Emerald Trails is the ambitious WNPS PLANT initiative, which hopes to help create almost uninterrupted or reasonably connected corridors of protected natural spaces and forest ecosystems within the Southwestern quarter of the island. To secure and ensure this region's genetic and ecological integrity, the linkage of forest patches with larger geographies of conserved land blocks is a priority to ensure continued movement and linkage for animals across different larger geographies of protected land blocks. 

 

The need for land conservation would arise within the single line marked spaces in this map. Within those, the project envisions creating TWO EMERALD TRAIL CORRIDORS of connectivity. One would be from the Western side of the Island to link up with the broader Sinharaja Rainforest. The second would be from the Southern side of the island commencing on one side in Nagoda to Udugama to Kanneliya Forest and onwards through Neluwa to Sinharaja (approx. 35 km straight line) and on the other, moving from Morawaka through Deniyaya to link up with Sinharaja (Approx 20 km). Secondary corridors of connectivity with other key regions like the Peak Wilderness and the Knuckles mastiff is also envisaged in the outlined map.

 

Each small corridor within a broad 2-3 Km width and over 100 kilometers of Green Carpet linking some important ecological parts of perhumid lowland rainforests is envisioned. PLANT focuses on the Emerald Trails regions for active intervention but engages in conservation at a national level where opportunities arise.