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1 Abeywardana, N.; Schutt, B.; Wagalawatta, T.; Bebermeier, W. 2019. Indigenous agricultural systems in the dry zone of Sri Lanka: management transformation assessment and sustainability. Sustainability, 11(3): 1-22. [doi: https://doi.org/10.3390/su11030910]
Agricultural systems ; Agricultural practices ; Sustainable agriculture ; Arid zones ; Assessment ; Community management ; Irrigated farming ; Irrigated land ; Irrigation management ; Landscape ; Participatory management ; Indigenous knowledge ; Water harvesting ; Water management ; Water tanks ; Tank irrigation ; Paddy ; Cultivation ; Stakeholders ; Farmers organizations ; Socioeconomic environment ; Soils / Sri Lanka / Anuradhapura
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H049148)
(9.30 MB) (9.30 MB)
The tank-based irrigated agricultural system in the Dry Zone of Sri Lanka is one of the oldest historically evolved agricultural systems in the world. The main component of the system consists of a connected series of man-made tanks constructed in shallow valleys to store, convey and utilize water for paddy cultivation. Up to 10,000 tanks originating from the heydays of ancient kingdoms are still integrated in the current agricultural landscape. During the last two millennia, this indigenous system has undergone many changes in technological, management and socio-cultural norms. This research aimed to analyze the current management practices and existing indigenous aspects of the Dry Zone irrigated agricultural system from the viewpoint of farmers who are the main stakeholders of the system. Altogether, 49 semi-structured interviews were conducted in seven villages in the Anuradhapura district and a detailed survey was conducted in the village of Manewa with a mixed research approach. The basic elements of the indigenous landscape, agricultural practices and management structures based on Farmer Organizations were mapped and examined in detail. The analysis of results shows that the sustainability of the indigenous agricultural system is vulnerable to rapid changes due to modernization, market changes, education levels, and inconsistent management decisions. The case study demonstrates the value of preserving indigenous agricultural systems and the negative outcomes of current management interventions that neglect the indigenous system. Therefore, careful interventions and innovations are needed to adapt the tank-based indigenous agricultural system of the Dry Zone of Sri Lanka so as to preserve ecological and socio-economic sustainability.
2 Abeywardana, N.; Pitawala, H. M. T. G. A.; Schutt, B.; Bebermeier, W. 2019. Evolution of the dry zone water harvesting and management systems in Sri Lanka during the Anuradhapura Kingdom: a study based on ancient chronicles and lithic inscriptions. Water History, 11(1-2):75-103. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12685-019-00230-7]
Water management ; Water harvesting ; Arid zones ; Irrigation systems ; Large scale systems ; Ancestral technology ; Canals ; Tanks ; Rivers ; Sustainability ; Grants ; History ; Archaeology / Sri Lanka / Anuradhapura
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H049761)
https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s12685-019-00230-7.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H049761.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H049761.pdf
(3.06 MB) (3.06 MB)
A significant number of written sources report on the development of ancient dry zone water harvesting and water management systems in Sri Lanka. This paper attempts to address the lack of a systematic assessment of the information given by sources on the spatial–temporal development of the system, using methods of source criticism. After the removal of double entries, 255 text passages containing 837 different records on ancient irrigation were compiled as a database for the period from the fifth century BCE to the tenth century CE. The majority of the 625 analyzed records were derived from inscriptions, 212 records originated from chronicles. Geocoding was successfully performed for 40 records. It was possible to link 173 text passages to a specific king’s reign. Altogether 362 records (43.2%) mention a tank or its construction. The categories “grants of irrigation” and “irrigation incomes” are represented with 276 records (33%) and 75 records (9%). Records on canals and irrigation management occur with a share of 8.2% and 6.2%, equaling 69 and 52 records. The spatial distribution of records in general largely corresponds to the extent of the Dry Zone and northern intermediate zone. With 490 records, Anuradhapura district shows the highest density of information on the ancient water harvesting and management system. The analyzed data are not equally distributed throughout the investigated period and show a distinct peak in the second century CE. In conclusion, the conducted analysis documents the potential of the analyzed source genres for the derivation of information on different aspects related to the spatial, temporal and administrative development of the ancient water management system in Sri Lanka.
3 Bebermeier, W.; Abeywardana, N.; Susarina, M.; Schutt, B. 2023. Domestication of water: management of water resources in the dry zone of Sri Lanka as living cultural heritage. WIREs WATER, 17p. (Online first) [doi: https://doi.org/10.1002/wat2.1642]
Water management ; Water resources ; Arid zones ; Cultural heritage ; Local knowledge ; Water reservoirs ; Rain ; Rice ; Cultivation ; Rural communities ; Conflicts ; Tanks ; Water harvesting ; Irrigation systems ; Political aspects ; Infrastructure ; Resilience / South Asia / Sri Lanka / Anuradhapura / Polonnaruwa
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H051727)
https://wires.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/wat2.1642
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H051727.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H051727.pdf
(6.32 MB) (6.32 MB)
In the dry zone of Sri Lanka, human-made reservoirs (locally called tanks or wewas) have served for the collection, storage and distribution of rainfall and runoff and provided irrigation water for the cultivation of paddy for 2400 years. This water management system is deeply inscribed in the rural communities utilizing and maintaining it. Local knowledge connected to the utilization of this system is regarded as a substantial part of the intangible cultural heritage of this unique cultural landscape. In the dry zone of Sri Lanka this system had spread from the fifth century BCE onwards from the hinterland of the ancient capital Anuradhapura throughout the entire dry zone and provides a prerequisite for paddy cultivation. From approximately the 13th century onwards, written sources give evidence, that a weakening of state bureaucracy led to a decline of the water management system. In the Colonial period, numerous reservoirs were restored and the implementation of new governance structures lead to a diminishing of water supplies and conflicts at a local level. In post-Colonial times, since the 1950s, the system had undergone rapid changes triggered by governmental and economic developments (e.g., land use change, migration). The rich local knowledge, serves in line with a high degree of adaptation to local conditions, as a corner stone for its resilience. A future sustainable management requires the integration of local knowledge in combination with modern techniques in education, planning, and application.
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