Just two reservoirs under the Irrigation Department were spilling as of 12.30 p.m. on Tuesday, and the country’s 73 major reservoirs were holding an average 39.3% of capacity, according to the department’s latest Water Management Division report.
The Ambewela Reservoir in the Badulla District, on the Mahaweli Ganga, is spilling through one overflow section. Bomuruella Reservoir, also in Badulla District and also on the Mahaweli Ganga, is spilling through three overflow sections. No spill gates had been opened at any Irrigation Department reservoir at the time of reporting.
The 73 major reservoirs together hold 1,310,756 acre-feet of water, with effective storage of 1,168,139 acre-feet.
Storage highest in the north-west, lowest in the east
The figures vary sharply by irrigation range. Kurunegala recorded the highest effective storage at 77.1%, followed by Puttalam at 72.2%, Kandy at 70.8% and Monaragala at 58.8%.
The lowest levels were in the east: Ampara at 23.0%, Batticaloa at 24.9% and Trincomalee at 29.3%.
The contrast underlines that the current spell of severe weather has been concentrated in the central highlands and the south-west rather than nationwide. The same rainfall that has driven flooding and landslides that killed eight people and affected more than 11,800 has left the dry-zone tanks that matter most for irrigated agriculture still well below half full.
The department advised people living downstream of the spilling reservoirs to stay alert, as river levels may fluctuate, and to follow instructions issued by the Irrigation Department and local authorities on reservoir spilling and changes in river conditions.
Source: Daily Mirror.
