Are the turtle hatcheries on the south coast ethical or should I avoid them

Mixed bag, and good of you to ask. Many roadside "hatcheries" on the south coast are commercial tourist attractions that hold hatchlings in concrete tanks for days or weeks so guests can pay to see and even hold them. Biologically, hatchlings need to crawl from their nest to the sea on the SAME night they hatch; that crawl imprints navigation and triggers a feeding frenzy, both of which are disrupted by tank holding. Touching them transfers oils that damage their shells, and tank-raised turtles released later have dramatically lower survival rates. The genuinely ethical option is to join a NIGHT TURTLE WATCH at Rekawa beach (near Tangalle) with the established Turtle Conservation Project (TCP), where you wait quietly on the beach for a wild female to nest, with strict no-flash and no-touching rules. That is real conservation.