Talawakelle Tea Estates

Talawakelle Tea Estates PLC (TTEL) is a plantation company owned by the Hayleys Plantation Group, which is one of the most accredited plantation companies in Sri Lanka (seehttps://talawakelleteas.com). In June 2024,TTEL and WNPS PLANT jointly initiate done of the largest local ecosystem restoration projects. This exciting but challenging, project in the central highlands around Thalawakelle aims at reforesting and creating a continual 13 km long forest passage bordering the Nanu Oya and Agra Oya and will be supported by potentially different partners for each segment of the corridor.

TTEL is known for its high-quality Ceylon tea and owns 16 estates, some of which are spread over Nanu Oya and the Agra Oya. The company is committed to protecting natural spaces and has prioritised maintaining the riparian forest ecosystem to safeguard the overall health and function of the river. WNPS and PLANT signed an MOU with Hayleys Plantations in early 2023 to jointly protect over 2500 acres of land. This project will run through twelve estates under TTEL–Somerset, Bearwell, Dessford, Radella, Palmerston, Great Western, Mattakelle, Calsay, Clarendon, Holyrood, Wattegoda and Logie, and will create connectivity to the Great Western Mountain range forests. The project spreads over 4-5 years and easily requires over fifty thousand native trees and would create between 150 to 200 acres of new forestin the process. Giving life and hopeto many wild species in the region, the initiative employs local community for the physical work, creates new plant nurseries and will have a baseline biodiversity study done as part of the process.

PLANT appreciates TTEL's support in maintaining forest connectivity. PLANT's Science team will assess the property's current status and identify the components requiring the field team's intervention. With each step we take, we move towards creating safe wildlife passageways, thanks to our partners' support in making conservation a reality.Celebrating World Environment Day on the 5thof June2024, and the theme of the year-land restoration, desertification, and drought resistance,TTE PLC and WNPS PLANT launched the project with a tree planting program on the Somerset and Bearwell estate segments and the initial restoration work on the Somerset estate segment is funded by Avanti and Murtaza Esufally