Nuwara Eliya’s beauty threatened as waterfalls face decline

• Illegal tapping of water for cultivations and the clearing of forests in the upper regions have badly affected the flow of both Lovers’ Leap and Glenfall waterfalls

By Shantha Chandrasiri   

It has become a matter of serious concern that waterfalls in Nuwara Eliya - once described as “torrents of foreign exchange” for their tourism value - are now drying up.   

Once gushing year-round, they now swell only during the monsoon rains. Environmentalists warn that unchecked human activity has caused extensive damage to the ecosystem, diminishing these vital water sources.   

Environmentalists say the illegal tapping of water for vegetable cultivation and the clearing of forests in the upper regions have badly affected the flow of both Lovers’ Leap and Glenfall waterfalls. They accuse the authorities of allowing these activities to continue unchecked for years. 

 

Lovers’ Leap waterfall carries with it a romantic legend. According to local lore, a prince and a village maiden leapt to their deaths after their love was forbidden by the king and queen.

Others dispute this story, arguing that no king ever ruled from Nuwara Eliya. Instead, they recount the tale of an Englishman and his lover, a young woman who slipped from a boulder into the waterfall. In his attempt to save her, he too fell to his death—giving the site its enduring name.   

Glenfall Waterfall, originating from the Single Tree Mountain range, faces a similar crisis. The haphazard clearing of forests and other unsustainable practices have reduced these waterfalls—once prized foreign exchange earners—to fragile trickles.   

Experts have voiced concern about the lethargic attitude of the authorities, who have failed to provide adequate protection for these natural treasures.  >>A2