Hikkaduwa National Park

Hikkaduwa is Sri Lanka’s first Marine Protected Area (MPA) and encompasses a coastline of approximately 1.35 km between the southern breakwater of the Hikkaduwa fisheries harbour and rocky islets near the Coral Gardens Hotel. The fringing reef at Hikkaduwa is a typical representation of shallow fringing reef systems along the southern coast of Sri Lanka. The reef is relatively small but contains high biodiversity and has been of conservation interest since the 1960’s due to its location in the vicinity of one of the most popular tourist destinations in Sri Lanka. It was declared as a sanctuary in 1979 and later a National Park in 2002. At present the reef is highly degraded due to both natural and anthropogenic impacts.

Horton Plains National Park

The area contains the largest single extent of wet montane patana grasslands and montane dwarf-forests in Sri Lanka. Horton Plains is regarded as one of the most important water catchment areas in the country as the lower part of the grassland is important for collection and storage of the headwaters of a number of important rivers such as the Mahaweli, Walawe and Kelani. Slow flowing streams, waterlogged swamps and waterfalls are the prominent wetland types. The area is rich in biodiversity with high endemicity. Horton Plains National Park (HPNP) is also a popular tourist destination in Sri Lanka.

Inginimitiya Reservoir

Inginimitiya is the largest irrigation reservoir in the Puttalam District and was commissioned in 1985. It facilitates supply of water to 2,551 ha of agricultural land, including new land area of 1,880 ha. The tank was constructed by damming the Mi Oya, aimed at doubling the area under paddy and other staple crop cultivation. However, the performance of the project has been unsatisfactory due to the shortage of water in the reservoir.