Varsha Newsletter Oct/Dec 2022

Rainwater Champions Recognized at the 25th AGM of Lanka Rain Water Harvesting Forum

At the 25th Annual General Meeting of the Lanka Rain Water Harvesting Forum, the veteran members were given a "Rainwater Champions" pin in recognition of their contributions to the success of the Lanka Rain Water Harvesting Forum.

The 25th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Lanka Rain Water Harvesting Forum (LRWHF) was held on the 24th of September 2022. The meeting was presided over by the Chairperson of the Lanka Rain Water Harvesting Forum, Mr. M. M. M Aheeyar and was attended by LRWHF members, staff, and other interested parties. The AGM was an opportunity for LRWHF to update its members on the progress made over the past year. The meeting was hosted on Zoom too so members were able to join remotely.

Rainwater Champions

1996-2022

MrMMMAheeyar

MrRajindraAriyabandu

Dr.CSWeerarathna

Eng.NUKRanathunga

Eng.DevaHapugoda

MrEmanualGunarathnam

Acht.BuddhinieKaushalya

MrLahiruPerera

MrHanHeijinen

MrLakshanAththanayake

MrPrasadAttygala

MrsShanthiFernando

ProfAruniWeerasinghe

MrWijedasadeSilva

Eng.LalPremanath

MrVictorGunathilake

Eng.DuleepGunawardane

MajorJayanthaGunathilaka

Acht.SaralaPerera

Eng.MDKarunarathne

MrSCWeerasekara

Lanka Rain Water Harvesting Forum

Dr Ariyananda, CEO of LRWHF presented the Annual Report under four objectives: promotion, research and development, training, networking, and exchange of information. Mr. Rajith Kakillaarchchi, the finance manager of Lanka Rain Water Harvesting Forum, presented the audited financial statements for the year ended March 31, 2022. The members elected the Board of Directors of LRWHF for the year 2022/2023. Re elected Chairperson, Mr. M. M. M. Aheeyar, pledged to continue to work with the same dedication and commitment as in the past to take the LRWHF to new heights. He emphasized the need to work retrospectively to come up with new ideas and new strategies to go forward with rainwater harvesting, and continue the good work of the past 25 years.

BoardofDirectors2022/2023

Hony.Chairperson-Mr.M.M.MAheeyar

Hony.ViceChairperson–Mr.RajindradeSilvaAriyabandu

Hony.Secretary-Eng.DevaHapugoda

Hony.AssistantSecretary–Prof.(Ms.)AruniWeerasinghe

Hony.Treasurer–Dr.C.SWeeraratna

Hony.AssistantTreasurer–Mr.EmanualGunaratnam

Hony.Non-PostDirector–Eng.N.U.KRanathunga

PakistanandMalawisharesevidenceofbestpracticesonrainwater harvesting toaddresstheadverseeffectsofclimatechange

Collecting, storing, and using rainwater was practiced over time across continents to meet the demand for water be it from South Asia or from the regions in Africa. This age-old technology has gained importance in the wake of extreme weather such as prolonged drought. Communities across different regions have revived the practice of rainwater harvesting and call for the attention of development practitioners and investment and for further innovations and research on this technology.

The emerging need for increased adoption of rainwater harvesting and best practices were shared by two young active water professionals at a recently concluded webinar organized by the Young Rainwater Champions titled "The success of rainwater extraction from Asia and Africa". The presenters were Mr. Zain Sajeed from Pakistan and Ms. Carol Kaitano from Malawi.

Pakistan and Malawi are having more than their fair share of the effects of climate change which include unreliable rainfall patterns, excessive rain, floods and droughts. Pakistan is ranked 14th among 17 others that are extremely high-water-risk countries in the middle east that do not have natural water resources.

Malawi is one of the countries that has been heavily hit by the effects of climate change. Malawi relies on rain-fed agriculture, and the most recent droughts have resulted in poor crop yields or total crop failure. In Pakistan and Malawi the Government and other development partners are promoting the practice of rainwater harvesting.

Catchment built on the rooftop is an alternative rainwater harvesting model in Pakistan

Mr. Zain Sajeed explained the rainwater harvesting model proposed for the Islamabad hospitality area.

The proposed model was a Catchment on the roof that dips/bends in the center like the wash basin. Rainwater will fall on it and concentrate in the center and directly go to the Roof Storage Tank by gravity flow. Mr. Sajeed provided the example of the Hotel Crown Plaza in Islamabad Jinnah Avenue Blue Area, Islamabad. This hotel with 61 rooms on 4 floors and around 30 guests would benefit by being able to address water needs in the dry periods of the year.

Some of the other examples of rainwater harvesting in Pakistan were:

Government constructed tanks in the Faisal Masjid area Stormwater storage tanks in Lahore in 2010

Rainwater harvesting units installed in 300 schools In Kashmir area

40,000 rainwater harvesting units installed in 13,000 plus public buildings in the aftermath of the earthquake - Mr Zaheer Gardezi( Former Govt official , Pakistan)

The Calabash rainwater harvesting systems provides water and sanitation for schools

The Rainwater Harvesting Association of Malawi (RHAM) it builds awareness, promote, and research on rainwater harvesting and provides training to government extension workers and teachers. In primary schools in urban and rural areas, more than 50 Calabash and ferro-cement tanks have been constructed by the RHAM. This water captured in Calabash tanks can be kept for 3 to 5 months.

Having these tanks have also helped maintain sanitation and hand-washing facilities for school children. School environments used to be dry with less vegetation after being provided the Calabash tanks have been transformed. The importance of raising awareness among school children about rainwater harvesting and it being included into green gardens sustainable development plans for Malawi were highlighted as key measures to promote the practice by Ms. Kaitano. Furthermore, she stated that rainwater harvesting promotional activities have created an interest among school children to engage in extracurricular activities too.

Mr.ZainSajeed

Ms. Carol Kaitano

The voices come from the north: rainwater harvesting for the war-affected communities in Sri Lanka

To provide vulnerable populations in Sri Lanka with access to clean drinking water, the Lanka Rain Water Harvesting Forum (LRWHF) is planning to construct 105 household Rainwater Harvesting Systems (RWHS) in Mannar district in the years 2022–2025.

Mrs S. Nageswary lives in Kaddaiyadamban GN of Mannar District. She lost her beloved spouse during Sri Lanka's civil war. She has been living with her three children since that tragic occurrence. Ms. Nageswary is the only person who makes an income in the family, working as a labourer while she cultivates chena. Daily travel is required for her job. They lack a safe water source to meet their drinking water needs among all these problems.

"There hasn't been a source of clean drinking water at our doorstep since we moved into this land." Every day, I make the trip to a tributary that runs along one side of our village to collect water for drinking and cooking. One trip to bring water takes around 45 minutes, Including the time it takes to get from the residence to the water source and wait in a queue. "I can only bring one pot of water per trip, but that is not enough to cover my needs for drinking and cooking water."

Ms. S. Nageswary says while she makes several trips to bring water, she also needs to leave for work every morning to provide for her family. They grow a few varieties of cereals on their farmland. She returns home later in the evening. She related an incident one day that challenged their Hindu cultural belief.. In Hindu customs, they refrain from bringing water from nearby homes after 6:00 p.m. However, one day when she returned home from work, there was not a drop of water for drinking or cooking. Therefore Nageswary had to disregard the cultural norms and ask for some water from the neighbors.

Kaddaiyadamban Grama Niladhari Division was given a water project that sought to supply water from a tube well three years ago. But that endeavor was not a success. In that situation, LRWHF stepped in to address the issue. Ms. Nageswary was selected to receive RWHS after a thorough selection process. She now has a rainwater collection system next to her door. Expressing her thoughts Ms. Nageswarysa said. “For this priceless gift, I must express my gratitude to the Lanka Rainwater Harvesting Forum. I now have access to safe and clean drinking water at my doorstep. The rainwater I collected is primarily used for drinking and cooking. "The time and labor that used to go into fetching water is now saved , " "Previously I found it quite challenging to go and get water on my own. When I am sick, going 2-3 kilometers to get water is quite difficult , Therefore RWHS is such a valuable gift to me," she continued.

Mr. T. Santhirasekaran, his wife, and their two sons also reside in Kaddayamban GN, in the Mannar District. T. Santhirasekaran's wife, is a young mother of 35 years. Following the loss of their lands to Sri Lanka's civil conflict, they were given a house from one of the housing projects in 2004. However, they did not have access to safe drinking water. "We haven't had a drinking water source close to our home since the day we moved here, least within our neighborhood." Seetha Lakshmi said sharing her story with us.

"We obtain water from two places, one is the tributary that flows on one side of the village, about 2-3 km away, and the other is the police station. The water obtained from the police station is of poor quality due to water hardness”. Ms. Seetha recounted the difficulties she had while gathering water from remote locations. "Our occupation is chena cultivation and day work. Before going to work, either I or my husband must bring water, because we get home late at night. Similarly, in the morning, we must cook, prepare our children for school, and prepare for our day's tasks. It is also difficult to bring water while it is raining. Our daily water usage for drinking and cooking is 35L.” They have two children. One boy is studying, while the other is two year old. Because they have little children, they had difficulty bringing water from outside. Ms. Seetha added to the story, saying, "I have a two-year-old younger son." When my husband and I go to get water, we leave him at my mother's or another neighbor’s house. He dislikes staying in those places. This was Ms. Seetha Lakshmi's tale before acquiring a rainwater harvesting tank for her family.

Ms. Seetha described the benefits she obtained after installing a rainwater harvesting tank in their home. "The difficulty that we had since 2004 is now resolved. We now have safe drinking water right outside our door. We have suffered enormously because of several situations, such as war, water scarcity, not having a fixed income source, and so on. "However, we no longer need to be concerned about the drinking water problem." Ms. Seetha's home is not the only one that benefits from the rainwater harvesting tank. "Three other neighboring houses get water from our rainwater tank," she stated.. Ms. Seetha went on to highlight the importance of rainwater and its quality. "The collected water is cool and it is clean. After several years of praying, we now have safe drinking water. We no longer have a dawn rush to fetch water. We devote our time to other morning activities. All troubles have now vanished. We are now collecting rainwater and getting accustomed to it."

Ms. Seetha Lakshmi expressed her family's gratitude to LRWHF & USAID providing a RWHS for their drinking water needs.

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Children's Corner

AP Madusha Diluni Mo/Siyambalanduwa MV, Monaragala

Mahendran Rithoshini BD/Bharathy Tamil MV, Badulla