River Basin Planning for Water Security in Sri Lanka

Abstract

In recent times, many actions were initiated in Sri Lanka to develop water resources and manage them in a sustainable manner. While these actions ranging from development projects to policy initiatives have addressed the most urgent issues, new challenges during the last few decades have made it necessary to critically examine future strategies. An analysis of recent water resources development projects in Sri Lanka shows that project formulation is increasingly adopting solutions within a river basin approach, specifically responding to climate change. However, there is a need to address sectoral issues in an integrated manner, supported by an enabling policy framework. While climate change is acknowledged as a threat to water security, water resources development planning and hydrological designs have to incorporate scientific predictions of future climatic conditions. River basin-based natural resources management, water quality management, community-based water resources management and building on traditional and local knowledge are among the subject areas where there is a potential to improve. The intricate dependencies and relationships among different water-uses such as irrigation and drinking water are important factors to be considered in addressing the current issues. The proposed approach focuses on filling the gaps and removing the barriers to water security and developing comprehensive river basin management plans.