Web of Life

Coordinator, Water Professionals’ Day Symposium and President/Geo-informatics Society of Sri Lanka

Today’s water crisis is widespread and continuing...

Part of the country suffers from drought while elsewhere in the country, floods and landslides challenge our existence...

With current policies for managing water, it will only widen and deepen the crisis.

It is timely for water professionals to get-together to resolve our crisis. Water Professionals’ Day symposium is the forum for researchers, scientists, educators, students, policy makers and other stakeholders to join hands to strengthen Water Professionalism in order to manage our water resources for the betterment of our people.

Water is a precious natural resource. The success of agriculture depends on the reliable supply of water for crops. Need for sufficient and equitable distribution of irrigation water has led to the development of new concepts such as bulk water allocation. Indiscriminate use of ground water has become a serious problem in some parts of the country and requires relevant legislature for control and management. Food security for the entire nation relies on proper water management in agriculture. Industries have become competing water users today. While ensuring sufficient water allocation for industries, it is imperative to dispose the industrial affluent without contaminating our surface and ground waters. Water for hydro power generation has been a much debated topic in the recent past. Enhanced climatic variability demands for more and more water storage reservoirs. Sea water intrusion curtails our water supplies to urban dwellers. Problems of sand mining threaten the stability of hydraulic structures. In addition to the quantity, the quality of our water resources in view of microbial, agrochemical and industrial and solid waste disposal has become a major concern today. Health hazards associated with poor water management has drawn much attention than never before. Dengue, Malaria and other water borne diseases became epidemics in the country in the recent past. Demand for water is on the increase for recreation use and water sports as well.

The importance of a water policy for the country has been a theme for discussion. Water rights, water tax and other policy implications have even influenced the people to change governments. In this regard, many government agencies are delegated powers to deal with water. Local authorities, i.e. Pradeshiya Sabhas, Municipals and Urban Councils supply water for domestic, commercial and industrial sector in retail. For those who cannot afford priced water with community water pipes are provided. In the recent past, the local water policy supported by the ADB states that only the private sector has the capacity to meet the water needs of the country considering water as an economic good. This is a major conceptual shift towards private sector involvement allowing public water and sanitation services to be in the hands of the private sector. Decision-making about allocation and distribution of water should be democratic and based on everyone’s fundamental right to a clean, healthy water supply. Management of water resources should be based on long-term sustainability rather than on profit maximization. The right to access water for the life of people, animals and vegetation should not be allowed to be violated by any policy. The present government shows an obvious deviation from these policies of privatization while ensuring the participation of people in water resources management. ‘Thousands Tank’ programme shows a major shift in the water policy of the new government. It is evident that water resources management and related sectors are gaining in importance in Sri Lanka like never before.

However, water is an issue, which should be looked beyond the human perspective. Water management needs an environmental protection agenda, such as protecting water from pollution, making necessary amount of water available, ensuring water sovereignty and protecting the water from being taken illegitimately.