Sri Lanka’s Small Tank Cascade Systems: Building Agricultural Resilience in the Dry Zone

Abstract

Small tank cascade systems (STCS) are part of Sri Lanka’s hydraulic civilization. These systems interconnected small man-made reservoirs which capture seasonal rainwater for agriculture, household, and environmental purposes are considered the lifeblood of communities in the Dry Zone of Sri Lanka. These time-tested drought and floodmitigation systems are now increasingly being seen as excellent community resilience systems for adaptation to climate change in the Dry Zone of Sri Lanka. Somewhat neglected by the authorities, the systems are now being revived, and restoration of degraded STCS is being recognised as a viable option for adaptation in the National Action Plan for Climate Change Adaptation in Sri Lanka as well as articulated as adaptation actions in the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement. This chapter brings out the unique features of these systems and discusses how the systems have been helpful in addressing drought and floodmitigation historically; in building climate change resilience in small-scale farming communities in the Dry Zone in the present context in; how they were managed over time and what future they hold in climate change adaptation planning in the country.

Integrated Water Management in Mountain Communities: The Case of Feutap in the Municipality of Bangangté, Cameroon

“…This unique hydraulic civilization is reported to be based on the following quote by King Parakramabahu (5th century BC): "No drop of water should flow into the sea without serving the interest of man" or "Let not allow a single drop of water falling as rain flow into the sea without being used for the benefit of mankind". Based on this vision, colossal constructional efforts transformed the hills of Sri Lanka into networks of cisterns, drains, and reservoirs wherein each drop of rainwater is used and reused times and times before leaving the hill catchment [97][98][99][100].…”

“…Rainwater on a catchment is collected in a cascade of small tanks and used and reused many times before coming to a large reservoir. Water from the large reservoir is used for irrigation [97,98,100]. In other words, in a region dryer than Feutap, ancient Sri Lankans developed irrigated agriculture [97,100].…”

“…Water from the large reservoir is used for irrigation [97,98,100]. In other words, in a region dryer than Feutap, ancient Sri Lankans developed irrigated agriculture [97,100]. Water stored in the cascade system was used for all other needs (e.g., domestic bathing and cooking, fisheries, livestock).…”

Valuing ecosystem services from restoring ancient irrigation systems: An application comparing labor vs. monetary payments for choice experiments

“…The attributes chosen to describe the change have to be relevant to both decision makers and the respondents of the questionnaire. For this study, the relevant attributes were identified through an extensive process that included a broad literature review, consultation with experts/scientists working on cascades, use of google maps, and focus group discussions of cascade-dependent stakeholders were utilized (for details, see Vidanage 2018; Dissanayake and Vidanage 2022). The attributes to describe the outcomes of the cascade restoration process and the levels we identified through this process are presented in Table 1 and Fig.…”

Identifying determinants of sustainable water management at the household level through rainwater harvesting systems in Nepal

“…Because of the lack of irrigation facilities and drying up of water sources, the mountain people in Nepal are more vulnerable. In this regard, the need for adoption of the RWH system is increasing as an alternative adaptation strategy (Vidanage et al, 2021).…”