The Environment Protection Agency (EPA) has issued a temporarily halt on some components of the development project of Velifinolhu in Alif Alif atoll.
The agency revealed that they have received complaints of reefs near the region where work is ongoing at Veligandu Island Resort being affected by mud.
With this being said, the contractor has been instructed to temporarily halt the development work and to make sure measures are enforced to ensure the impacts of mud, spreading outside the resort’s lagoon, is reduced.
EPA is currently looking into the matter, in collaboration with other relevant government institutions.
This comes at a time the issue of sand mining off a big chunk of the Veligandu Island Resort’s lagoon has surfaced, due to which the Alif Alif Atoll Council has expressed immense concerns. Veligandu Island Resort is run by Crown Company Maldives.
In a press release, the council noted that the issue of mining sand for business purposes, without the use of the adequate machineries from Madivaru lagoon, have left severe environmental impacts and damages to the sandbanks in the region. Due to this, the island council of Rasdhoo in the atoll had requested for the EPA to designate another location for the purpose of sand mining, on 30 October 2019. EPA had notified the council of another location being allocated for the purpose on 5 November the same year.
The council revealed that a big portion of the Madivaru lagoon is deemed protected by the agency, however, due to sand mining in one side of the lagoon, smaller sandbanks in the region are being wiped out, some snorkeling and diving spots are also facing severe damages including the eradication of marine life.
Due to this, communities and guesthouse owners have been holding protests, calling on the authorities to protect the region.
At a time the work in the region has been halted temporarily to reduce the impacts on the environment as well as the tourism sector, the council has sought from relevant authorities to bring a permanent solution to the matter.
