More cracks visible around Koslanda in Sri Lanka

By Shalika Wimalasena  2014-11-16

“Many people think this is the end but this is the beginning.”
Many of us did not understand that. He was talking about the landslide in Meeriyabedda in Koslanda in which scores of hapless people were buried alive without last respects.
But this is a story about living people. We must learn a lesson from Meeriyabedda and provide relief to these people.

“Many people think this is the end but this is the beginning.”
Many of us did not understand that. He was talking about the landslide in Meeriyabedda in Koslanda in which scores of hapless people were buried alive without last respects.
But this is a story about living people. We must learn a lesson from Meeriyabedda and provide relief to these people.
“What are you saying?”
“Do you mean another Meeriyabedda is coming closer?”
“Yes,” he replied like a thunderbolt. Do we need to hear another story of people who die, struggling to breath out the last breath through the mud filled noses?
This is an annex to the story:
The entire country was vocal about the tsunami warning systems after about 40,000 people died of 2004 December 26th tsunami. The government was in a hurry to establish them. But by 2014, when ten years have passed, now half of such tsunami warning systems are not functioning.
The tragedy in Meeriyabedda must be an eye opener. We are trying to make it. A proverb

says that playing fiddle before the deaf elephants is useless. But it can be useful one day when they begin to hear.
“There is a crack about 50 metres long on the ground in the jungle. The earth has cracked. We saw it when we took our cattle there.”
If there were sleuths like Sherlock Holmes, they would definitely go after this information. But no authority cared about this information.
Now we are right above the landslide site of Meeriyabedda. We are roaming in the villages in the valley between the mountain where the landslide took place and the mountain range beyond it. We are talking to people who have lived in these villages since they were born.
“No officer came with us to the jungle despite our pleas. If they agreed to go, we would take them on our shoulders.”
If they wanted one incident to learn a lesson, now it has already taken place. The people live in fear. They speak out their fears. The planners who work in the air conditioned rooms in Colombo do not feel their fear. Therefore, they do not want to comb jungles.
But we combed it.
There is a crack in the slope called Pagaragala which has long grasses above the Galketiya sluice of Kirindi Oya. Our guide showed us the crack. There is a huge banyan tree near it. After a year, the crack is filled with leaves and the sides of the crack have washed into the pit. But still the crack is clearly visible.
The geologists and the authorities may say that it is a path of a water stream. They may say people have no idea about ground cracks.
They are correct. Like the villagers, we too are not aware of the technical terminology. But we can understand that a change has taken place there. The responsible people must probe the phenomenon. But they do not want to roam in the jungle. They study the earth without touching mud. I must say that there are a few gentlemen who fulfil their duties perfectly. They may be unaware of this. Then take this information.
Small earth slips have taken place in a number of places in the jungle. Our guide said that if this mountain collapsed, the Kirindi Oya would be blocked totally. It will change the path of the river and the entire geography will be turned upside down, he said.
Is it sheer imagination? But it seems to be true
We must discuss about the Uma Oya Hydro Power Project also. This is not a conspiracy against development. We want development of the right kind.
We sneaked into the area the tunnel is dug in Ella in Bandarawela. The 21 kilometre tunnel bores the central hills. The Iranian construction company which undertakes the construction contract has banned entry into the area.
“They say the area where the tunnel is dug is affected by landslides often. They may be blocking entrance to prevent information leaking.”
We witnessed the doubts of the villagers were reasonable. Several rocks had fallen across the road to the tunnel entrance on 5 November. Much soil collapsed when we were there. We captured images of the collapsing soil and rock.
The officials who came there to monitor the landslide were more interested to know who we were. We lied and slipped off.
A construction worker of the tunnel site said that such landslides took place in the area previously too. The authorities are also unaware of what happens in this site of hundreds of acres situated above Meeriyabedda.
The walls of the houses have cracked in the areas like Welimada and Kandaketiya. The wells have dried. The walls of the temple which were bound to a rock cracked suddenly. People wondered how it happened so swiftly.
The reports of the Central Environmental Authority and the standards of development must be reconsidered in this context. The Uva Provincial Council discussed last week that the explosions in the tunnel are felt on the surface. The dialogue on this is still insufficient. The authorities do not know the power of the explosions that take place in the tunnel.
The following story is from the past:
There was a time the earth had split into two parts called Angaraland and Gondwanaland. There are seven continents separated from oceans. Geologists say the split lines go across Sri Lanka as well. They may emerge one day and the villages can split. The best example cited by the geologists is the sudden landslide in Nikaloya in Matale while the Moragahakanda reservoir was being built. The landslide was caused by the machines used in the construction. The landslide occurred with a water bolt.
What is a water bolt?
It is now revealed that the landslide in Meeriyabedda was also caused by a water bolt. It is earth slip caused by the pressure of millions of litres of water that collected in the soil between earth surface and the base rock.
Geologists identify this as the soil becoming a broth.
Meeriyabedda is made of weak soil. Some say the chemical fertilizer used in the area has weakened the soil. It must be true because the fertilizer breaks up the soil into small particles. Yet it is not the only reason for the landslide, as some say.
The kings and the colonial rulers protected the mountain soil through laws. The situation changed after 1948. Massive reservoirs like Randenigala, Rantambe and Upper Kotmale were built in the recent past. It increased the water levels of the soil. The aim of the reservoirs is to collect the water in upper levels without letting them to flow down. It is good for the development but these massive tanks increased the water content of the soil. This affected the stability of the soil layers in the Central Hills.
What happened due to the Uma Oya project?
The tunnel is dug from Dayarabah in Bandarawela to Ravana Ella. There are two methods of digging tunnels. One is drilling and blasting which causes massive shock. Part of the Uma Oya tunnel was dug in that way.
A new machine was imported for the drilling of the other part of the tunnel. It grinds the rock causing less pressure. The geologists emphasize that the shock caused by this machine can be ten thousand fold.
There were several landslides in Mahathatilla Oya when the digging of the tunnel started at Dayarabah. People say that twenty or thirty feet tall jak trees also have sunk. Meeriyabedda is in the middle of the tunnel. The end is farther.
The tunnel is dug across a single range of mountains. If a tunnel is dug across a solitary hill like Ritigala, only that hill feels the impact. But this digging affects the entire area. It is like big nail hit to a wall splitting the entire wall.
This tunnel rocks the entire Central Hills. Soil layers are swayed. There are huge reservoirs on the top of mountains. Tunnels go underneath them. Very soonthe entire Central Hills will be holed.
This is no imagination. In 1963, over 2,500 people died in similar landslides in Italy. Sixty-six landslides took place in 1888 when the Panama Canal was dug. They are the lessons from history. That is why we emphasize that we must learn a lesson from Meeriyabedda.
Italy still digs holes in solitary hills and builds roads. They do it following strict safety measures. They lay metal nets over the mountain and use many other methods to prevent soil layers slipping. But, none of such safety measures are followed in the Uma Oya project. They have built concrete walls to the height of two or three metres. But we monitored the earth bunds were sliding over them. The reason for not following safety measures is thinking only about the project and not about the future. They are not ready to bear extra expenses for them. The authorities are also not interested in them.
Must we stop all these?
Will landslides stop if we halt the development projects?
No. There are ways we can be safe. We must have a plan to manage the sensitive environment of the Central Hills. The government says it knew since 2005 that there would be landslides in Meeriyabedda. But they did nothing. They did not have any programme for nine years to prevent the damage. Eventually, people paid the price.
Geologists say that millions of years are needed to consolidate the collapsed soil after a landslide. Another problem is blocking the water resources and new water sources emerging in strange places. The rivers fill with silt and the water levels drop. It can be prevented to a certain extent by planting trees and building natural bunds.
But what are they doing instead of it?
The government has planned to establish 108 more small scale hydro power generating projects by 2032. Some of them convey water completely through tunnels. The government has decided to build golf courts in forest reserves like Haldummulla and Weli Oya which are the lifelines of the Central Hills. Weli Oya will dry soon. The US learnt lessons from the landslides in the past. But Sri Lanka is not learning.
Gentlemen, the thunderbolt strikes the heart of this country. That is why we have to repeat that the tragedy in Meeriyabedda is not the dead end.
Special thanks to the Dean of the Department of Geography, Sri Jayewardenepura University, Prof. Jinadasa Katupotha and the National Coordinator of Nature Study Centre, environmentalist, Ravindra Kariyawasam.
(Photos: Kavinda Dhammika)