Social–ecological dynamics in irrigated agriculture in dry zone Sri Lanka: a political ecology

2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 629-637 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sören Köpke ◽  
Sisira Saddhamangala Withanachchi ◽  
Ruwan Pathiranage ◽  
Chandana Rohana Withanachchi ◽  
Angelika Ploeger
Keyword(s):  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Political Ecology ◽  
Irrigated Agriculture ◽  
Ecological Dynamics ◽  
Social Ecological ◽  
Dry Zone

scholarly journals Resilience Thinking and Strategies to Reclaim Sustainable Rural Livelihoods: Cascade Tank-Village System (CTVS) in Sri Lanka

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gavin Melles ◽  
Ethmadalage Dineth Perera
Keyword(s):  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Rural Development ◽  
Sustainable Livelihoods ◽  
Rural Livelihoods ◽  
Sustainable Livelihood ◽  
Resource Limitations ◽  
Social Ecological ◽  
Resilience Thinking ◽  
Poor Access ◽  
Dry Zone

Cascading Tank Village Systems (CTVSs) of Sri Lanka historically provided a resilient community-based social-ecological water management system in the rural dryzone of Sri Lanka [1]. The CTVS has been described as the ‘lifeblood’ of communities in the rural dry zone [2] and as a globally important Agricultural Heritage System by the FAO [3]. After being abandoned for many centuries, their restoration is now being pursued by different national and international actors as a key to climate change mitigation and sustainable livelihoods for communities [4]. Rural livelihoods in the dry zone are at risk due to multiple factors, poor access and management of water, economic and health pressures, as well as resource limitations and degradation [5]. Despite recent efforts to restore CTVS systems, no social-ecological approach (SES) nor sustainable livelihoods framework (SLF) focused approach to ensuring resilient and sustainable livelihood outcomes has been taken [6]. As part of an on-going PhD project, this paper describes the background, current challenges and potential for an SES focused resilience thinking approach to CTVS combined with a focus on sustainable livelihoods for future sustainable livelihood opportunities and outcomes. The study finds current restoration efforts are at a crossroads between restoring the past (system adaptability) or transforming for the future. It introduces relevant SES and resilience thinking concepts and analyses the CTVS from this perspective. A particular contribution of this study is to point to the significant overlaps and complementarities in social-ecological (SES) resilience thinking and SLF approaches to analysis and proposals for resilient rural development. Employing resilience thinking principles it recommends strategies to create positive livelihood outcomes for communities and households. Keywords: cascading tank village system; sustainable livelihoods; resilience thinking; Sri Lanka; rural dry zone; community rural development

scholarly journals Resilience Thinking and Strategies to Reclaim Sustainable Rural Livelihoods: Cascade Tank-Village System (CTVS) in Sri Lanka

Challenges ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 27
Author(s):  
Gavin Melles ◽  
Ethmadalage Dineth Perera
Keyword(s):  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Sustainable Livelihoods ◽  
Rural Livelihoods ◽  
Future Market ◽  
Sustainable Livelihood ◽  
Social Ecological ◽  
Resilience Thinking ◽  
Poor Access ◽  
Dry Zone ◽  
Complex Adaptive

Cascading Tank Village Systems (CTVSs) of Sri Lanka historically provided a resilient community-based social-ecological water management system in the rural dry zone of Sri Lanka After being abandoned for many centuries, their restoration is now being pursued by different national and international actors as a key to climate change mitigation and sustainable livelihoods for communities. Rural livelihoods in the dry zone are at risk due to multiple factors, poor access and management of water, economic and health pressures, as well as resource limitations and degradation. Despite recent efforts to restore CTVS systems, no social-ecological approach (SES) nor a sustainable livelihoods framework (SLF)-focused approach to ensuring resilient and sustainable livelihood outcomes has been taken. As part of an on-going PhD project, this paper analyses the background, current challenges and potential for an SES focused resilience thinking approach to CTVS for future sustainable livelihood opportunities and outcomes. The study finds CTVS exhibit all the properties of a complex adaptive SES and that a resilience thinking approach centred on achieving sustainable livelihood outcomes for communities suggests deep institutional changes are needed. CTVS are at a crossroads between restoring the past (system adaptability) or transforming for the future, and a combination of legacy and future market orientation seems the best solution.

Reality of irrigation water use and suggestions for better management: a comparison of two schemes from Sri Lanka

2003 ◽  
Vol 48 (7) ◽  
pp. 197-206 ◽  
Author(s):  
N.T.S. Wijesekera ◽  
T.N. Wickramaarachchi
Keyword(s):  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Water Use ◽  
Critical Evaluation ◽  
Water System ◽  
Irrigated Agriculture ◽  
Growth Stages ◽  
Water Release ◽  
Land Preparation ◽  
Irrigation Water Use ◽  
Dry Zone

In the dry zone of Sri Lanka, where agriculture is the main livelihood, both farmers and water managers target the best use of water. System H is an area that had been developed for irrigated agriculture using diversions from the River Mahaweli. Study of water use practices was carried out in two irrigation schemes where farmers cultivate the same crop in one-hectare allotments under the support and supervision of the same regional authority. Records of water use and agriculture are not well maintained. Using field visits, discussions with farmers, and meetings with officials were used to fill data gaps and three water issue scenarios were compared. Results of each scheme varied because water release and rotation practices for crop growth are quite different from each other, canal efficiency assumptions are different, land preparation, water use and quantity are dissimilar, and water releases do not consider much about growth stages. The study indicated that use of challenging water issues considering co-ordinated and rational grouping of canals could lead to a saving of 10–30 cm of water per unit area. A discussion of the need for a critical evaluation of guidelines and the present practice of cultivation is included.

Review of the genus Cnemaspis Strauch, 1887 (Sauria: Gekkonidae) in Sri Lanka with the description of five new species

Zootaxa ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 1490 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-63 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. J.MENDIS WICKRAMASINGHE ◽  
D. A.I. MUNINDRADASA
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Morphometric Analysis ◽  
Mountain Region ◽  
Geographical Isolation ◽  
Morphological Comparison ◽  
Type Series ◽  
Dry Zone ◽  
High Degree ◽  
Wet Zone

Five new species of geckos are described from Sri Lanka by morphological comparison and morphometric analysis leading to review the genus Cnemaspis in the country. The type series of these species were identified from following localities: C. alwisi and C. kumarasinghei from the intermediate zone, C. retigalensis from the dry zone, C. molligodai from the lowland wet zone and C. samanalensis from the mountain region of the wet zone in the country. The high degree of endemicity (90%) shown by Cnemaspis in Sri Lanka could be attributed to geographical isolation. In addition, the taxonomic issue of C. jerdonii scalpensis is discussed and the species C. scalpensis is errected.

scholarly journals MINI REVIEW Social ecological dynamics of tropical secondary forests

2021 ◽  
Vol 496 ◽  
pp. 119369
Author(s):  
Patricia Balvanera ◽  
Horacio Paz ◽  
Felipe Arreola-Villa ◽  
Radika Bhaskar ◽  
Frans Bongers ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Secondary Forests ◽  
Ecological Dynamics ◽  
Social Ecological

Exploring social-ecological dynamics of a coral reef resource system using participatory modeling and empirical data

Marine Policy ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 78 ◽  
pp. 90-97 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pierre Leenhardt ◽  
Vanessa Stelzenmüller ◽  
Nicolas Pascal ◽  
Wolfgang Nikolaus Probst ◽  
Annie Aubanel ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Coral Reef ◽  
Empirical Data ◽  
Ecological Dynamics ◽  
Participatory Modeling ◽  
Social Ecological ◽  
Resource System

scholarly journals Effect of infrastructure design on commons dilemmas in social−ecological system dynamics

2015 ◽  
Vol 112 (43) ◽  
pp. 13207-13212 ◽  
Author(s):  
David J. Yu ◽  
Murad R. Qubbaj ◽  
Rachata Muneepeerakul ◽  
John M. Anderies ◽  
Rimjhim M. Aggarwal
Keyword(s):  
Design Feature ◽  
Irrigated Agriculture ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Qualitative Behavior ◽  
Central Feature ◽  
Social Ecological ◽  
Vital Functions ◽  
The Face ◽  
Design Characteristics ◽  
Shared Infrastructure

The use of shared infrastructure to direct natural processes for the benefit of humans has been a central feature of human social organization for millennia. Today, more than ever, people interact with one another and the environment through shared human-made infrastructure (the Internet, transportation, the energy grid, etc.). However, there has been relatively little work on how the design characteristics of shared infrastructure affect the dynamics of social−ecological systems (SESs) and the capacity of groups to solve social dilemmas associated with its provision. Developing such understanding is especially important in the context of global change where design criteria must consider how specific aspects of infrastructure affect the capacity of SESs to maintain vital functions in the face of shocks. Using small-scale irrigated agriculture (the most ancient and ubiquitous example of public infrastructure systems) as a model system, we show that two design features related to scale and the structure of benefit flows can induce fundamental changes in qualitative behavior, i.e., regime shifts. By relating the required maintenance threshold (a design feature related to infrastructure scale) to the incentives facing users under different regimes, our work also provides some general guidance on determinants of robustness of SESs under globalization-related stresses.

Fluoride releasing kinetics in a weathered bearing biotite gneiss

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
M.H.Ashan Madusanka ◽  
◽  
Sandun Sadanayake ◽  
lkMeththika Vithanage ◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Kidney Disease ◽  
Dental Fluorosis ◽  
Geographic Area ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Who Guidelines ◽  
Biotite Gneiss ◽  
Basement Rocks ◽  
Dry Zone ◽  
Uncertain Etiology

In several regions of the dry zone of Sri Lanka, excessive quantities of fluoride (F-) in groundwater have affected the water quality significantly. Apart from the well-known prevalence of dental fluorosis, Chronic Kidney Disease of uncertain etiology (CKDu) is widespread in different pockets in the dry zone of Sri Lanka [1]. Fluoride is one of the substances suspected of being causative of CKDu in the area. Since the kidneys retain more F- than in any other soft tissue and excess F- exposure can cause kidney disease. Within the same zone, the prevalence of CKDu varies by geographic area in a ground water and spatial distribution of selected trace elements in groundwater. The optimum F- level in drinking water, according to WHO guidelines, is 1.5 (mg/L); however, due to the unfavorable climatic conditions that exist in tropical countries, people ingest more water than normal intake, resulting in a high F- intake. The source of F- is geogenic. It has been found that the F- content of basement rocks ranges from 9.5×10-5 to 1.44×10-3 kg/L in the region [3]. Farmers consume about 2-3 liters of water a day to quench their thirst, resulting in a daily F- intake of 3×10-3-1×10-2 kg/L [4].

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