Abstract
Water availability is a critical factor in deciding the performance of water use sectors. Spatial and temporal availability of water in a location is determined by a combination of parameters. The objective of this study was to assess the spatial and temporal availability of water in Deduru Oya river basin in Sri Lanka by developing Water Availability Indices (WAI). In this study, the Divisional Secretariat Division (DS) (an administrative division) was considered as the basic spatial unit for data collection and mapping. Spatial data such as rainfall, drainage density, surface water resources, agro well density, pipe borne water coverage, water quality, land use (paddy) and population density were considered as the parameters that affect water availability. Analytical Hierarchical Process (AHP) was used in assigning weightages to each parameter. Individual DS was given a score between 0 and 20 scale for each parameter based on actual parameter values. Finally, these parameters were compiled into two WAIs which are based on general water availability (WAIg) and consumption related water availability (WAIc). Results revealed a considerable spatial variation of WAIs within this basin. Temporal variability in indices was also seen between two major cultivation seasons namely Yala and Maha, indicating impacts on water related activities in the basin.
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Gunawardena, D.L.K., Dayawansa, N.D.K. (2020). Assessment of Water Availability for Agriculture and Other Uses – Development of Indices for Deduru Oya River Basin in Sri Lanka. In: Haque, A., Chowdhury, A. (eds) Water, Flood Management and Water Security Under a Changing Climate. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-47786-8_13
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