News
Groundwater replenishment, new supply projects, and rainwater to help ease recurring crises
View(s):By Niranjala Ariyawansha
The importance of conserving the nation’s water resources has emerged as a matter of critical urgency as the need for water cuts has risen.
To address the predicted water scarcity in the future, developing the country’s ground water table and introducing more rainwater harvesting systems have been under discussion for a long time.
However, although there are more than 40 institutions related to water management, these institutions themselves allege that water management is not being done properly.
A few months ago, due to heavy rains, all rivers, streams, and reservoirs overflowed, but now reservoir capacity is rapidly declining. In this situation, the government is taking steps to formulate a proper method for water use and management in the future, the Sunday Times learns.
Sri Lanka receives a notably high average annual rainfall of 2,000 mm compared with many countries. Experts say that although the country has abundant water resources with about 103 rivers and streams, water has not been accorded the same importance as in ancient times, a fact evident in both domestic and institutional usage today.
National Water Supply and Drainage Board Chairman Chandana Bandara, who is responsible for ensuring clean drinking water supply to the public, said there is no water scarcity.
“Rather than saying there is a water crisis in the country, it would be more accurate to say there are problems with water management. That is a big problem. We are establishing a water-sharing policy. If not, we will not be able to overcome this problem in the future,” he emphasised.
The country’s water needs and use occur under several categories, and to determine volumes required for each category, the Water Management Secretariat, which operates under the Sri Lanka Mahaweli Authority, has been functioning for a long time. Under it, the first priority is identified as drinking water needs, and water is distributed under several categories such as hydropower generation, agriculture, and wildlife.
“However, there are many shortcomings in this process. Water management needs further development. There are about 40 institutions related to water management in the country, but there are many issues about how water-related priority identifications should be carried out,” he said.
He says there is no drought in the country at the moment.
The closest reason for the water cut by the NWSDB, especially in the Colombo district, is the rapid increase in people’s water consumption due to the hot weather, the intense sunshine over several weeks, and the inability to supply enough water.
While there are immediate causes, the serious issue is that new water projects had not been undertaken in the past five years. Drinking water production has remained at the same level from 2020 to date. However, due to population growth and urbanisation, the demand has increased significantly.
“Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic crisis in 2022, three water projects proposed for the Western Province in 2018-2019 were stalled. But water demand has increased. Our current production capacity is unable to cater to that demand. Not a single drop of water has been added to drinking water production in the past five years,” Mr Bandara said.
The projects to be completed are the Ambatale Water Treatment Plant with a capacity of 50,000 cubic metres, the Welivita-Hanwella plant with a capacity of 180,000 cubic metres, and the Kalu Ganga project. Had these projects been completed as planned, the water produced would have been in the system by now, he said, adding that the work at the Ambatale and Welivita-Hanwella projects has now begun.
“It will take at least three more years to complete and produce water. Within those three years, we will not be able to add even a drop of new water to the system,” he pointed out.
Despite the high annual rainfall and the presence of over 100 rivers, as well as numerous large reservoirs, the lack of national-level promotion for water storage as an alternative to facing water scarcity during certain periods of the year is a serious problem.
Dr Tanuja Ariyananda, chief executive officer of non-profit Rainwater Harvesting Forum, said the method of storing rainwater for the dry months is a national necessity.
“We are now using only about 40% of the annual rainfall, and the remaining 60% flows into the sea. We introduced this system as far back as 1996. To date, about 50,000 rainwater harvesting systems have been built in nine districts in the dry zone and the highland wet zone with limited water facilities. These systems have been built by us, other NGOs, and the Ministry of Environment. Through these, four to five hundred thousand people can obtain drinking water,” Dr Ariyananda said.
Understanding the importance of rainwater harvesting, there is a parliamentary act that legalised it, namely the Urban Development Authority (Amendment) Act No. 36 of 2007, but Dr Ariyananda said he doubts it is in effect.
“This law makes it mandatory to include a rainwater harvesting system in every new building. The act also states that old buildings should also have this built within three years. However, even if we check the building plan for a rainwater harvesting system, municipal officials do not actually look into whether it has been built,” she said.
She emphasised that rainwater can be 100% recommended for use as drinking water if properly maintained and managed. She points out that the water quality of rainwater is very high for drinking water needs, especially in rural areas with minimal environmental pollution.
“Even with a small roof 50 metres long, a tank can be built to collect rainwater. The cost is only for building the tank. Our houses have the necessary roofs, gutters, and pipes. The first rain shower should not be collected in the storage tank but should be discarded, and water should be collected from the next rain experience onwards. If further purification is needed, a purifier can be made at home using materials like pebbles and charcoal. If there is still doubt, the drinking water only can be boiled,” she stated.
However, due to urban pollution, including vehicle exhaust fumes, it is not recommended to drink rainwater in urban areas, she said.
“Urban dwellers do not need to drink rainwater as they have tap water,” she said.
RWH research in rural areas has confirmed that rainwater is of much higher quality than well water.
Another aspect of water management is increasing ground water volume. The Water Resources Board (WRB) is the regulatory body of groundwater in Sri Lanka. Its role is to protect groundwater, prevent contamination and work towards increasing the water table.
WRB chairman, geologist R.M.S. Bandara, said a larger amount of rainwater needs to flow into the ground to increase the groundwater table. Accordingly, the WRB is researching the technology of feeding water from the rainy season into dry aquifers after identifying aquifers where water is retained underground.
“We are researching where the dry aquifers are and how to feed more water into them, store it, and bring it back up during the dry season. This method already exists in the world but is not popular in Sri Lanka. They have already done tests in various places. We are looking for ways to promote this. Proper technology is needed. The people need to be trained. This needs to be developed. In fact, what is expected from this is not collecting rainwater on the surface, but collecting it underground. This will develop the groundwater system,” he said.
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