmental impacts such as air
pollution due to grinding and cutting of mangroves for temporary sheds for grinding mills.
4 George Michael, Secretary of Tourism Minister
5 Ruwan Weerakoon, Bottom Line Newspaper 30 th September 2009. Nb