Planning has begun for the first stage of “Greenway”, a roadside tree-planting programme that aims to put one million trees along Sri Lanka’s main roads under the coordination of the Clean Sri Lanka Secretariat, news.lk reported.
A planning discussion was held at the Presidential Secretariat on the morning of 10 September under the patronage of Secretary to the President Dr. Nandika Sanath Kumanayake. The programme carries the tagline “A Breath for the Nation — Shade for the Road.”
Where the trees go
Planting is to follow Class A and Class B roads under the Road Development Authority, with species matched to the ecological zone of each stretch. The list under consideration is almost entirely native or long-naturalised: Murutha, Palu, Bulu, Tamarind, Mal Ehela, Rajarata Ehela, Magul Karanda, Maila, Pihimbiya, Madatiya, Goraka, Divul, Na, Kohomba, Kalu Mediriya, Dan, Veralu, Katu Anoda, Kumbuk, Mee, Pethan and Beli, alongside fruit trees including jackfruit and mango. Newly planted trees are to be protected with guard mesh.
Two objectives are named. The first is commuter-facing: cutting air pollution, moderating temperatures and improving the look of urban areas in Colombo, Gampaha, Kurunegala and Galle. The second is industrial — creating tree cover around the Biyagama, Katunayake and Seethawaka zones so that smoke and pollutants can be absorbed naturally.
Who is involved
The Secretariat is drawing in the Department of Forest Conservation, the Road Development Authority, the Department of National Botanic Gardens and all three armed services, along with other state and non-state institutions. Officials said particular attention was given to securing broad public participation, naming roadside communities, schools, the private sector and entrepreneurs as target participants.
Additional Secretary to the President S. P. C. Sugeeshwara and Coordinating Director Dasun Wijesekara represented the Clean Sri Lanka programme at the discussion. Clean Sri Lanka is the same parent programme running Local Government Week and the special dengue control drive.
Not reported
No cost, funding source or timetable is given, and the report does not say how many of the one million trees the initial stage covers or when planting starts. It does not say who maintains or waters the trees after planting, how survival rates will be tracked, or how roadside planting will be reconciled with road-widening and utility work. This account rests on the government’s own news service; no independent newsroom had filed on the programme at the time of writing.
