The Ministry of Environment has set up a special ministerial committee to oversee Sri Lanka’s national water conservation programmes, including the gazetting of vital aquifers and the protection of surface and underground water systems, the ministry said on Thursday.
The panel will operate under the supervision of the Ministry Secretary and bring together experts from the Water Resources Board, the Central Environmental Authority, and the ministry’s Natural Resources Management Division. Its mandate covers monitoring of protective mechanisms for rivers, reservoirs and groundwater, as well as the identification of aquifers that require formal legal protection.
Deputy Minister of Environment Anton Jayakody, who chaired the preliminary meeting held at the ministry on April 9, said a robust legal framework and community-led reforestation would be needed to safeguard the water systems identified by the committee. Water Resources Board General Manager R.M.B. Somaratne and senior CEA officials also attended.
The initiative follows the launch of the “Thirasara Diyawara” National Programme on World Water Day and builds on recent cabinet approval to completely amend the 62-year-old Water Resources Board Act, which the government says is outdated for modern groundwater governance. The ministry plans to formally commence the integrated conservation programme to coincide with World Environment Day.
The timing also lines up with warnings from the Department of Meteorology that an El Niño pattern could bring below-normal rainfall through September, raising concern over reservoir levels and groundwater dependency in the dry zone. Homagama and other Colombo suburbs have already experienced scheduled water cuts as dry weather squeezes supply.
