STORY: Flourishing underwater garden of Colombo Port City shows China's green footprint in Sri Lanka
SHOOTING TIME: Nov. 28, 2024
DATELINE: Dec. 5, 2024
LENGTH: 00:02:21
LOCATION: Colombo
CATEGORY: ENVIRONMENT

SHOTLIST:
1. various of the breakwater of Sri Lanka's Colombo Port City
2. various of corals and fish
3. various of Piyal de Silva and his diving school
4. SOUNDBITE 1 (English): PIYAL DE SILVA, Former commander of Sri Lankan Navy
5. various of Piyal de Silva
6. SOUNDBITE 2 (English): PIYAL DE SILVA, Former commander of Sri Lankan Navy
7. various of corals and fish

STORYLINE:

The 3.7-km breakwater of Sri Lanka's Colombo Port City, resembles a flourishing garden teeming with corals and fish when viewed from underwater.
   
This marine ecosystem was first discovered in 2019 by Piyal de Silva, a former commander of the Sri Lankan Navy.

As a diving enthusiast since his youth, Piyal runs a diving school called "Coral Wall" inside the Port City.

SOUNDBITE 1 (English): PIYAL DE SILVA, Former commander of Sri Lankan Navy
"That was in 2019. I came here to dive at a shipwreck and I could not find the location. So, therefore, I decided to come inside the water body of the Port City. So while diving along the breakwater, I saw small corals emerging on some boulders. So immediately it came to my mind that one day this area will become a fully-fledged coral colony.
So after surfacing a couple of days later, I came and met the managing director of the Port City at that time. So then I told him that it is really necessary to protect this and allow me to observe the growth of this coral further, and he allowed me.
I decided to have a coral nursery and replant the corals that are broken loose. I submitted a proposal to establish a diving center near the beach, so that the corals that are growing along the breakwater, as well as the corals in the nursery can be easily protected.
This is designed in a very unique way. And we used all recyclable, reusable, and upcyclable items."

Piyal's coral nursery plan gained support from the Port City authorities and they invited Chinese experts to conduct underwater surveys and guide coral cultivation.
   
SOUNDBITE 2 (English): PIYAL DE SILVA, Former commander of Sri Lankan Navy
"And we got the scientific support from the South China Sea Institute of Oceanology, and they are very supportive, very enthusiastic professors. They come here and support me and they advise me exactly how the corals should be grown, and I am adhering to their instructions. So with that, I can see very good progress in our coral nurseries. I can see a lot of fish growing here."

Since 2024, the Port City has collaborated with Chinese and Sri Lankan research institutions to further enhance the underwater garden, including adding 68 coral nursery groups and cultivating over 5,000 coral plants.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Colombo.
(XHTV)