Ministry of Mahaweli Development & Environment in collaboration with UNDP have been implemented a project on enhancing biodiversity conservation and sustenance of ecosystem services in environmentally sensitive areas (ESAs). Such areas will be a driving force for the safeguard biodiversity especially in outside protected areas such as agricultural lands, small tank ecosystems which has high conservation values. In order to achieve this objective project implemented in two selected sites within Kala Oya basin.

1. Business and Environment
4 Year General Degree program
Dept. of Zoology and Environmental science
University of Colombo
8/17/2018
The overall integration of environmental economics into
the Kala Oya Environmental Sensitive Area
The peak of the Manawe Kanda Mountain in IpalogamaThe peak of the Manawe Kanda Mountain in Ipalogama

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The overall integration of environmental economics into the Kala
Oya Environmental Sensitive Area
Submitted to:
Department of Zoology and Environmental science
Faculty of Science
University of Colombo
Submitted by:
Student name Index
1 E.G.I.Wasana 12250
2 AshanWijethilaka 12256
3 J.M.D.Indrachapa 12293
4 W.C.N.Wijerathna 12302
5 W.V.Y.Vidyani 12320
6 W.M.K.Kalhara 12329
7 D.M.P.S.Dissanayaka 12375
8 H.K.A. Ishara 12390

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Abstract
Ministry of Mahaweli Development & Environment in collaboration with UNDP have been
implemented a project on enhancing biodiversity conservation and sustenance of ecosystem
services in environmentally sensitive areas (ESAs). Such areas will be a driving force for the
safeguard biodiversity especially in outside protected areas such as agricultural lands, small tank
ecosystems which has high conservation values. In order to achieve this objective project
implemented in two selected sites within Kala Oya basin. The basin plays a vital role in water
purification, flood attenuation, carbon sequestration, fishery, agriculture etc. This report
describes an exercise that was undertaken in the Kala Oya Basin to assess the livelihood and
biodiversity valuesof traditional tank systems which is Habarawaththa tank cascade system.
While working on this ecosystems management and restoration at ESAs, the project also
identified ecotourism destination such as Manawe Kanda and generate job opportunities to the
local community. Further this project support for the supplying healthy foods and nutrition
through introducing sustainable ecological farming and home garden improvement, traditional
rice farming, establish community awareness program on importance of ecosystem services. This
study emphasizes that how integrate benefits arise from rehabilitation of the Habarawaththa tank
cascade system into biodiversity, economics and livelihood aspects which could ensure long
term sustainability of the service provide by the Kala Oya river basin.

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Content
1.0 Introduction ............................................................................................................................................6
1.1 Objectives............................................................................................................................................7
1.2 Kala Oya river basin.............................................................................................................................8
1.2.1 Background of ESAs in Kala Oya River Basin................................................................................8
1.2.2 Kala Oya Estuary...........................................................................................................................8
1.3 Major Resources and Services Provided by the Tanks in the Kala Oya Basin.....................................9
1.4 Ecological restoration of Habarawatta Cascade Tank Systems ........................................................11
1.4.1 Background ................................................................................................................................11
1.4.2 Tank Cascade System.................................................................................................................12
1.4.3 Project introduction...................................................................................................................14
1.4.3 Target beneficiaries of the project.............................................................................................14
1.5 Promoting tourism in the ESA...........................................................................................................16
1.5.1 Manawe Kanda Eco-park ...........................................................................................................16
1.5.2. Kala Oya Bathing Place- a case study for over visitation and mis-management of tourism ....18
1.6 Ecological Farming to protect biological diversity............................................................................18
1.6.1 Background ................................................................................................................................18
1.6.2 Introduction to ecological farming ............................................................................................19
1.6.3 Ecological farming under the small tank cascade system development project.......................19
1.7 Major Stakeholders of Kala-Oya ESA Project....................................................................................20
2.0 Methodology.........................................................................................................................................21
3.0 Observations.........................................................................................................................................22
3.1 cascade system .................................................................................................................................22
3.2 Ecological Farming ............................................................................................................................23
3.3 Manawe Kanda Eco-park ..................................................................................................................24
3.4 Kala Oya bathing place......................................................................................................................26
4.0 Discussion..............................................................................................................................................27
4.1 Restoration of cascade system and ecological farming in Habaraththawa......................................27
4.2 Miss management of Kala Oya bathing place...................................................................................28

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4.3 Valuation of Tank Ecosystem............................................................................................................29
4.4 Valuation of Manawe Kanda Eco-Park (MKEC).................................................................................31
5.0 Recommendations................................................................................................................................33
6.0 Conclusions ...........................................................................................................................................35

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List of Figures
Figure 1: Restoration tank………………………………………………………………..…………………………………………………..21
Figure 2:Foot pathway for the paddy…………………………………………………………………………………………………….21
Figure 3: Kattakaduwa……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….....21
Figure 4: Gas Gommana…………...................................................................................................................22
Figure 5: Home garden ...............................................................................................................................23
Figure 6: Archeological cave .......................................................................................................................25
Figure 7: Ancient ruined building................................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.
Figure 8: Ancient ruined building complex.................................................................................................25
Figure 9: Adventure tourism to peak point of the Manawe Kanda............................................................25
Figure 10: Peak point view..........................................................................................................................25
Figure 11: Traditional “Nelum kole” foods and meals................................................................................25

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1.0 Introduction
Sri Lanka is a rich island with abundance of blue- green natural resource and it has been listed as
one of the 34 global ‘biodiversity hotspots’ due to this significant biological diversity. This
diverse ecosystem has direct contribution towards country’s long term sustainable development
and human wellbeing. It also provides valuable environmental services such as major
provisioning services; fresh water, food, energy, major regulating services; protection from
natural hazards, water and air purification, supporting services; nutrient and water cycling and
other cultural services; recreation and ecotourism.
However with rapid urbanization and country’s other development activities put massive
pressure on this rich biodiversity and ecosystems services which leads to dramatically decreasing
the ability of potential benefits and economic gains from this biodiversity. Most of time major
developmental activities carryout only considering impacts identification and introducing
mitigation measures for those impacts. Therefore it’s essential to valuation of those
environmental cost using suitable ecosystem valuation techniques in order to protect the sensitive
nature of the ecosystems. At the same time to enhance the country’s position as a global
biodiversity hotspot and as a prestigious ecotourism destination.
Hence, priority should be goes to protection of these resources and take appropriate measures to
conserve Sri Lanka’s biodiversity. However considerable contribution had been already made by
government agencies to protect the natural and heritage resources within declared wildlife, forest
reserve and heritage areas. Other than that there are significantly important and
“Environmentally Sensitive Areas” (ESAs) outside the declared protected areas such as
watersheds/ tank cascade system, which provide essential environmental services to the
development of the country. So that it also need attention for protect these ESAs.
As a result, the Ministry of Mahaweli Development and Environment (MMDE) in collaboration
with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) developed five-year pilot project,
jointly funded by the Global Environmental Facility (GEF) and the Government of Sri Lanka to
improve biodiversity conservation and sustenance of ecosystems services in Environmentally
Sensitive Areas. In order to achieve this objective project implemented within Kala Oya basin,
two selected sites have been identified as proposed ESAs in dry zone regions; Kala Wewa region
(large reservoir or tank cascade systems )in the North Central Province covering Kakirawa,
Ipalogama, Palagala, Galnawa Divisional Secretariat Divisions and Wilpattu region including
Bar Reef and the estuary of the Kala Oya river in the North Western Province within
Wanathavilluwa and Karuwalagaswewa Divisional Secretariat Divisions. (Environmentally
Sensitive Areas- UNDP Sri Lanka )

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Thousands of ancient tanks spread within dry zone in Sri Lanka which has both ecological and
biological importance. Tank system created to capture northeast monsoon rains for dry and
intermediate areas thus prevent local floods and increase ground water recharge. This small tank
cascade systems called ‘Ellangawa’ are successful traditional tank system of collecting and
utilizing rain water for various uses including agriculture and domestic purposes etc.
There are lots of services provided by these small tank cascade system including cascade tank
ecosystem restored to secure biodiversity, enhance food provision, enhancing water availability
throughout the year, and enabling mitigation and adaptation during flood and drought situations.
(Ecological restoration of cascade system, IUCN 2013-2015) However nowadays these cascade
systems have not being managed properly. Therefore ecological restoration of these ESAs should
be essential. Most importantly rehabilitation of these tank system help to community empowered
for maintain the tank cascade system and thereby become more self-sufficient. As a result local
community engages in sustainable ecological farming activities and home garden improvement
to enhanced provision of healthy food and nutrition. This also created more livelihood
opportunities.
While engaged in ecosystems management and restoration at ESAs, the project also plans to
generate employment opportunities through nature-based activities (e.g. ecotourism). There are
isolated mountains spread within this dry zone region that have been shown with rich
biodiversity; home to many important species including endemic species. Therefore
understanding of the potential alternatives and eco-employment ability will contribute to
conserve those isolated hills. By doing so it is expected, these will lead to effective planning,
coordination and reduce the pressure caused by illegal and poor land use practices on this
important biodiversity hotspot.
1.1 Objectives
This report describes an exercise that was undertaken in the Kala Oya Basin of Sri Lanka to
assess the biodiversity and livelihood values of ESAs. Under that,
 Evaluate success in rehabilitation and management of Habarawaththa small tank cascade
system in the Kala Oya river basin.
 Developing and applying methods for valuing ecosystem services of small tank cascade
system in the Kala Oya river basin.
 Identifying community-level economic incentives for areas where high significance
conservation need.
 Promote ecotourism plan for preserving the rich biodiversity, culture and heritage areas
and benefits to the local communities in the long run.

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1.2 Kala Oya river basin
1.2.1 Background of ESAs in Kala Oya River Basin
The Kala Oya basin is one of 103 river basins in Sri Lanka. It is around 2,870 sq. km in area and
76% of the basin is situated in the northwestern dry zone of Sri Lanka. Its elevation varies from
sea level to 600 m above mean sea level (MSL) at its headwaters. The Kala Oya basin is long
and narrow - 150 km long and about 25 km wide on average. There are about 600 minor
irrigation tanks, including abandoned tanks, within the basin which provide many services to the
local communities in addition to providing irrigation water. Kala Oya cuts across North Central,
Central and North Western Provinces of the country. Kala Oya basin receives water from the
Mahaweli1 River, via the Bowatenna diversion, to meet approximately 75% of its annual
demand. Bowatenna reservoir has two tunnels: a four mile long, 18 ft. diameter tunnel to divert
water for irrigation in the Kala Oya, Malwathu Oya and Yan Oya basins, and another to take
spent water from the Bowatenna power house to downstream irrigation systems.
The Kala Oya Basin contains a largely rural population of some 400,000 people, most of whom
are engaged in farming as their main form of livelihood. Cultivation of rice and other crops is
combined with fishing and the harvesting of wild plants and animals. There is a particularly high
incidence of poverty in this area, with just under half of the population being classified as poor
according to national indicators.
The Mahaweli Authority of Sri Lanka (MASL) and the Department of Irrigation (ID) managed
larger scale irrigation systems such as Rajangana and Mahaweli System contribute to the
hydrology of the traditional tanks. While some of the traditional tanks are directly connected to
irrigation systems, others are indirectly connected and get only drainage water from the major
irrigation systems. All these tanks contribute to the local economy directly through irrigation and
indirectly through a number of other functions and services. Most of the tanks have very little
water during Yala (lean season) and this is hardly sufficient to provide even seepage to the
adjacent paddy fields. Hence, there is a reduction in most of the services provided by the tanks
until water is received in the next rainy season.
1.2.2 Kala Oya Estuary
Kala Oya estuary located in the western coast of North Western Province of Sri Lanka is rich in
biodiversity. The mangrove and fisheries ecosystems in the lagoon area have been threatened by
increased population pressure and industrial activities. The poor communities in the lagoon area
depend on the ecosystems for their livelihood activities and the pressure on the ecosystems is
believed to be exceeding sustainable levels. Coastal resources of the Kala Oya basin include
varied biotopes such as mangroves, sea grass beds, sand dunes, the lagoon system, Bar Reef
Marine Sanctuary, etc. The Bar Reef marine sanctuary (306 km2
) with very high biodiversity

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significance is situated at the sea mouth of the Kala Oya basin. It is of vast ecological and
economic importance as the reefs within the sanctuary function as an integral part of the larger
economic system adjacent to coastal waters. Tanks in the basin play a major role in supplying
water for the estuary to maintain its fresh water balance and to conserve biodiversity. The tanks
prevent large quantities of fresh water rushing in to inundate the estuary during the rainy season.
In the dry season, the controlled release of tank water for cultivation purposes is perhaps
adequate to meet the fresh water requirements of the estuary.
1.3 Major Resources and Services Provided by the Tanks in the Kala Oya Basin
 Agriculture
Paddy is the main crop cultivated in both the Maha and Yala seasons if tank water is available.
Other crops cultivated in the tank command area, including home gardens, with tank water to
supplement rains are red onion, chilies, banana, coconut, papaw and vegetables. Paddy
cultivation provides a good opportunity for the unemployed family members to earn some
money until they gain employment in the industrial or service sectors. Other crops are also
grown in the tank serving area, especially when there is not enough water for paddy cultivation,
in the Yala season. Further, homesteads near the tank, with sub surface water and a healthy
micro climate, have a rich mixture of perennial and other crops.
 Fishery
Fishing in the tanks is carried out on a small scale for both home consumption and commercial
purposes. Fish is an important protein supplement in the local diet. Hence, fishing is an important
supplementary source of income and good nutrition for the village families. Apart from the
relatively well established farmer organizations for water management there are village
organizations for livestock and fisheries development. Fisheries organizations work closely with
the Fisheries Officers to develop the fishery resources and activities and promote sustainable
practices for their management. Many villagers are engaged in fishing for commercial purposes,
on a full time or part time basis, as well as for their own consumption.
 Livestock
Farmers are not able to sustain their families on cultivation alone, as the extent of land is limited.
Therefore many of them engage in several other income generating activities. One of the more
important activities is livestock farming. As the land they own is inadequate to rear cattle all
livestock farmers resort to using the tank and the reservation area to keep their cattle. The tank
and its surroundings provide both water and fodder for the cattle throughout the year.

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 Bathing and Recreation
Since there is rain only for just four months, from October to January, the water level in wells
goes down substantially during the dry period. It is the tanks that provide water for bathing and
washing clothes. Tank density in North Western Province and North Central Province is one per
1.2 and 2.6 sq km, respectively. Hence, villagers can walk to the nearest tank within 15 to 30
minutes. Most residents prefer to bathe and wash clothes in the tank. They enjoy swimming in
the clean water while bathing, and it is common to see the children, mainly boys, playing
together in the shallow water while their parents wash clothes and bathe. Even households with
wells in their garden prefer to use the tank in the dry season as the water level in the well goes
deep down during this period. The villagers regard the tank as a treasure. They do not fail to take
their visitors from outside the province, for a tank bath. Of course, they ensure that the visitors
are taken to a tank with good quality water.
 Carbon Sequestration
The Kyoto Protocol opened up a new vista for environmental conservation by encouraging the
expansion of forest cover through payments for carbon sinks. The protocol clearly identified the
importance of carbon sequestration in arresting the atmospheric build-up of carbon resulting
from industries, thermal power generation, transportation etc. In the context of climate change it
emphasized the importance of protection and enhancement of sinks and reservoirs for gases,
promotion of sustainable forest management practices, afforestation and reforestation, and
promotion of sustainable forms of agriculture. A well maintained tank has a dense forest cover
in its immediate catchments which provides firewood, medicinal plants, fruits etc for the nearby
households. These patches of forest contribute to the carbon sequestration process in the dry
zone. The conservation of these forests should be regarded as part and parcel of good tank
management. Then, proper management of the tank, motivated on account of its numerous
tangible direct services, will automatically conserve the forest cover.
 Flood Attenuation
Another major service provided by the tank is flood attenuation. Tanks protect villagers from
floods which damage and destroy houses, household equipment, infrastructure, crops, livestock
and human lives. Since villagers around these tanks have not experienced flood damage for
decades due to the storage capacity of these tanks, they cannot easily comprehend the gravity of
floods. The thousands of tanks in the dry zone are able to hold up the rainwater and release it
slowly to the next tank in the cascade. This prevents much damage from the heavy rains
experienced during the four–month rainy season. In addition, it saves government resources
which would otherwise have been required to rehabilitate roads, bridges and public infrastructure
damaged by floods.

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 Lotus Flowers
The lotus flower is accorded a very high position in the writings on Buddhism and it is greatly
esteemed by Buddhists. Hence, although lotus flowers are relatively expensive, Buddhists prefer
to offer lotus flowers at their temples. The preference for lotus flowers is seen at even the village
temples and village boys pick and sell these flowers on Full Moon Poya days when many
Buddhists visit temples. Generally, the villagers harvest the flowers and sell their pick to
middlemen who come from outside. Sometimes outsiders harvest the flowers themselves.
 Lotus Roots
Extracting lotus roots and supplying them to the market is a good business in these villages and a
great employment opportunity for villagers. Both the wholesale buyers and the extractors are
from the village and this resource is able to provide a good income to the surrounding
households while providing fiber rich food for the villagers and people elsewhere. An important
feature of this resource is that it is available throughout the year. It is of course easier to extract
during the dry period when options for income generation are also limited. Extraction calls for
certain skills and the extractor has to stay in the mud for a long time to remove a reasonable
quantity of roots. In the same operation lotus seeds are also extracted and consumed in the
villages.
 Other Indirect Services
Evapo-transpiration from the tank helps to maintain local humidity, microclimate and rainfall
levels. The cool breeze coming across the water filled tank renders the surrounding area more
comfortable. As explained above, during times of heavy rainfall, tanks mitigate the impacts of
floods by slowly releasing the water into the system. In these high flow situations tanks help to
reduce the erosion of river banks and cultivated lands. The plants in the tank facilitate the
deposition of sediments in the water. This deposition helps to remove the toxic substances and
nutrients which are held on particles of sediment.
1.4 Ecological restoration of Habarawaththa Cascade Tank Systems
1.4.1 Background
In Sri Lanka, there are approximately 14,200 small tanks and 13,000 anicuts, feeding an extent
of approximately 246,000 ha. These systems contribute 191,000 metric tons of rice to national
production (approximately 20% of national production). The Department of Agrarian
Development is the agency that is responsible for the operation and maintenance of these small
irrigation schemes, at the field level, through farmer organizations.

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Climatic analyses from data of the past few decades have revealed that there have been changes
in the climatic conditions of Sri Lanka. The mean air temperature of the country increased, while
the mean annual precipitation decreased. In the country, as a whole, the number of consecutive
dry days has increased, while the number of consecutive wet days has decreased. In addition,
recently, the intensity and frequency of extreme climate events (floods and droughts) have
increased, triggering an increase in natural disasters. (IUCN - International Union for
Conservation of Nature, 2015).
The Anuradhapura District is situated in the dry zone of Sri Lanka, where tank-irrigated
agriculture is practiced extensively. The district has a total land area of approximately 717,900
ha, 51,500 ha of which is occupied by inland water bodies. There are approximately 3,000 minor
tanks and ten anicuts within the district, which require a range of actions for restoration and
rehabilitation. A total of 31,831 ha of this area is cultivated under major irrigation, while 48,452
ha are cultivated under minor irrigation, and 8,758 ha are cultivated under rain-fed conditions.
The main rivers that flow across the district are MalwathuOya, Yan Oya and KanadaraOya. The
total population of the district, as reported in the 2012 national census, is 855,562 (IUCN -
International Union for Conservation of Nature, 2015).
1.4.2 Tank Cascade System
Small irrigation tanks do not exist as discrete individual units. The natural drainage system in a
watershed is blocked by earth bunds in appropriate locations to store water, forming a series of
tanks along the drainage system. The drainage pattern formed in the undulating topographic
formation of the Dry Zone

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landscape can be classified as a dendritic drainage pattern. This ramifying nature of the drainage
system has led to the formation of clusters of small tanks found in series, which are connected to
form a system known as a tank cascade (IUCN - International Union for Conservation of Nature,
2015).
The functioning of the village tank is dependent on several different ecological components that
are found around the tank. These components include:
Sieve or Filter (Perahana): a strip of grass and reeds on the periphery of the water body (dark
green) that acts as sieve or filter to trap silt. A good habitat for herons and bitterns, as well as a
breeding area for fish.
Water hole (Godawala): upstream sediment trap. A source of drinking water for cattle and wild
animals.
Windbreak of trees (Gasgommana; gas- trees; gommana -plenty): an area planted with large trees
of the same species that acts as a wind break to minimize evaporation from the surface of the
tank. It also provides a number of ecosystem services, including the provision of dry season
fruits and habitats for wild animals such as nesting birds.
Soil ridge (Iswetiya): upstream bund built on the periphery of the water body to manage soil
erosion and sedimentation. It also acts as a temporary water pond, and supports aquatic and
aquatic-associated species.
Relapanawa: constructed to prevent damage to the tank bund due to wave action in large tanks.
Interceptor (Kattakaduwa): The stretch between the tank bund and paddy fields consisting of
three land phases (water hole, marshy land and dry upland). Acts as a downstream wind barrier,
reduces tank seepage, prevents sodium, magnesium and iron from entering the paddy land and

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safeguards the tank bund. It is also a common village garden and agro-forestry system providing
medicines, fuel wood, timber, fencing materials, farm and household materials, fruit, vegetables
and fodder, as well as raw materials for cottage industries.
Supports a range of floral species including Kumbuk (Terminaliaarjuna)
and Ingini (Strychnospotatorum), which act as purifying agents of water via their roots and seeds
respectively, as well as Mee (Madhucalongifolia ) and Kala Wel (Derris spp.). A total 77 species
have been recorded from the Kattakaduwa, of which 13 species are considered to be unique to
this habitat.
Micro-habitats associated with the Kattakaduwa also support a number of faunal species
including mammals (e.g. otters and fishing cats), birds (e.g. Kingfishers), reptiles (e.g. water
monitors) and amphibians, as well as invertebrate species (e.g. dragonflies).
New paddy field (Akkarawela): area outside the old (purana) field that was subsequently
developed for paddy cultivation.
Old paddy field (Puranawel): Area cultivated with the tank capacity only
Drainage (Kiulela): common drain of the irrigated area.
1.4.3 Project introduction
UNDP implemented the “Ecological restoration of Habarawaththa Cascade Tank Systems”
project in the Habarawaththa small tank cascade in the Galnewa DS Division of the
Anuradhapura District. The main objective of the Project was to restore traditional cascading
tank systems for enhanced rural livelihoods and environmental services. This Project carried out
scientific restoration of the Habarawaththa cascading tank system and developed a sustainable
management mechanism, with the full participation of local communities and regulatory bodies
at the cascade level (cascade management committee). It also restored the watershed of the
system, thereby contributing to sustainability and enhanced biodiversity. Capacity building on
the maintenance of the system, supplementary livelihoods, and soil and water conservation, will
also contribute to sustainability (IUCN - International Union for Conservation of Nature, 2015).
1.4.3 Target benefits of the project
The major impact of this project will be the achievement of sustainable livelihoods for
communities living in the Habarawatta tank cascade area. The communities will benefit from the
following impacts on agriculture, environment, water, health and culture (IUCN - International
Union for Conservation of Nature, 2015).

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Increase in the availability of water for drinking and domestic use
Some communities directly obtain drinking water from tanks, while almost all local communities
use the tank for bathing and other domestic purposes. Increased water storage will also
contribute towards maintaining the groundwater table. Field observations revealed that many
villagers suffered from kidney diseases, which are believed to be a consequence of using ground
water polluted by agrochemicals.
Increase in income and agricultural produce
Agricultural activities are the predominant livelihood in the area. Because of the shortage of
water, paddy and other field crops are cultivated mainly during the maha season. Project
interventions in tank irrigation and rain fed upland farming will allow for an increased frequency
of cultivation, resulting in increased production. This in turn will contribute to the food security
of local people and the larger population. The increased harvest of paddy and opportunities for
other agricultural activities will, in turn, increase the family income of local communities.
Minimising crop failure by having a reliable water supply at crucial stages will be an added
advantage.
Nutritional enrichment
Project interventions will enhance food security through increased production of paddy and other
agricultural produce. Inland fishery will also be a valuable food source, with a steady supply of
water from the tanks. Lack of protein is a major cause of malnutrition in rural areas, and
providing such a source will contribute to better overall health of communities.
Cultural value
By increasing activity in tank-based agriculture, the villagers may become more involved in
cultural events, as was the case in the past. Most of these events have been abandoned because of
the uncertainty of farming in this area. Restoring tanks and ecosystems will enhance the social
dignity of communities, and provide meaning to their cultural traditions.
Ecosystem goods and services
The cascade system of tanks can be considered as an ecosystem that has survived for centuries,
providing various ecosystem services to communities dependent on them. Villagers have used
this ecosystem for obtaining food, fuelwood and a variety of other goods. They also benefited
from carbon sequestration, water purification, ground water and surface flow regulation, erosion
control, and stream bank stabilisation. With the restoration of the tanks and their sustainable
management, the potential of the ecosystem to provide these services again will also be restored.
(IUCN - International Union for Conservation of Nature, 2015)

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1.5 Promoting tourism in the ESA
The selected ESA is a well suitable area for tourism due to its rich biodiversity and the landscape
distribution. The scenic beauty of the area with dense forest covers with flora and fauna and the
ancient tanks which increase the scenic beauty of the area.
Although there are many activities for the visitors such as water related activities like boat rides,
swimming, bathing and other activities such as hicks and butterfly watching. Historical value,
archeological value and religious value of the area are other factors which attract local and
foreign tourists. Promoting tourism in the area will generate income for the community by
generating job opportunities.
1.5.1 Manawe Kanda Eco-park
The ESA project plans provide the implementation support to selected climatic smart activities
identified at the community level to strengthen government and local community actions with
the objectives of contributing to effectively conserve selected isolated hills such as Manawe
Kanda and RanaweKanada that have been shown to harbor biodiversity including many
important endemic species and leading to effective planning, coordination and enforcement of
key strategies and actions committed in the ESA management action plan. (https://jobs.undp.org,
2016)
The “Manawe Kanda”, Protected Area is an isolated mountain, belongs to the Ipalogamawithin
KakirawaDS Division beet area. It lies across North/ North central/ Eastern zones and represent
Anuradapura division. More precisely it belongs to Hadapidiyagama village, in 518
Heenakwagama GNDivision, in Ipalogama DS division in Anuradhapura district. Being standing
in the center of other archeological and environmentally treasured attractions such as Aukana,
Kalawewa, Vijithapura, Anuradhapuraya, Mihinthalaya, Nachchaduwawewa, Eruwewa,
Eruwewa mountain, Ritigala, Sigiriya and Dambulla.
The Manawe Kanda is an isolated hill forest consisting of 25 ha. The upper parts of this hill
forest represent Moiest Mixed Evergreen Forest (MMEF). The endemic canopy tree species,
Dialiumovoideum (Fabaceae) is restricted to MMEF. This can be considered as a good indicator
of this vegetation type. Endemic tree species Glennieaunijuga (Sapindaceae) has also been found
here in high density (356 individuals/ha). In addition to that another endemic Euonymus walker
(Celastraceae) which is a shrub generally found in the Wet Zone. It is very rare in the
Intermediate and Dry Zones. However, this rare plant record from Manawe Kanda that is the

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only record in the Anuradhapura District. (Enhancing Biodiversity Conservation and Sustenance
of Ecosystem services in Environmentally Sensitive Areas, 2015)
The Manawe Kanda was also found to host a number of endemic animal species, including a
butterfly species, Troidesdarsius (Sri Lankan Bird Wing, National butterfly of Sri Lanka), two
reptile species, Otocryptiswiegmanni (Wiegmann’s forest lizard), Chrysopeleataprobanica (Sri
Lanka flying snake) and mammal species such as Maccacasinica (Toque monkey) and
Tragulusmeminna(Mouse Deer) etc. Three bird species were recorded from the base of thee hill
including Gallus Lafayetti (Sri Lanka Jungle fowl), Ocycerosgingalensis (Sri Lankan Grey
Hornbill), and Megalaimarubricailla (Crimson-fronted Barbet). Those endemic species reported
in this site shows the ecological value of the Manawe Kanda. (Enhancing Biodiversity
Conservation and Sustenance of Ecosystem services in Environmentally Sensitive Areas, 2015)It
has 40 butterfly spp with 2 endemic spp, 4 reptile spp, 2 amphibians etc.
Nowadays, remaining archeological ruins and folklores associated with this mountain are
occurred the great archeological and historical value of the Manawe Kanda Protected Area. It is
considered as the practicing and stationed site of the King Dutugamunu troops fought at
Vijithapura battle with the invading South Indian King Elara. Evidence of granite sword stones
and medicinal motor stones believes to have been used by Dutthagamani's soldiers to sharpen
their swords and for their medical purposes are preserved among the ruins. As per local legends
the famous villages called “Olukarada” “Bellankadawala” where Jayasenas head and rest of body
fallen upon bare-hands dual among Gotaimbara (one of the Ten Giant Warriors of King
Dutugamunu) located very close to Manawakanda . Manawekanda is believed to be the source
which formed stone pillars for the Lovamahapaya made in the king Dutugamunus’ era.
(https://jobs.undp.org, 2016)
Sri Lankan ecotourism is a growing niche sector. It gives the opportunity of enjoying
multifaceted attractions such as the highest mountains, the longest sea beaches, magnificent
civilization, glorious traditions, artistic monuments, incredible diversity of landscapes, climates,
flora and fauna, unparalleled bio-diversity, topographical variations etc. Manawe
Kandaexplicitly shows the potential of developing and conserving as an ecotourism destination,
to preserve the environment, culture and heritage and benefit local communities who are the key
custodians of natural resources and play an active and critical role in conserving valuable
biodiversity.
Nowadays, Manawe Kanda Protected Area was officially established as the ManaweKande Eco-
park under the management of the Department of Wildlife Conservation (DWC). This eco-park
still at the initial stage, but it already provide some facilities such as two camping sites,
accommodations which are regulated by eco-tourism practices, and traditional and local foods
and meals for tourists.

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1.5.2. Kala Oya Bathing Place- A case study for over visitation and miss-management of
tourism
“Kala oya Nana Thotupala” is a place which is rich with biological diversity. But most of the
people are using this place for the some of water related activities such as bathing, swimming
and other recreational activities due to lacking water in the area and shallow flowing water of the
bathing place. Especially this area is very famous among the persons who come for pilgrimage
during the seasonal festivals. Most of the time, they have high consumption patterns and
throwing garbage around the bathing site. These misbehavior of people and their over visitation
have badly damaged on ecosystem of this site.
1.6 Ecological Farming to protect biological diversity
1.6.1 Background
Sri Lanka has a rich agricultural history dating back more than 2500 years. For centuries, paddy
cultivation in the island nation was not just an economic activity but a way of life that shaped the
society, culture, religion and economy. Other than that people used to grow vegetables and fruits
in their home gardens to fulfill their needs through sustainable and ecological agricultural
practices .therefore the interconnection of the ancient Sri Lankans life and nature were
harmonious.
With the population growth and increasing demand for the food people tend to grow selected
crops which lead to break the natural stability of the biological diversity. In addition with the
industrial revolution and continuous increasing demand for the foods tend them to use
mechanized farming methods and high consumption of fertilizers and pesticides, energy such as
fossil fuels and genetically modified crops to gain high yield within shorter period of time.
Ancient traditional and ecological farming methods are considered as low yielding practices and
threw away. These bad agricultural practices finally lead to degradation of biodiversity,
ecosystems services and catastrophic problems such as
 Expansion of crop monocultures and losses in crop diversity
 Ground and surface water contamination
 Fishery losses
 Loss of natural enemies and increases in pesticide
 Amphibian decline
 Disrupt the natural mechanism of nitrogen fixation in legume crops
 Chemical fertilizers cause soil degradation and loss of soil fertility in farmlands

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 Pollution and dead zones in lakes, rivers and oceans
 Nitrogen fertilizers are also responsible for emissions of the potent greenhouse gas,
nitrous oxide (N2O) ,Phosphorus fertilizer is a non-renewable resource and
approximately 50-100 years remain of current known reserves
 Climate change
(organization, 2009)
1.6.2 Introduction to ecological farming
Ecological farming is known as the single most important modern technology to achieve food
security in a changing climate&is recognized as the high-end objective among the proponents
of sustainable agriculture. Ecological farming is not the same as organic farming, however there
are many similarities and they are not necessarily incompatible. Ecological farming includes all
methods, including organic, which regenerate ecosystem services like prevention of soil erosion,
water infiltration and retention, carbon sequestration in the form of humus, and increased
biodiversity. In ecological farming many techniques are used including no till, multispecies
cover crops, strip cropping, terrace cultivation, shelter belts, pasture cropping etc.
The main objective ecological farming is to ensure healthy farming and healthy food for today
and tomorrow, by protecting soil, water and climate, promotes biodiversity, and does not
contaminate the environment with chemical inputs or genetic engineering.
Benefits of ecological farming:
1. Provides the ability of communities to feed themselves and ensures a future of healthy
farming and healthy food to all people.
2. Protects soils from erosion and degradation, increases soil fertility, conserves water and
natural habitats and reduces emission of greenhouse gases.
3. Ecological farming is both a climate change mitigation and adaptation strategy. It can provide
large-scale carbon sinks and offer many other options for mitigation of climate change. In
addition, farming with biodiversity is the most effective strategy to adapt agriculture to future
climatic conditions. A mix of different crops and varieties in one field is a proven and highly
reliable farming method to increase resilience to erratic.(organization, 2009)
1.6.3 Ecological farming under the small tank cascade system development project
Habratttha small tank cascade system (as an environmental sensitive area) development project
implement by MMDE in collaboration with the UNDP. Ecological farming is introduced to save
the biological diversity of the selected landscape. This was introduced in areas such as Kekirawa,
Palagala, Ipalogama & Galnawa DS divisions and MASL areas in Galnawa DS divisions in

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order to provide healthy and sustainable farming while preventing the damage from the usual
agricultural practices to the biological diversity of the ESA.
1.7 Major Stakeholders of Kala-Oya ESA Project
The project area of Kala oya river basin ecosystems has a significant contribution on society’s
health, livelihoods and long term sustainable development providing critical environmental
services such as water, energy, air plus nutrient recycling among others and protection from
natural disasters such as droughts and floods. But continuous agricultural activities and other
development pressures can affect this rich biodiversity and ecosystems services beyond
recovery, impacting the potential benefits and economic gains unless the sensitive nature of the
ecosystems were taken into consideration in the development processes. Hence this project has
implemented by the Ministry of Mahaweli Development and Environment in collaboration with
the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) as the major stakeholders to enhancing
biodiversity conservation and sustenance of ecosystems services in environmentally sensitive
areas. In addition to UNDP and MahaweliDevelopment and Environment, Global Environmental
Facility and the Government of Sri Lanka have jointly funded to this project to improve the
country capacity to manage Environmentally Sensitive Areas.(UNDP)
During this five year project, they have planned to develop national policies and strategieson
these environmental sensitive areas and their land use planning while educating communities
regardingthe project as a mechanism for mainstreaming biodiversity management into
development in areas of high conservation significance. In order to achieve this Objective, they
are working on the Ecosystems Management and Restoration at ESAs, the project plans
providing the implementation support to selected activities identified at the community level
(E.g. ecotourism, ecological farming, and home gardening) to strengthen government and local
community actions and expect it will contribute to effectively conserve many important species
including endemic species.(UNDP)
Hence, local communities, community based organizations such as Govijanaseva farmer
organizations, Civil Social Organizations, experiment institutes and other governmental and
nongovernmental organizations in North Central and North Western provinces in the Kala Oya
and Wilpattu region and the project sites include Kakirawa, Ipalogama, Palagala, Galnawa and
Vanathawilluwa are another important party which contribute to the success of the project with
the effective planning, coordination and enforcement of key strategies and actions agreed in the
ESA management action plan.
In addition to that, Forest Department, Wildlife Conservation Department, Land use Policy
Planning Department, Coast Conservation Department, Agriculture Department, Irrigation
Department, Central Environment Authority, Biodiversity Secretariat Office and Anuradhapura

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and Puttalam Secretariat Offices are another several major stakeholders of this project
onsensitive ecosystems which ensure structural long term sustainable development of the
biological diversity of Sri Lanka. (Min)
2.0 Methodology
A three days field work shop was carried out at the Kala Oya environmental sensitive area on the
22nd
-24th
June 2018, which is offered by the practical components of “Environmental
Economics” and “Project Development” course units of the Business and Environment Theme
program.
During the first day, project on the "Ecological restoration of Habarawaththa Cascade Tank
Systems” in the Habarawaththa small tank cascade in the Galnewa DS Division of the
Anuradhapura District was observed and a questioner was provided to sample of ten farmers in
the Ipologama area. Afterwards, a selected home garden in the Galnewa DS Division was
observed to identify the some ecological farming practices available in the ESA. Identifying the
components of traditional cascading tank systems for enhanced rural livelihoods and
environmental services and studying the some ecological farming practices available in the ESA
are the purposes of this visits.
The “Manawe Kanda”, eco-park in Ipalogama DS division in Anuradhapura district was
observed and hike to the peak point of the Manawe Kanda with the guides as an adventure
during the second day. Identifying the available ecosystems values including eco-tourism
potentials within the Manawe Kanda Protected Area was the main objective of this field visit. At
the beginning and end of this field visit, small discussion was carried out with some relevant
stakeholders such as regional wildlife officer, park officers including tour guides.
During the last day of the overall fiel visit, “Kala Oya Nana Thotupala” in the Puttalam District,
was observed which is very famous place for bathing in the region mostly among nearby
villagers and the privileges in the seasonal festivals. They are the people who with high
consumption and waste generation attitudes. The purpose is identifying over visitation and mis-
management of tourism potential places within the ESA.
The discussed results were based on data collected directly through interviews of villagers,
UNDP officials, DWC officials, tour guides, gathered from other sources such as published
technical documents, and news articles both electronic and printed. A set of conclusions
recommendations is given at the end of the discussion.

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3.0 Observations
3.1 cascade system
The project currently has completed the first phase. Constructions of main four tanks have
completed and restoration of other components of the tank cascade system is about to start.
According to project manager with the construction of tanks farmers are able to carry out their
farming activities.
Figure 1: Restoration tank Figure 2: Foot pathway for the paddy fields
Figure 3: Kattakaduwa Figure 4: Gas Gommana
Though the tanks are now available for farming there are no enough water in the tanks due to
lack of rain. Paddy farmers have not been able to farm during 4 consecutive seasons.

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3.2 Ecological Farming
In addition to restoration of tank cascade systems, a knowledge-sharing programme has been
conducted to share traditional knowledge about farming among participants, and to discuss how
these aspects could be incorporated in the home garden and ecosystem development
programmes. During the field visit we were able to observe two successful home gardens with
many vegetables for day today use such as etc.
 Area visited: Habarattha ,2 home garden is visited during the field visit
 Social background of the sample group
 Mostly done by the people in 41-60 age categories
 They have very low educational background
 Their major income source is paddy farming
 Ecological farming methods that they use
 Fertilizers: Organic manure, Compost, paddy husks etc
 Pesticides: retted Neem (Azadirachtaindica) seeds, insect repellent plants such as
Dahaspethiya (Tagetes species)
 Types Crops
 pumpkin, spinach, tomato, radish, cabbage
Figure 5: Home garden
 Stakeholders involved in promoting ecological farming
 Govi –jana Committee
 Wari committee

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 Stakeholder contribution in promoting ecological farming
 By providing seeds
 By providing training programs
 By providing awareness programs such as compost manufacturing
 Community awareness about the environmental sensitive areas around them and its
importance
 They mainly recognized the adjacent forest as the environmental SEA
 Some farmers mentioned the importance of making the area around the tanks are
protected areas
 Why they do ecological farming
 To become self-sufficient with healthy food which are free of toxic substances (“
wasawisanathielevalupalathuru”
 Major issues that they face
 Lack of water
 Human elephant conflict
 Other
 Most of Them ready to continue ecological farming only if the committees provide
them the seeds
 Very less amount of farmers do it in large scales mostly the home gardens
3.3 Manawe Kanda Eco-park
During the Manawe Kanda eco-park visit following features were identified.
 Places with tourism potential
 Places with recreational values
 Places with research and educational values

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Places with tourism potential
Places and activities with recreational values
Figure 6: Archeological cave
Figure 8: Ancient ruined building complex
Figure 10: Traditional “Nelumkole” foods and meals
Figure 9: Adventure tourism to peak point of the
Manawe Kanda
Figure 7: A ruined ancient building

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Places with research and educational values
3.4 Kala Oya bathing place
Number of visitors enters per hour: exceed 100
Way of transportation: Mostly by their private vehicles
Management:
 Local authority call tenders for the management of the area and now there are two ladies
who control the activities inside the visitor area
 Issue ticket per a vehicle worth 100 rupees
 Told that they do regular monitoring of the activities of the people and make them aware
about the way to behave
 Told that they have put garbage bins to separate garbage
Pollution seen during the field visit:
 Garbage thrown everywhere mostly the polythene bags and plastic bottles
 Burning wood near the massive Nuga trees harm the root system of the trees
 Harm the nearest tree barks
 broke the land demarcations of the forest department
Figure 12: Observational bastion near to the camping site.

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4.0 Discussion
4.1 Restoration of cascade system and ecological farming in Habarawaththa
The restoration of the tank system will secure the paddy cultivation and other agricultural
activities of the area by providing continuous water supply. Still the tanks do not fill up to its
actual capacity of the water level due to persistent drought for year. Once it filled the connection
of the tanks will ensure the water security. Other than that the adjacent ecosystems which are
considered as parts of a tank such as “Gasgommana”, “Kattakduwa” will provide breeding places
for fish, birds, amphibians etc while providing its actual service to the tank system.
Introduction of ecological farming around the selected ESA will enhance the security of the
biodiversity by the usual worse high consumption agricultural practices which both harmful
towards the human as well as the environment. According to the field visit observations and the
UNDP officers who are talked to; ecological farming is introduced to the area in small scale
home gardens .The basic technical guidance and resources are provided by the responsible
stakeholders who are implementing this ESA project. At the initial stage, Seeds and some of
technical guidance for compost manure production have been provided to farmers by them for
initiating ecological farming and small scale home gardens. But, stakeholders need to start the
second cycle by the farmers themselves by the seeds from their yield but most of the farmers
who were interviewed are totally depending on the stakeholders. At the end of the first cycle
even if there are more than 70 families involved less than 30 were remaining successfully
continuing.
The major risk that they face is the lack of water for irrigational purposes .They use rain water
“Ahas Diya” for irrigation and sufficient raining is necessary to the tanks to fill up with water.
Due to the persistentdrought for many years tanks dried and have very little water and low
cropping intensity that discourages them to farm. During the visit, it was observed that rice crops
could be planted only once a year and this fluctuated according to the rainfall received during the
northeast monsoon (maha) season. Since this is the dry zone, even though there are many tanks
have been made for irrigation purposes, water loss from small tanks is very high within two to
three months after rains have stopped and most of these tanks look like marshy lands infested
with aquatic weeds. This is mainly due to sedimentation of tank bed and water losses are higher
from tanks with shallower water bodies, than those with deep water.
However, UNDP has implemented tank restoration system with the full participation of local
communities and regulatory bodies at the cascade level in Habarawaththa, starting from small
tank cascade in the Galnewa Division to overcome these critical irrigational issues and enhance
rural livelihoods and environmental services.The Project also addressed the water scarcity faced
by rural communities living in the area to reduce vulnerability to climate change and demonstrate
the sustainable management of a restored cascading tank system. These efforts will address the
farming, drinking and environmental water requirements of the area.During the visit, four main
tanks were observed which called Ihala-Habarawaththa, Pahala-Habarawaththa,
Watakoluwagama and Karapinchagamahavebeen restored the tanks and surrounding ecosystems.

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All of these restorations have been done in scientific manner while removing sedimentation and
restoring surrounding vegetations and species near the tank system.While the restoring and
removing sedimentation, some of mud plots have kept as it is to identify sedimentation heights
and constitution after period of time. And also these sediments have been used for making tank
bunt and the upper and bellow areas of the tank bunt which call ‘Gasgommana’ and
‘Kattakaduwa’. Moreover, nearly 40- 105 families are using these four tank systems for their
cultivation, bathing and washing purposes but for a long time period they’d been suffering for
drinking water. But, with this project implementation, recently a drinking water tank has
provided for Habatawaththa area with the pipe line facility. During the survey and the discussion
with the community of the area, it was clearly identified that these social benefits are highly
appreciate by the community and induce for environmental conservation and application these
eco friendly organic farming method.
In addition to that, human elephant conflict is another issue that they hardly mentioned which
caused to damage their crops, residences and become life threat for them. They demand solutions
from the DWC for the issue and sometimes they did protests. As a solution they recommended to
construct tanks inside the forest for the elephants and other wild animals to reduce the issue .
They still believe that those animals also have the authority for the natural resources same as the
human.
4.2Miss management of Kala Oya bathing place
Moreover, tourism is one aspect that can be nicely promote in the ESA region but there are
recent miss-management of tourism activities that are happening in the area such as Kala Oya
bathing place .It is obvious that there is mismanagement of the Kala Oya bathing place by the
authorized parties and they are not monitoring or maintaining the visitor pressure on the area.
The river basin was fully polluted with polythene and plastic which are old that implies there is
no waste collection or on the spot segregation of waste as the management mentioned. Still the
visitors fire wood on top of the roots of the trees which cause harm to the trees.
The major party who responsible for mismanagement of this place is the LA .Providing tender
for any party is not their job in order to prevent the degradation of biodiversity and prevent the
hug pollution of this place the management should provide for the people with the knowledge on
the environmental management and basically that should be done under the governance of the
government authority. DWC has a major responsibility in controlling the activities inside the
area through regular monitoring.
Introduction of the regulations and fine system will reduce the pollution generated due to
throwing garbage .Although the number of visitors who entered should be controlled and number
of vehicles that entered should be controlled and parking area should be place away from the
river basin since some people wash their vehicles and pollute the water which use by for drinking
by the Gangewadiya fishery community. In one vehicle sometimes more than 15 people enter to

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the place only for 100 rupees per vehicle. Therefore the ticketing system should be changed with
responsible government regulatory system and at least 20% of the revenue generated should
contribute to the management of the area.
4.3 Valuation of Tank Ecosystem
One of main objective of this study is to evaluate value of small tank systems in livelihood and
biodiversity terms. Ecological goods and services provided by ecosystems are very diverse and
the concept of ecosystem services has gained much attention in recent years, emphasizing their
importance for human societies. Within Total Economic Valuation Framework (TEVF)
ecosystem functions are mainlydefined as an indirect use value and option value incorporates
future service values.In addition, consumptive and non consumptive use values and non use
values are recognized as ecosystem service values. (Gunawardena)
However, in environmental planning and decision-making, these benefits are not fully taken into
account and continuously converted these multiple use of ecosystems into more simple, uni-
functional land use types such as agriculture or left for degradation without any sufficient
investment on conservation. The valuation of these ecosystem services has been difficult to be
converted into monetary terms because most of the benefits are not captured in conventional,
market-based economic analysis. There is a market and information failure with regard to
understanding that total value of multiple uses of natural landscapes is often economically more
beneficial than the value of the converted systems. The market failures play vital role in loss of
ecosystems as benefits from the land use change usually go to private sectors while the non-
marketed externalities have to be bear by the local communities who live near to the
ESAs.(Vidanage, S., Perera,S. and M. Kallesøe, 2004)
As a results not only rehabilitation of this Habarawaththa tank cascade system but also valuing
the ecosystem services are time required matter and thereby intended to integrate downstream
ecosystem values into land use and water management planning. Kala Oya basin also has
number of protected areas such as Wilpattu National Park, part of' Kahalla-Pallekele Resvehera
sanctuary, Sigiriya sanctuary and Minneriya, Giritale Nature Reserve which required more
attention on ecosystem valuation related to this project. (Gunawardena)
Hence initially it should be determine theenvironmental and economic benefits associated with
Habarawaththatank cascade system in the Kala Oya basin. Tanks yield a range of direct
livelihoodvalues for surrounding villagers. Some of themost important benefits are associated
with theprovision of water for crops, livestock anddomestic uses such as bathing, washing
clothesand household water usages. Additionally, thetanksare important for local existence and
cashincome from the resources such as fish, reeds andedible plants, and the flowers that are
collected for use in Buddhist temples and ceremonies. Other than that we could observed tanks

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also yield several important environmental services such as providinghabitat and breeding
grounds for birds, fishand other aquatic animals, tanks store waterand help both to mitigate
downstream floodingand maintaingroundwater reserves, aquatic plants that grown in them, also
provide vital service in nutrient retention and watertreatment for surrounding farms.
Using TEVF can be identified how these different values contributing to national economy of the
country. Different methods can be used to estimate these benefits using information or data
collect from local villagers and it heavily depend on public participation to livelihood assessment
and economic valuation.
 Resources provide from tank system such as various plants and fish that can be bought or
sold valued according to their market prices
 Domestic water use can be valued according to costs of collection and transport.
 Sequestration of atmospheric carbon by the natural vegetation in the tank cascade
system
Sequestration of atmospheric carbon is an ecosystem service that can offset green house
gas emissions. Soil organic carbon and vegetation organic carbon stocks that are stored in
the cascade system can be estimate using secondary data. (Annex 1).(Gunawardena) Any
conversion of the land uses needs more attention to the gains and losses in terms of the
carbon benefit. Therefore if the forests are keep untouched this global benefit will be
available forever.
 Estimation of recreational value of Kala Oya Basin
Kala Oya itself and the basin ecosystems provide recreational services to people.
Wilpattu National park is one of the major attractions for both locals and foreign
tourists.The bank of the Kala Oya is a popular recreational site among many urban
groups. Contingent valuation method can be used to estimate these benefits through field
observations and discussions with the informed people.(Gunawardena)This value is a
measure of the satisfaction they obtain by the visitation.The area has greatpotential for
tourism. Therefore relevant authorities should be take responsibility to promote
supervised tourist activity as against to what is taking place nowsince such activities
leads to further environmentally damaging if not properly regulated.Travel cost method
can be used to estimate the potential recreational value of protected areas such as Wilpattu
National Park, Kahalla-PallekeleResvehera sanctuary.
 Products from home garden biodiversity
Home gardens within tank cascade system in the Kala Oya basin provide wide range of
products such as vegetables, fruits, spices, medicinal products, timber, fuel wood, fodder
and livestock products to the villagers. Home Gardens are mainly agro-forestry based
land-use systems and can be valued using quantities and market price.

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The realization of degradation in smalltank system would also result in the loss ofwater storage
for irrigation and domestic use aswell as environmental services has led to attempt by the
MMDE to take action to rehabilitation and conserve small tank systems in the Kala Oya Basin.
However these decisions still tend to be depending primarily on irrigation needs, andnot so much
on considerations of valuation ofecosystem services. Therefore study of this small tank cascade
system in the Kala Oya Basin provides an example of how such ecosystem values can be
incorporated into decision-making in real world in order to sustain these benefitsas part of river
basin management and more sustainable, in both socio-economic and environmental terms.
4.4 Valuation of Manawe Kanda Eco-Park (MKEP)
There are many definitions of ecotourism. The most commonly used definition is the one
established by the International Ecotourism Society, which defines ecotourism as responsible
travel to natural areas that conserves the environmental and sustains the well-being of local
people‖. Ecotourism allows for more tourist expenditure to stay in the local economy,
subsequently boosting the national wealth. (Investigating The Total Economic Value Of Eco-
Tourism In Pulau Payar Marine Park., 2011)
In order to implement and strengthen the ecotourism activities successfully, there must be joint
efforts between various entities like government, the private sector and the local communities. In
facilitating the efforts, a special committee, which comprises members from local governments,
private sector and NGOs, has been formed to spearhead the overall implementation of the Sri
Lanka Tourism Strategic Plan (2017-2020). Based on the recommended action, activities like
workshops, training programs and ecotourism projects should be conducted under the above
plan.
Goods and services in MKEP
MKEP offers abundance of opportunities for ecotourism activities through its terrestrial
environment. Camping and offering traditional food items are the most popular services enjoyed
by tourists on the park. Hiking to the peak point, were also the other major adventures activities
participated by the tourists.
Facility-wise, there are man-made environment available such as toilets and rubbish bins. At the
entry point, tourists are greeted with an informative gallery that provides brief information about
the park including importance of biodiversity and services offered.
The other interesting and unique package that attracts tourist attention is the forest cover and
species diversity within the park. It has 40 butterfly species with 2 endemic species, 4 reptile
species, and 2 amphibians species.etc.

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Economists consider ecosystems as capital goods generating valuable services, some of which
are marketable while others are not. However, natural assets are often providers of multiple
services, which create difficulties when trying to assess their economic value. A number of
assessment methods such as travel cost and contingent valuation have been developed to
estimate the economic value of these services.
The Eco-Tourism Economic Value (TEV) concept used in this study, covering:
1. Use and non-use values.
2. Within the former, direct and indirect values, also broken down into extractive and non-
extractive uses and goods and services.
3. Some of these may or may not line up well with standard stocks and flows concepts, and in
many cases, valuations are both difficult and subjective.(Investigating The Total Economic
Value Of Eco-Tourism In Pulau Payar Marine Park., 2011)
TEV can divide into two major components which are use value and non-use value. The two
components then are further divided into three sub-components such as direct uses, indirect uses
and existence value. Direct uses and indirect uses in this case are referred to use value while
existence value is categorized as non-use values.
Direct use valuesrefer to ecosystem goods and services that are used directly by human beings.
They include the value of consumptive uses such as harvesting of food products, timber for fuel
or construction, and medicinal products and hunting of animals for consumption, aggregates and
energy divided direct use value bequest.The value of non-consumptive usesof MKEP was
referred to recreational and cultural activities that do not require any harvesting activities. This
includes the use of forest ecosystem for leisure and recreation such as nature tourism, adventures
hiking, and for research and development. Research and development falls into three categories
i.e. industry sector research, higher education institutions research and public sector research.
Direct use values are most often enjoyed by people visiting or residing in the ecosystem itself.
Extractive uses include: harvesting of rare medicinal plants, illegal timber cuttings. Tourism is a
non-extractivedirect use value associated with forest ecosystems. Research and education
activities associated with biodiversity may also be considered non-extractive direct use values of
these ecosystems.Measuring indirect use value is often considerably more difficult than
measuring direct use values For one thing, the ‗quantities’ of the service being provided—such
as the amount of carbon stored in biomass or in the soil—are often hard to measure. While their
contribution of ecosystem services to the production of marketed goods and services may be
significant, it is often difficult to distinguish it from that of other, marketed inputs to
production.Indirect use values include: habitat and biological control, and water quality control.
Due to the difficulty inherent in measuring the relative contribution of an ecosystem to these
services and functions of nature, thereare very few valuation studies that estimated the economic

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value of these indirect use values.(Investigating The Total Economic Value Of Eco-Tourism In
Pulau Payar Marine Park., 2011)
Option valuesare derived from preserving the option to use in the future ecosystem goods and
services that may not be used at present, either by oneself (option value) or by others/heirs
(bequest value) Provisioning, regulating, and cultural services may all form part of option value
to the extent that they are not used now but may be used in the future.
Non-use valuesrefer to the enjoyment or satisfaction people may experience simply by knowing
that a resource exists even if they never expect to use that resource directly themselves. This kind
of value is usually known as existence value. For instance existence of rare endemic plant and
animal species, and existence of ruins of archeological architectures within the MKEP is
occurring non-use values.
Due to the nature of Manawe Kanda as the protected area that prohibits the consumptive uses of
its’ resources, this valuation should focus on the non-consumptive uses of its’ resources.Based
on preliminary study, it could found that two elements under use value componentslike tourism,
research / education, aesthetic and recreationand few elements under non-use value components
carbon fixation and bequest value etc.like were feasible to be measured using TEV mathematical
model. Basically, this study can apply three approaches in evaluating each type of benefits/costs
that were considered in feasible sub-component of the total economic valuation of MKEP. The
three valuation techniques are production approach, benefit transfer approach and willingness to
pay.The total economic value (TEV) of MKEP is estimated based on above research variables.
The TEV are summation of these values namely; tourism, research and education, aesthetics,
recreation, carbon sequestration and bequest value.
5.0 Recommendations
 Demarcate the boundary of Habarawaththa small tank cascade system so that
communities can do their farming activities around the tank system.
 Community empowered to maintain the tank cascade system.
 Prepare and maintain correct species inventory including endemic and threatened species
in the ESAs- Kala Oya Basin.
 Provide knowledge base incentive mechanism for the local community in order to
enhance cultivation of traditional rice verities with organic farming method.

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 Establish training program for the local community about ecotourism, how guide tourists
and how provide information on these important sites with the help of Wildlife
Department and Tourism Development Authority.
 Training of farmers who are willing to be engaged in bee honey industry-Distributing
beehive and other accessories.
 DWC andFD need to take actions to resolve human elephant conflicts by restoring or
constructing water tanks inside the forests or to encourage people for eco farming
method.
 Active electric fences should be establish and maintain by the FD.
 Promote people to do eco farming by providing necessary technical and other support in
the second round.
 Further promotion of Manawe Kanda Eco-Park through the television programmes like
Sobhadara, Sarisara as a growing tourism destination in Anuradhapura District with the
support of the Tourism Board.
 Encourage community to grow butterfly host plant species around Manawe Kanda Eco-
Park.
Kala Oya bathing place
● Local authority should pass the tenders to manage the visitor area to knowledgeable
people.
● Regular monitoring by the FD to the area to minimize the anthropogenic harm to the
area.
● Fine system should introduce to minimize the waste generation and pollution
● Strictly enforce rules for vehicle parking, cooking /firing under the massive trees inside
the Oya.
● On the spot waste segregation and collection system should be introduced and visitors
should be motivated to follow it.
● Introduce per person ticketing system instead of per vehicle system that already exist to
minimize the visitor pressure on the area.
● Educate visitors about the importance of the area by small leaflet or verbal explanation
before they enter to the area.

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6.0 Conclusions
As an island, Sri Lanka is blessed with a wealth of ‘blue-green’ resources that are rich in
biological diversity within a land and marine area. A country’s diverse ecosystems provide
critical environmental services that significantly contribute on society’s health, livelihoods and
long term sustainable development.However with the rapid development and urbanization,
commendable contribution is needed by State agencies to meet the objectives of the blue-green
era by protecting the natural resources within declared wildlife, forest and heritage areas as well
as the significantly important “Environmentally Sensitive Areas (ESAs)” outside the declared
areas.
In order to achieve these objectives, ESA project on Kala Oya basin has planned for five years
which alreadyinitiated with positive aspect on organic farming and sustainable agricultural
practices, irrigation system and eco tourism on important sites of dry zonewith suitable
ecosystem valuation techniques. However, according to this study,it was clearly observed and
conclude that their attempt toenhancebiodiversity conservation and sustenance of ecosystem
services in environmentally sensitive areashas been succeed at initial stage with the rehabilitation
of Habarawaththa small tank cascade system, community-level economic incentives
andecotourism planfor areas where high significance conservation needed by assessing the
livelihood and biodiversity valuesof the area.

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References
(2011). Investigating The Total Economic Value Of Eco-Tourism In Pulau Payar Marine Park.
(2015). Enhancing Biodiversity Conservation and Sustenance of Ecosystem services in Environmentally
Sensitive Areas. United Nations Development Programme.
https://jobs.undp.org. (2016). Retrieved from United Nations Development Programme.
Gunawardena, U. A. (n.d.). Valuation of Ecosystem Services of Kala Oya River Basin.
IUCN - International Union for Conservation of Nature. (2015). Restoring Traditional Cascading Tank
Systems for Enhanced. IUCN, Sri Lanka Country Office.
organization, G. (2009). Defining Ecological Farming . Amsterdam: Greenpeace organization.
Vidanage, S., Perera,S. and M. Kallesøe. (2004). Integrating Wetland Economic Values into River Basin
Management,.
Multiple Benefits of Small Irrigation Tanks and their Economic Value - A case study in the Kala Oya Basin,
Sri Lanka - SudarshanaPerera, ShamenVidanage, MikkelKallesoe Environmental Economics Programmes
IUCN- Ecosystems and Livelihoods Groups Sri Lanka and Asia Region

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Annex 1
Figure; Different land use types of Kala Oya Basin
Source; Valuation of Ecosystem Services of Kala Oya River Basin: UAD Prasanthi Gunawardena