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Athweltota mini hydro project Sensitive ecosystems threatened as renewable energy projects emerge-By Kamanthi Wickramasinghe  Serene Pilithuda Falls in Athweltota Source:Dailymirror There are 213 commissioned mini hydro projects and 40 solar power plants in Sri Lanka and the numbers continue to increase     Many of these projects don’t operate efficiently and therefore the contribution to the national grid is limited   The Palindanuwara Provincial Council has repeatedly questioned how a mini hydro project could be constructed in a high risk area   Many solar power plants are constructed by clearing forests   Elephant corridors and sensitive ecosystems are destroyed in the process of making power plants in the absence of a plan to conserve catchment areas   The CEB and SLSEA should improve the efficiency in existing plants before constructing new plants   Sri Lanka aims to be an energy self-sufficient nation by 2030. Right now, the primary sources of generating electricity include thermal, including coal ...