National reservoir storage has fallen to 37%, with the steepest declines concentrated in the eastern dry zone, the Department of Irrigation said.
Ampara district reservoirs are the lowest in the country at 22.8% of capacity. Batticaloa stands at 25.7% and Trincomalee at 28.2%, according to figures reported by NewsFirst.
The department said reservoirs that supply drinking water remain without any issue, a distinction it has drawn consistently through the current dry spell.
Mahaweli system holding higher
The Mahaweli Water Management Secretariat reported that reservoirs under its control are at 57% of capacity. Mahaweli reservoirs used for power generation stand at 65%.
That gap — roughly 20 percentage points between the Mahaweli system and the national irrigation figure — reflects the concentration of the shortfall in smaller dry zone tanks rather than the large multi-purpose reservoirs.
A steady decline since July
The 37% figure continues a downward run through the season. The Irrigation Department put national storage at 42% on July 30, and at just over 39% on August 4, when only two reservoirs were still spilling.
The decline has tracked prevailing dry conditions linked to El Niño. Farmers in the Northern, North Central, Eastern and Uva provinces have reported crop damage, and wildlife authorities have been trucking water by bowser into Yala, Wilpattu, Kumana and Bundala national parks as water bodies inside them dry up.
The Department of Meteorology has said significant rainfall is not expected in the worst-affected areas before October and November, leaving dry zone cultivators facing a further two to three months without meaningful relief.
Update, August 18: storage flat at 37.2%, none of the 74 reservoirs spilling
National storage has barely moved in the following week. Sri Lanka’s 74 major reservoirs held 37.2% of their combined effective capacity as of August 16, Director of Irrigation (Water Management) Eng. H.M.P.S.D. Herath said in figures reported by Daily Mirror.
None of the 74 reservoirs were spilling during the period covered, August 10 to 16 — down from the two still spilling on August 4.
The district picture is sharply uneven. Kurunegala recorded the highest effective storage at 76.6%, followed by Puttalam at 67.8%, Kandy at 63.3% and Monaragala at 59.5%.
At individual reservoirs, Deduru Oya stood at 98.2%, Wan Ela at 98.0% and Rajangana at 86.0%. Against those, Muruthawela was down to 2.4%, Manankattiya to 2.8% and Ethimale to 5.7%.
The report gives total effective storage as 1.106 million acre-feet and cites a figure of 1,248,382 acre-feet against total capacity. Those two numbers do not reconcile with the stated 37.2%, and Daily Mirror does not resolve the discrepancy; the percentage is consistent with the trend reported over the preceding fortnight.
