He said that coastal erosion is a global phenomenon that poses grave environmental and economic challenges to the countries, in particular to Developing Coastal States. He further stated that loss of land, threats to coastal ecosystems and the impact on climate change are only a few of them. Small Island Developing States are particularly vulnerable to these challenges, accentuated by rising sea levels due to global warming, Ambassador Perera added.
The Ambassador made these observations making welcome remarks at a side event entitled “Coastline Erosion and its Contribution to Climate Change” co-hosted by the Permanent Mission of Sri Lanka to the United Nations held on Wednesday (20) at the UN Headquarters with the participation of a large number of Permanent Representatives, senior diplomats and members of the civil society.
He reiterated that though Sri Lanka is not considered a Small Island State, the challenges posed by coastal erosion are nonetheless felt severely.
Mr. Gregory J. Sarno, President of the Coastline Recovery Foundation made a presentation on coastal erosion and climate change, and the new technologies available to mitigate the effects of coastal erosion.
The discussion that followed the statements and the presentation, focused on the gravity of the issue and shed light on the various high technological as well as low-cost traditional options available to face the challenges posed by coastline erosion.
Many Permanent Representatives and diplomats expressed their appreciation to Sri Lanka for taking this initiative.
