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Digana tremors: Victoria Dam report today 

30 Dec 2020

By Pamodi Waravita    The final expert committee meeting regarding the causes of the Digana tremors, focusing on the Victoria Reservoir was concluded last (30) afternoon and the report will be submitted to the Ministry of Environment today (31), The Morning learnt.  Speaking to The Morning, Senior Lecturer at the Department of Geology of the Science Faculty at the University of Peradeniya and member of expert committee Prof. Athula Senaratne stated that the report hopes to clarify the possible causes of the Digana tremors and make recommendations to the Ministry of Environment regarding the long-term stability and safety of the Victoria Dam and surrounding areas.  Senaratne further stated that explosions due to mining in the areas surrounding the Victoria Reservoir remain the primary suspected cause of the tremors.  “Although explosions during the mining for limestone in the surrounding terrain of the Victoria Dam do not cause tremors immediately, they do have a cumulative and delayed effect,” he said. Senaratne called for a temporary halt on limestone mining, but emphasised that this was his personal suggestion and not necessarily included in the report. He added that another extensive study will begin next week, focusing on the Victoria Dam.   When asked whether the Ministry of Environment would ban limestone mining near the Victoria Dam if the report does recommend it, Subject Minister Mahinda Amaraweera told The Morning that the Government would comply with the recommendations of the report.  “We would have to do what the report says, even if it is a ban on limestone mining.” The Digana area first experienced a tremor on 29 August with a magnitude of over 3.5 on the Richter scale. Consequently, four tremors were reported on 2 and 11 September and 18 and 29 November, all of which have been recorded on seismic sensors around the Victoria Dam. Four more tremors were recorded on 5 December. Senaratne assured The Morning that there is no cause for alarm regarding the potential harm to the Victoria Dam yet.  “The dam is built to withstand an earthquake of 3.5 on the scale. We do not have to worry yet but we do not know when the next tremor will come or how large it would be.”  The 11-member expert committee was appointed to conduct an extensive investigation into these tremors. It was appointed by the Secretary to the Ministry of Environment Dr. Anil Jasinghe upon the instructions of Subject Minister Mahinda Amaraweera.  Chaired by Geological Survey and Mines Bureau (GSMB) Chairman Anura Walpola, the other members are Prof. Athula Senaratne, Maj. Gen. S. Ranasinghe, Wasantha Ihalapitiya, Prof. Jagath Goonetileke, Prof. R.K. Perera, Dr. O.K. Dissanayake, Nalin de Silva, Dr. Gamini Jayatissa, Mahinda Seneviratne, and Nilmini Thaldena. On a further note, Senaratne stressed the need to conduct a comprehensive study on all the reservoirs in the region, namely Kotmale, Victoria, Randenigala, and Rantembe. He cautioned that this study would need to focus on both the safety of the dams and other possible causes of damage in the reservoir areas.  

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