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Protecting Lanka's water resources - Sunday Observer Paper Cutting

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Author Topic: Protecting Lanka's water resources - Sunday Observer Paper Cutting  (Read 236 times)
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« on: June 22, 2010, 07:24:10 am »




Climate change is affecting not only our country; almost all developed and developing countries have already focused their attention on implementing national water policies with the sole objective of facing the globalised climate change," Irrigation and Water Resources Management Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva told the Sunday Observer.

He said that with climate change, a National Water Supply Policy is vital to protect the island's resources and that such a policy will be formulated within the next few months.

The Minister assured that the Mahinda Rajapaksa Government would never impose any taxes on water from the people in the country, since the country is blessed with sufficient water resources.

He said many other countries which have not yet become concerned over the importance of protecting their natural water resources will also implement national policies on water management in the months to come

Minister de Silva said that apart from a few areas in the dry zone, our country has sufficient water resources, but the water levels in some of them are rapidly decreasing due to climate change.

"We have to face climate change bravely and the time has come to initiate various programs to save our inland water resources," the Minister said.

He said adopting a national policy on water management is necessary at this juncture. If not, valuable lands will go dry and become unproductive in the years to come.

Minister de Silva said that according to recent research carried out by his Ministry, due to the liberal use of water by many people without realising its value, the water levels of many rivers, lakes, waterways and streams have decreased to a great extent.

Rules and regulations

He said people of all ages, especially the younger generation, and the farmer community must be educated on the careful use of this freely available but vital resource.

The Minister said although rules and regulations on water management were initiated in our country, people are not keen to follow these regulations.

Therefore, new legislation must be initiated to prevent people misusing water without focusing proper attention to the resource.

On what action the Ministry must take to preserve water resources in the country, Minister de Silva said that clearing of forest ranges all over the country, especially in catchment areas, and the destroying of wetlands by people for various purposes must be stopped.

The Minister also focused attention on the many wetlands that are used for building construction or for tourism purposes. As a result, it is difficult to retain water at such places.

Water collecting methods

He said during rainy seasons, a large volume of water flows to the ocean through rivers and canals; new water collecting methods will be adopted by his Ministry to stop this wastage.

Minister de Silva said that construction of buildings and illegal occupancy by squatters and unauthorised persons in catchment areas are increasing and this situation has badly affected the existing water resources in such areas.

Therefore, steps are being taken to stop building constructions and illegal occupancies in catchment areas.

He said the younger generation must be educated on climate change and how it affects our water resources.

"As there is no proper water management, a large quantity of water flows to the ocean. We must start programs to preserve and use this water without allowing it to go to the ocean," he said.

"If we can adopt such a program, a large quantity of water which is now wasted could be used to irrigate vast areas of neglected agricultural lands even in the dry zone.

"It is pathetic that due to various reasons, our country uses only 33 percent of its water while the balance 67 percent is unnecessarily wasted," he said.

"If we can adopt such a program, a large quantity of water which is now wasted could be used to irrigate vast areas of neglected agricultural lands even in the dry zone.

"It is pathetic that due to various reasons, our country uses only 33 percent of its water while the balance 67 percent is unnecessarily wasted," he said.

The Minister said plans have been drawn up to preserve the water resources at Moragahakanda, Kaluganga, Maduruoya, Ambatanne, Badulu Oya and Uma Oya.

"To fulfil this objective, we have plans to build large tanks and reservoirs to store water. This will be very useful to farmers to cultivate their lands during both Yala and Maha seasons.

"We have also embarked on a water restoration program under the theme Dam Safety Program and accordingly we have decided to construct tanks and dams with World Bank assistance. The program will help rehabilitate existing dams in the country and also to store a large quantity of water."

The Minister said that he visited several agricultural areas in the country, especially in the North to listen to the needs of farmers and according to them, they need to see the restoration of existing lakes and tanks.

After the 30-year battle came to an end, a conducive environment prevails all over the country. So it's time to start constructing or rehabilitating tanks, lakes and dams.

He said a majority of farmers in the North are interested in re-cultivating their neglected lands which had been forcibly occupied by the LTTE for several years.

Latest methods

Minister de Silva also focused on the non-application of latest water use methods by our farmers. Due to this the majority of farmers use more water than necessary for their agricultural lands.

"We must educate them on the latest water management programs and water safety methods," he said. He said drip irrigation is essential since it will help minimise water use for their agricultural land rather than the use of buckets of water.

He said not only Sri Lanka, but several other countries have already adopted guidelines to protect water resources.

The country's future dam safety programs are handled with financial assistance from JAICA while the Uma Oya program is assisted by Iran.

He said his Ministry will carry out new irrigation projects, such as the Maduru Oya project to provide water to the Wayamba District and the Uma Oya project to provide water to the Hambantota area.

"In Melbourne, Australia, water is not allowed to be used unnecessarily to wash vehicles or at large parks. There are separate places where water is recycled and re-used for such purposes".

He said even in India recycled water is used for various purposes and Sri Lanka too must adopt such a scheme to preserve water.
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