EFL held a successful awareness session for financial institutions on the detrimental environmental, social and financial consequences of investing in mini hydro projects in ecologically sensitive areas. The awareness session was held on the 10th of June 2016 at the Sri Lanka Foundation Institute in collaboration with Sri Lanka Water Partnership and was attended by representatives of major banks including National Development Bank, Sampath Bank, National Savings Bank, and Peoples Bank as well as representatives from the Central Environmental Authority.
EFL conducted a site visit to Erathne in the Ratnapura District, which lies between the Samanala Strict Forest Reserve (which is connected to the central highlands UNESCO World Heritage Site) and Eratna Girimale Protected Forest Reserve. The Kuru Ganga originates from the Samanala Reserve, flowing through the Girimale Reserve to eventually join the Kalu Ganga. Three mini hydro power plants with a capacity ranging from 10-2 MW are currently situated on the Kuru Ganga, while another mini hydro plant is
Environmental Foundation Limited in collaboration with Sri Lanka Water Partnership (SLWP) recently held “A Dialogue on Policy Implications and Community Concerns Resulting from the Approval Process of Mini Hydro Power Plants” on the 31st of March at the International Water Management Institute (IWMI). The dialogue was held with the objective of gathering all stakeholders to address various concerns arising due to mini hydropower projects and identify the shortcomings in the approval process. The event consisted of two panel discussions, a community panel
