Remediation & Pollution

Mitigation at Kandy Lake &

Mid-Canal

Dr Shameen Jinadasa
University of Peradeniya
Sri Lanka
 2
Significance of Kandy City & Kandy Lake
Kandy City:
• Capital of hill country
• 2nd biggest city
• UNESCO Heritage site
• Mahaweli River catchment

Kandy Lake:
• Landmark at Kandy City centre
• Tourist attraction
• Next to Sri Dalada Maligawa- Buddhist
pilgrimage destination & national treasure

A Member of
 Rapid Growth of Kandy City & Increased Pollution into Kandy Lake
and Mid-Canal
Is there space for wastewater treatment
Infrastructure challenges: facility?
• Mixed development
• Space constraints
• Densely-populated
• Unregulated settlements

Overpopulation of tilapia in Kandy Lake & social

Mid-Canal then and now: practice of feeding the fish, and case of mass
“… as a child, I used to play in the mid-canal” fish death in 2009
-Mr MG Gunarathna, Mid-canal resident, 81
“In 2001, there was a drought and algal
bloom, the smell was so bad.” - Dr CS
Kalpage, Senior Lecturer, U of Peradeniya
Need for
4 Appropriate Solutions

Many cities in Sri Lanka still A septage treatment

Water lilies as natural treatment Regular desilting at Kandy depend on septic tanks and plant in Kurunegala,
option? Lake gully bowsers Sri Lanka

Solution options?
• Remediation options can be energy-intensive, e.g. aerated systems?
• “Affordable” wastewater treatment options are “space-consuming”?
• Failed (inappropriate) treatment facilities, e.g. Sri Dalada Maligawa existing plant?

To sustainably remediate Kandy Lake and keep it clean:

1. Pollution reduction at source:
• Strategy: Dalada Maligawa Temple treatment facility to serve as model.
2. Sustainable and affordable remediation option:
• Strategy: Floating wetlands at Kandy Lake;
3. Public cooperation and capacity building:
• Strategy : Education program in schools; and
• use of full-scale facilities for university students’ learning.
 Floating wetlands for remediation of Kandy Lake

Use locally-available material.
Fabrication and installation
@~ S$300/ unit
Field study at Kranji
reservoir– test float
materials and wetland plant
First wetland test unit made of
bamboo. Later, PVC was used for
better buoyancy
Wetland root zone after 8
weeks. Dense root zones
assist trapping of particles
and removal of excess
nutrients

Floating wetlands integrate into surroundings and

require virtually no land space
Kandy Lake Model for Wetland Module Placement

• Hydraulic modelling to
strategize deployment;

• Impactful placements to
intercept contaminated runoff
and sewage.
Wastewater treatment facility @ Sri Dalada Maligawa - the model plant

Sequencing Batch Reactor (SBR)

system:
• Compact;
• Large load bandwidth.

SBR system has not been previously

applied in Kandy.

Capacity: 200 – 1,200 users.

Severe construction constraints

Wastewater Treatment Facility @ Sri Dalada Maligawa

Kandy
Lake
A Member of
 Community Engagement & Education

UOP undergraduates surveying Mid-canal Formal discussion with the Kandy Governor
residents

Student activities at the Wetland Education NTU student engagement & outreach events
Centre
 Immediate Outcomes
1. Improved living environment and sanitation:
• No cases of fish death;
• Dalada Maligawa had not needed gully bowsers to
remove wastewater.
2. Facilities well maintained by community post-
handover:
• New Canna flower species from Peradeniya botanic
garden introduced for the floating wetlands.
3. Increased awareness of need for sanitation and
conservation:
• Fish feeding has stopped; bamboo fencing and
signboard have been put up around Kandy Lake to
deter fish feeding.
4. Human resource development:
• Many students continued to work in environment &
water domain.

“We had an advantage from [the project], as we learned

how to work directly with the community”
–Ms HMWAP Premarathne, UOP graduate
Impact across the development “supply
chain” & continued development

1. Government & capacity building:

• Kandy Municipality won “best
municipality award” in 2016;
• Kandy City secured funding from JICA
and World Bank for Kandy Lake and Mid-
canal rehabilitation, sewerage network,
and centralized wastewater treatment
facility.

2. Contractors & technology transfer:

• Contractor engaged in Kandy project Close to 220 millon SGD have been invested by JICA and the Government of
now undertaking more wastewater Sri Lanka for sanitation infrastructure.

treatment projects;
• STP at Dalada Maligawa is used as a
model for new treatment facilities in
Kandy (e.g. Grand Kandyan hotel and
Devon Hotel).

Rehabilitation of Mid-Canal, pictures taken in January and May 2017

Impact across the development “supply chain” &
continued development

3. Schools & universities:

• Continued education & carry-forward of
the knowledge base;
• STP at the Dalada Maligawa used by
Peradeniya U for engineering education.
Dr Gemunu Herath supervising student
4. Donor/ Sponsor: monitoring Kandy Lake water quality
• Greater appreciation of systems
approach in development aid, science,
and engineering;
• Team is expanding project in Sri Lanka.

U of Peradeniya undergraduates sampling

wastewater at a hospital
 Project Milestones
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
Apr Feb Feb 2013 – Mar 2014 Apr - Sep Jan
Lien Presentation of Engineering works: Discussions to Site assessment
Environmental findings & • Tender exercise for STP @ extend program for program
Fellowship (LEF) recommendatio Dalada Maligawa; to other lakes in expansion at
Award. ns. • Installations of floating Sri Lanka. Kurunegala
wetlands; Lake.
• Construction of outdoor
classroom @ Mahamaya Girls’
Oct 2010 – Dec 2011 May College. Apr
Feasibility study LEF Project LEF Award
• Socio-economic study at Mid- Implementation (feasibility
Canal; Award. study) for
• Pilot tests of floating wetlands; Kurunegala
• Designing school education Oct + Aug Jul Nov Lake.
program. Wastewater Official President’s
profiling at handover and Awards for
Dalada Phase 1 project Scientific
Maligawa. completion. Publication 2015
– Dr Shameen
Jinadasa
Mar-Aug
Phase 2
wetlands design
review &
installation.

Monitoring
 Project expansion to Kurunegala Lake

Existing floating plants at Kurunegala Lake

Kurunegala Lake is a supplementary water source for Kurunegala Town

Existing water intake structure at Kurunegala Lake

Thank You