Adaptation to climate variability in Sri Lanka: a case study of the Huruluwewa Irrigation System in the Dry Zone
This paper assesses how the Huruluwewa tank (HWT) irrigation system in the North Central Province of Sri Lanka adapts to climate variability. The lessons learned in the HWT will be helpful for many water-scarce irrigation systems in the country, which bear high climate risks. Recurrent droughts are...
| Autores principales: | , , , , , , |
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| Formato: | Artículo preliminar |
| Lenguaje: | Inglés |
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International Water Management Institute
2021
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| Acceso en línea: | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/115928 |
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| author | Amarasinghe, Upali A. Amarnath, Giriraj Alahacoon, Niranga Aheeyar, Mohamed M. M. Chandrasekharan, Kiran M. Ghosh, Surajit Nakada, Toru |
| author_browse | Aheeyar, Mohamed M. M. Alahacoon, Niranga Amarasinghe, Upali A. Amarnath, Giriraj Chandrasekharan, Kiran M. Ghosh, Surajit Nakada, Toru |
| author_facet | Amarasinghe, Upali A. Amarnath, Giriraj Alahacoon, Niranga Aheeyar, Mohamed M. M. Chandrasekharan, Kiran M. Ghosh, Surajit Nakada, Toru |
| author_sort | Amarasinghe, Upali A. |
| collection | Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace) |
| description | This paper assesses how the Huruluwewa tank (HWT) irrigation system in the North Central Province of Sri Lanka adapts to climate variability. The lessons learned in the HWT will be helpful for many water-scarce irrigation systems in the country, which bear high climate risks. Recurrent droughts are the bane of agriculture in the Dry Zone, comprising three-fourths of the land area spread over the Northern, North Central and Eastern provinces. In the HWT, the fifteenth largest canal irrigation system in the country, adaptation to climate variability happens on several fronts: changes made by the irrigation management to the water release regime; changes in the cropping patterns practiced by farmers in the command area; and the use of groundwater, which is recharged from rainfall, reservoir storage and canal irrigation, as supplemental irrigation. Such adaptation measures ensure that the available water supply in the reservoir is adequate for 100% cropping intensity over two cropping seasons, even in drought years, and enhances economic water productivity in terms of value per unit of consumptive water use. Moreover, irrigation management should consider groundwater recharge through canal irrigation as a resource, which brings substantial agricultural and economic benefits not only for the command area but also outside the command area. The adaptation patterns implemented in HWT demonstrate how water-scarce irrigation systems can achieve higher economic water productivity, i.e., generate ‘more income per drop’ to enhance climate resilience for people in and outside the canal command areas. |
| format | Artículo preliminar |
| id | CGSpace115928 |
| institution | CGIAR Consortium |
| language | Inglés |
| publishDate | 2021 |
| publishDateRange | 2021 |
| publishDateSort | 2021 |
| publisher | International Water Management Institute |
| publisherStr | International Water Management Institute |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | CGSpace1159282025-11-07T08:44:34Z Adaptation to climate variability in Sri Lanka: a case study of the Huruluwewa Irrigation System in the Dry Zone Amarasinghe, Upali A. Amarnath, Giriraj Alahacoon, Niranga Aheeyar, Mohamed M. M. Chandrasekharan, Kiran M. Ghosh, Surajit Nakada, Toru climate variability climate change adaptation irrigation systems arid zones tank irrigation irrigation canals irrigation management land use cropping patterns water supply water depletion crop production water use efficiency irrigation efficiency water productivity water availability drought rainfall patterns risk resilience water scarcity water management reservoirs water spreading catchment areas water storage groundwater recharge water accounting water policies seasonal cropping diversification crop water use consumptive use farmers farm income remote sensing geographical information systems case studies This paper assesses how the Huruluwewa tank (HWT) irrigation system in the North Central Province of Sri Lanka adapts to climate variability. The lessons learned in the HWT will be helpful for many water-scarce irrigation systems in the country, which bear high climate risks. Recurrent droughts are the bane of agriculture in the Dry Zone, comprising three-fourths of the land area spread over the Northern, North Central and Eastern provinces. In the HWT, the fifteenth largest canal irrigation system in the country, adaptation to climate variability happens on several fronts: changes made by the irrigation management to the water release regime; changes in the cropping patterns practiced by farmers in the command area; and the use of groundwater, which is recharged from rainfall, reservoir storage and canal irrigation, as supplemental irrigation. Such adaptation measures ensure that the available water supply in the reservoir is adequate for 100% cropping intensity over two cropping seasons, even in drought years, and enhances economic water productivity in terms of value per unit of consumptive water use. Moreover, irrigation management should consider groundwater recharge through canal irrigation as a resource, which brings substantial agricultural and economic benefits not only for the command area but also outside the command area. The adaptation patterns implemented in HWT demonstrate how water-scarce irrigation systems can achieve higher economic water productivity, i.e., generate ‘more income per drop’ to enhance climate resilience for people in and outside the canal command areas. 2021-11-09 2021-11-09T18:38:14Z 2021-11-09T18:38:14Z Working Paper https://hdl.handle.net/10568/115928 en Open Access application/pdf International Water Management Institute Amarasinghe, Upali A.; Amarnath, Giriraj; Alahacoon, Niranga; Aheeyar, Mohamed; Chandrasekharan, Kiran; Ghosh, Surajit; Nakada, Toru. 2021. Adaptation to climate variability in Sri Lanka: a case study of the Huruluwewa Irrigation System in the Dry Zone. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). 30p. (IWMI Working Paper 200) [doi: https://doi.org/10.5337/2021.229] |
| spellingShingle | climate variability climate change adaptation irrigation systems arid zones tank irrigation irrigation canals irrigation management land use cropping patterns water supply water depletion crop production water use efficiency irrigation efficiency water productivity water availability drought rainfall patterns risk resilience water scarcity water management reservoirs water spreading catchment areas water storage groundwater recharge water accounting water policies seasonal cropping diversification crop water use consumptive use farmers farm income remote sensing geographical information systems case studies Amarasinghe, Upali A. Amarnath, Giriraj Alahacoon, Niranga Aheeyar, Mohamed M. M. Chandrasekharan, Kiran M. Ghosh, Surajit Nakada, Toru Adaptation to climate variability in Sri Lanka: a case study of the Huruluwewa Irrigation System in the Dry Zone |
| title | Adaptation to climate variability in Sri Lanka: a case study of the Huruluwewa Irrigation System in the Dry Zone |
| title_full | Adaptation to climate variability in Sri Lanka: a case study of the Huruluwewa Irrigation System in the Dry Zone |
| title_fullStr | Adaptation to climate variability in Sri Lanka: a case study of the Huruluwewa Irrigation System in the Dry Zone |
| title_full_unstemmed | Adaptation to climate variability in Sri Lanka: a case study of the Huruluwewa Irrigation System in the Dry Zone |
| title_short | Adaptation to climate variability in Sri Lanka: a case study of the Huruluwewa Irrigation System in the Dry Zone |
| title_sort | adaptation to climate variability in sri lanka a case study of the huruluwewa irrigation system in the dry zone |
| topic | climate variability climate change adaptation irrigation systems arid zones tank irrigation irrigation canals irrigation management land use cropping patterns water supply water depletion crop production water use efficiency irrigation efficiency water productivity water availability drought rainfall patterns risk resilience water scarcity water management reservoirs water spreading catchment areas water storage groundwater recharge water accounting water policies seasonal cropping diversification crop water use consumptive use farmers farm income remote sensing geographical information systems case studies |
| url | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/115928 |
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