Polpitiya: 20 years on, incomplete...:

A TUNNEL THAT THREATENS

by Rukshana Rizwie

The proposed 35 megawatt Broadland Power Station in Polpitiya was supposed to be commissioned 20 years ago. But the issues that plagued the power plant then, continue still. Several court cases later, the plant is still two years behind schedule.

Residents around the proposed site have been up in arms since the inception of the China-funded Ceylon Electricity Board project. A school teacher M.A.K.A Gunawardena told the Sunday Observer, of harrowing tales of homes slipping into sink holes, and the constant barrage of explosions during rock blasting.

"The problems started when plans for the project changed," he said, referring to the construction of the 3 km tunnel, initially meant to be constructed alongside the river. "Contractors were to dig a tunnel along the Kelani River, but half way through they realized it was not feasible and moved away.

That's when rock blasting took its toll on the homes uphill. The result was sinkholes and cracked walls," he said.

Gunawardena said, officers from the Divisional Secretariat and the National Research Building Organization (NBRO) were quick to warn of the impending disaster. "Due to the extent of the damage, it was not possible to live there and when we were warned of the impending disasters we moved."

Environment Impact Assessment

The US$ 82 million hydro power plant is a run-of-river (ROR) type with the main dam located near the confluence of the Maskeliya Oya and Kehelgamu Oya, two main tributaries upstream of the Kelani River.

The main dam and weir would be located in the Ambagamuwa Korale division of the Nuwara Eliya district, and the powerhouse in Yatiyantota division in the Kegalle district. It is in the Ambagamuwa division that residents have been complaining and protesting.

Based on the specifics of the project, a diversion weir will be erected in Kehelgamu Oya to divert its water to the Maskeliya Oya via a one km tunnel. The other diversion, which is the main dam of the project, will be erected in Maskeliya Oya, and the purposal of this is to divert water from both streams to the powerhouse.

Water from the main dam will be conveyed to the proposed 35MW powerhouse, first, via a cut-and- cover conduit and then through a 3 Km tunnel.

The Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) of the project was prepared by the NBRO and approved by the Central Environment Authority (CEA) in November, 2006 and extended till February 2010. The EIA states, "there will be no serious impact on the natural/social environment due to this project."

Referring to the impact on land use, the EIA cautions that illegal encroachment during pre-construction stages is to be expected and would be done with the prime intention of seeking compensation.

On resettlement, the EIA clearly states that 49 families with a population of around 140 from the dam site and five families with a population of around 20 will require resettlement to another location.

The existing houses and shops will be demolished with the construction of the dam, conduit, road and powerhouse.

Most challenging plant

Project Director of the Broadland Power Station Dr Kamal Laksiri told the Sunday Observer, among all projects he had handled at the CEB, the Broadland Power Station was proving to be the most challenging.

"When the project was initiated we identified 48 families who would be directly affected, and asked them how they would like to be compensated. They wanted an alternative land and money, to which we agreed. They were paid a minimum of Rs 2.2 million each and the family with the biggest extent of land received Rs 5.8 million," Dr. Laksiri said, showing us letters proving that residents had accepted compensation.

He said, in the construction of the tunnel, the engineers found ground conditions too weak and unstable. "We would have had to cut down many slopes and relocate an existing main road," he said. "Several delays ensued when the forest department refused to allocate land for the powerhouse downstream since it was taking more space than initially required."

But the project forged ahead and in 2013 they began rock blasting. "We are allowed to use explosives in rock blasting the whole day but we would only do it four times a day and stop by nightfall," he said, adding that the Geological Survey and Mines Bureau (GSMB) was monitoring the work.

In April this year, residents petitioned against the plant, citing that the work was causing inconvenience, and lodged a complaint with the police.

Enjoining Order

Attorneys-at-law Champika Priyadarshani and Anushka Dharshani appeared for the complainants. Attorney at law Champika told the Sunday Observer, residents had complained of severe noise pollution and that the road works were hampering their day-to-day activities.

Hatton District Judge and Magistrate Prasad Liyanage issued an Enjoining Order on the Project Director and Chief Engineer of the Chinese construction company to carry out digging activities without inconveniencing the public. He also ordered that the project officials carry out the rock blasting work under the close supervision of the GSMB.

Inconvenience payments

"Residents living within the 100 metre belt were the most affected by the noise and we reached an agreement with them to provide them an 'inconvenience payment' of Rs.16,000 a month," Dr Laksiri said. The residents however complained to the Sunday Observer that the payment was abruptly stopped.

Dr Laksiri explained that last month, residents who signed up for the payment wanted to change the agreement. "We signed agreements with them citing that we would stop rock blasting by 9 p.m., but they wanted to change it to 6 p.m. which we refused," he said. "It was due to this disagreement that payments were halted until a solution could be reached," he said.

A discussion was held last week on Monday (22) when the residents agreed to revert to the old agreement and their payment was made the following day. It was however not the end of their troubles for the power plant.

During construction, engineers found unusual ground conditions uphill where there were cavities with water.

"We used an advanced technology to drill the ground but it turned into a fountain of water and gas," he said. "Due to the weak ground condition, two houses began to slip into a sinkhole. We immediately evacuated four families, compensated, and resettled them."

Resettlement

The NBRO found that 37 families would need to be resettled. "The first 12 were relocated in the first phase," Dr Laksiri said, showing us the letters of approval. The second phase is yet to be done he said.

Another resident A. Karunarathne told the Sunday Observer that it was no longer safe for them to stay. "We have been told that we would be resettled soon.

When the Minister of Power and Renewable Energy Ranjith Siyambalapitiya was here two weeks ago, he promised that we would be resettled within 10 days," he said. "It's been more than 10 days and we're still here."

River sports, tourism in danger?

According to the International Rafting Federation (IRF), one of the top 10 endangered rivers which the IRF listed as a hot spot for water rafting is the Kelani River at Polpitiya. The website says that construction activities for the proposed Broadland Hydro Power Station in Polpitiya are a cause for concern. The White Water Rafters' Association in Sri Lanka continues to protest over the proposed construction saying that diversion of the river would cause an indefinite change in the flow and consistency of the water.

Upul Fernando, one of the many operators of white water rafting expeditions said, the stretch of the Kelani River has 18 rapids of which 13 will diminish when construction is completed. He told the Sunday Observer that there are many businesses which thrive on income generated from the water sport that will be affected if the water was diverted. According to information available online, in 1995, there were only a handful of licensed operators and well known rest-houses. Today, Fernando tells us, there are more than 20 operators and more than 15 small scale hotels and rest-houses which cater to both locals and foreigners.

Dr Kamal Laksiri, project manager of the Broadlands Power Station conferred that the diversion of water from the river could have an impact, but said, a solution had been proposed to which tour operators were yet to respond.

"We discussed the possibility of setting up a mini hydro power plant which will discharge water back to the Kelani River," he said. "We can decide on how much water will be needed to be discharged, but we're told that the operators in the area were not in agreement to this either." Sources told the Sunday Observer that a group of rafters were petitioning against the plant and were in the process of filing a case in court.

(RR)