One third of the land area belongs to Sri Lanka face soil erosion

It has been estimated that one third of the land belongs to Sri Lanka has faced soil erosion. When considering the global situation, it has to make a high emphasis on the conservation of soil and water sources.” said Mr.Patali Champika Ranawaka, the minister of power and energy participating as the chief guest at an international conference on “The use of soil conservation methods to minimize soil erosion and the role of nuclear techniques” organized by the National Atomic Energy Authority.

The minister further said,
“As a result of the soil erosion the water sources are drying up. And also the reservoirs are losing their capacity to hold water. If sturn actions have not been taken to prevent soil erosion, it will create a huge impact on the assurence of the food supply world in the future.

In Sri Lanka, soil erosion and declining soil fertility have been the major land degradation issues in central highlands particularly in lands exposed for human use. Extensive use of land for potato cultivation without proper assessement, plantation of vegetabe and tea are the agricultural reasons for soil erosion. Other than that settling people in environmentally sensitive areas by clearing jungles is another major cause of soil erosion in the central highlands of Sri Lanka. We hope the surveys and researches prsent through these confernces will help to take important decisions and to decide on suitable approaches for the conservation of the soil”. He said.