Stream Reservations are at Risk? : A Case Study on the Agro-Well Development in the Dry Zone of Sri Lanka

The emergence of Agro-well based agricultural systems has started in low line areas of the Dry Zone of Sri Lanka, due to the easy access of shallow groundwater. It became very rapid after 1989 and this has been discussed among the research community as well as among regional resources planners. Now, there is a common belief that the Agro-well based land development has drastically changed the overall land use in the Dry Zone. Especially the Stream reservations are one of the important components in the Dry Zone land use and these have been contributing a lot of biological services. The existence of these reservations has conceptually ensured with the empherical knowledge of the farmers as well as current legislative supports. Accordingly, this study was conducted to examine whether there is an impact of Agro-well development on stream reservations and whether the impact is significant. The study was conducted covering 20 mini basins consisted of 20 tank cascades in the North Central Dry Zone. Computing the Agro-well density in tank cascades, an Agro-well survey in stream reservations, maps interpretations (Geo eye 1 satellite images and GIS maps) and significant tests were also used for the study. It was revealed that although there are relevant regulations to allocate the stream reservations, Agro-wells have been constructed in stream reservations and a number of damages have been done recently. Furthermore, according to the differentiated mean T test, Agro-well availability in stream reservations has been significant (P value = 0.0044).