Country’s agro-economic regions will be increasingly affected by extreme weather in coming decades

By Rathindra Kuruwita

Sri Lanka’s agro-economic regions will be increasingly affected by extreme weather events, leaving the population more vulnerable to the impacts of climate change in the coming decade, Eng. Ananda Jayaweera said at a recent event organised by the Institution of Engineers, Sri Lanka (IESL).

“Wet areas will experience more rainfall, while dry zones will expand. The intermediate regions of the country will become hotter, and Sri Lanka’s agro-economic areas will face extreme events such as floods, landslides, and droughts. The temperature changes in these regions will impact plantations and natural resources,” Jayaweera predicted.

He explained that floods, droughts, landslides, and salinity intrusions are common hydro-meteorological disasters faced by Sri Lankans.

Jayaweera also highlighted a significant reduction in the country’s forest cover, which has dropped from 48 percent to 28 percent over the past seven decades. Of this, approximately 24 percent consists of closed canopy natural forests, seven percent are degraded forests, and 13 percent are home gardens.

“This is deeply concerning,” he remarked.

According to Jayaweera, dividing the Sri Lankan map based on the Köppen climate classification system, reveals that the country encompasses nearly all climate zones. The Köppen classification, a widely-used, vegetation-based climate system, was developed by German botanist-climatologist Wladimir Köppen.

The key challenge for engineers in the coming decades, Jayaweera asserted, will be to develop climate-resilient infrastructure. This will require a deep understanding of local challenges, the efficient use of energy and water, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and maintaining a low carbon footprint.

“We must also conduct climate risk assessments and opportunity analyses. Engineers need to be more diligent in identifying location-specific hazards during the feasibility study phase and building resilient infrastructure. The five pillars of climate resilience are threshold capacity, coping capacity, recovery capacity, adaptive capacity, and transformative capacity,” Jayaweera explained.

He pointed out that burning one litre of gasoline produces approximately 2.3 kilogrammes of carbon dioxide. Jayaweera lamented that environmental concerns were not adequately addressed during the construction of the Southern Highway.

“When it rains, landslides occur, and parts of the road flood. We end up spending significant amounts to rectify these issues,” he said.

Jayaweera emphasised the importance of sustainable development and foresight in engineering, encouraging engineers to consider the long-term impact of their projects. “We need to think about what will happen to a project in 10 years. Anticipation and foresight are crucial.”

He added that compensation costs during the construction of the Southern Highway were the second-highest expense, and the project was built using loans.

An environmental management and monitoring plan should be in place during construction, Jayaweera noted. Implementing such measures could enable Sri Lanka to build better.

He also reminded the audience that Sri Lanka is one of the most biodiverse countries in the world, with a far more sensitive environment than many other nations. “This is something we need to consider. The Southern Expressway does provide benefits—faster travel, improved fuel efficiency, fewer traffic jams, and reduced pollution. A lot of time is saved,” he said.

However, Jayaweera argued that more could have been done to mitigate the project’s environmental impact. “For instance, the drainage system on the highway channels water to the roadside, but in more developed countries, drainage is collected in ponds before being released into the environment. This can help remove sulphur and carbon from the water. Drainage water also contains tyre sludge, which we must not release directly into the environment. We need to think more carefully about these issues,” he concluded.