• • B. Lyon, Zubair, L., V. Ralapanawe and Z. Yahiya, Fine scale evaluation of drought hazard for tropical climates, Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology, revised

• • Zubair, L., Ralapanawe V., Tennakone, U., Yahiya, Z., and Perera, R., Natural Disaster Risks in Sri Lanka: Mapping Hazards and Risk Hotspots, Chapter 4, in Natural Disaster Hotspots Case Studies, Washington, DC: World Bank 2006.

• • Yahiya, Z. Relative roles of climate and societal factors in water scarcity and flooding in Sri Lanka and Maldives and its implications. 2015 International Conference on Green Development in Tropical Regions, Andalas University, Indonesia. 28th – 31st October 2015.

• • Zubair, L. Environmental Management Challenges under Rapid Urbanization: Lessons from Pinga Oya catchment of Sri Lanka’s Mahaweli River. Eighth International Perspective on Water Resources and the Environment (IPWE) conference organized by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) and the Environmental and Water Resources Institute (EWRI) to be held in Colombo, Sri Lanka in January 2016

• • Lokuhetti, R., Zubair, L., Visvanathan, J., M., Nijamdeen, A. (2017). Drought Monitoring for Sri Lanka: Spatial Extent and Temporal Evolution during the 2016-17 Drought. International Roundtable on the Impact of Extreme Natural Events: Science and Technology for mitigation IRENE 2017. (pp.29). Sri Lanka: South Eastern University.

• • Lokuhetti, R., Zubair, L., Visvanathan, J., M., Nijamdeen, A. (2017) Cyclonic Storm Roanu and the Orographic Rainfall Mechanism triggered the Landslide in Aranayaka in May 2016. International Roundtable on the Impact of Extreme Natural Events: Science and Technology for mitigation IRENE 2017. (pp 52). Sri Lanka: South Eastern University.

• June 2006: Lareef Zubair, Ralapanawe V., Tennakone, U., Yahiya, Z., and Perera, R., Natural Disaster Risks in Sri Lanka: Mapping Hazards and Risk Hotspots, Chapter 4, in Eds: Margaret Arnold, Robert Chen, Uwe Deichmann, Maxx Dilley and Arthur Lerner-Lam, Randolph E. Pullen, Zoe Trohanis, Natural Disaster Hotspots Case Studies, Washington, DC: World Bank 2006.

• Zubair, L., Ralapanawe V., Tennakone, U., Yahiya, Z., and Perera, R., Natural Disaster Risks in Sri Lanka: Mapping Hazards and Risk Hotspots, Chapter 4, in Natural Disaster Hotspots Case Studies, Washington, DC: World Bank 2006.

• Zubair, L., V. Ralapanawe, Z. Yahiya, R. Perera, U. Tennakoon, J. Chandimala, S. Razick and B. Lyon, Fine Scale Natural Hazard Risk and Vulnerability Identification Informed by Climate in Sri Lanka, Project Report: IRI Technical Report 10-02, Feb 2010.

• Najimuddin, N, L. Zubair. (2017). Analysis of Historical Flooding Incidence in Akurana. FECT Technical Report 2017-02. Foundation for Environment, Climate and Technology, Digana

• Lokuhetti, R., Zubair, L., Visvanathan, J., Nijamdeen, A. (2017). Orographic Rains Induced by a Cyclonic Storm in the Bay of Bengal triggered the Floods in Southwestern Sri Lanka in May 2017. FECT Technical Report 2017-08. (7 Pages) Foundation for Environment, Climate and Technology, Digana.

• Zubair, L., Z. Yahiya, P. Wickremagamage, Y. Indrachapa, S. Ashraj, J. Visvanathan and D. Gunasekara. Proceedings of the Symposium on Pinga Oya. Akurana: News-View, Sri Lanka. (In Press).

Project Reports

• June 2006: Lareef Zubair, Ralapanawe V., Tennakone, U., Yahiya, Z., and Perera, R., Natural Disaster Risks in Sri Lanka: Mapping Hazards and Risk Hotspots, Chapter 4, in Eds:

• Margaret Arnold, Robert Chen, Uwe Deichmann, Maxx Dilley and Arthur Lerner-Lam, Randolph E. Pullen, Zoe Trohanis, Natural Disaster Hotspots Case Studies, Washington, DC: World Bank 2006.

• B. Lyon, Zubair, L., V. Ralapanawe and Z. Yahiya, Fine-scale evaluation of drought hazard for tropical climates, Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology, revised.

• Zubair L., Malge C., Shakira F., Hadgie T., Rameez S. & Nijamdeen A., Is the State grossly underestimating damage from the Kandy Mob Violence? Groundviews, 24 June 2018, 1613 words. https://groundviews.org/2018/06/24/is-the-state-grossly-underestimating-the-losses-from-the-mob-violence-in-kandy/
• Zubair L., Malge C., Shakira F., Hadgie T., Rameez S. & Nijamdeen A., ‘Kandy Violence – Are Losses being Grossly Underestimated?’ Sunday Observer, 24 June 2018, p. 20. http://www.sundayobserver.lk/2018/06/24/issues/kandy-violence-are-losses-being-grossly-underestimated
• Zubair L., Malge C., Shakira F., Hadgie T., Rameez S. & Nijamdeen A., ‘Is the State grossly underestimating damage from the Kandy Mob Violence?’ News View, June 2018, p. 7, 1541 words
• Zubair, Lareef., Malge, Chalani., Fazal, Samsudeen., Shakira, Fathima. and Rameez, Shifna., June 2018 ‘Timeline of Kandy Mob Violence’ NewsView, 2073 words
• Zubair, Lareef., ‘கண்டி வன்முறை குறித்த தகவல் காப்பகம் ஒன்றை நிறுவவுள்ளோம்’ (We will install an information archive on Kandy violence) News View, p. 1, 148 words, June 2018
• Thaha, Zahra., Jayatissa, Niranjali., Fazal, Samsudeen. and Zubair, Lareef. ‘கண்டி வன்முறை சேதங்களை அரசு குறைத்து மதிப்பீடு செய்துள்ளதா?’ (Is the state grossly underestimating damage from the Kandy Mob Violence?) August 2018, News View, p. 9, 1082 words
• Bandara, Thilani., Ranasinghe, Sanamali., Fazal, Samsudeen. and Zubair, Lareef. ‘බහුවාර්ගික රටක ජාතික සමඟිය ගොඩනැගීමේදී අපට වැරදුණේ කොතන ද?’ (Where did we blunder when building the national unity of a multi-ethnic country?) January 17, 2019, Ada, p. 16, 1510 words

• Zubair, L. (2019) ‘Norochcholai ash contaminates Lanka’s western atmosphere’ The Sunday Times, 10 March. http://www.sundaytimes.lk/190310/sunday-times-2/norochcholai-ash-contaminates-lankas-western-atmosphere-339797.html
• Zubair, L. (2016) ‘Clouded Sampur’ Daily News, 18 July. http://www.dailynews.lk/2016/07/18/features/87794
• Zubair, L. (2016) ‘Is the air pollution analysis for the Sampur Coal Plant credible?’ Financial Times, 20 July. http://www.ft.lk/article/555835/Is-the-air-pollution-analysis-for-the-Sampur-Coal-Plant-credible
• Zubair, L. (2016) ‘Was Air Pollution Analysis For Sampur Coal Plant Botched?’ The Sunday Leader, 24 July
• Zubair, L. (2016) ‘Is the Air Pollution Analysis for the Sampur Coal Plant Credible?’ Groundviews, July 21. https://groundviews.org/2016/07/21/is-the-air-pollution-analysis-for-the-sampur-coal-plant-credible/
• Zubair, L. (2016) ‘Is the Air Pollution Analysis for the Sampur Coal Plant Credible?’ SL Guardian, 1 July.

• Zubair, L. , Eng. M. Z. M. Hilal (2012) ‘The Present and Future of Man-made flooding in Akurana’ News View, 1 December.
• Zubair, L. (2005) ‘Facing risks in Sri Lanka from the Indian Canal’ Daily Mirror, 5 August.
• Zubair, L. (2005) ‘Sethusamudaram Canal: Sri Lanka and Tamil Nadu at risk’ Daily Mirror, 1 August.
• Zubair, L. (2005) ‘Sethusamudaram Canal: Sri Lanka and Tamil Nadu at risk’ The Island, 5 October. http://www.island.lk/2005/07/21/features2.html

• Zubair, L. , Neil Devadasan, D. H. S. Maithripala, Manoharan Philips and Vidhura Ralapanawe (2005) ‘Six Months On – An Editorial from the GeoLanka/ Recover Lanka administrators’ The Island, 5 August.
• ‘The geography of vulnerable and destruction’ Lines Magazine, 1 February 2005.
• ‘The Tsunami, Science and Disaster Management’ The Island, 27 January 2005. http://www.island.lk/2005/01/27/features2.html
• ‘Science, Disaster Management and the Tsunami in Sri Lanka’ International Centre for Theoretical Physics, Trieste, Italy, ICTP webcast, 1 March 2005.
• Zubair, L., Z. Yahiya, M. Weeraskera and S. Adhikari (2010) ‘Mitigating Flooding in Akurana and Restoring Balapitiya Oya, 1 July.
• Zubair, L. (2016) ‘Monitoring the ongoing drought in Sri Lanka’ Groundviews, 19 October. https://groundviews.org/2016/10/18/monitoring-the-ongoing-drought-in-sri-lanka

Tsunami Relief

After the Tsunami on the 26th December 2004, two websites were developed to find ways to contribute to the recovery effort. They provide topical information about Tsunami disaster, Sri Lanka, disaster management and health care, updates on the evolving situation on the ground, requests for assistance, offers of assistance, maps, information on regional weather and climate, networking tools and information on organizations that are involved in relief particularly small community-based organizations, and contains links to related websites and efforts. It provided a GIS-based interactive mapping tool that can help contextualize relief work spatially.

Emergency Water Treatment System

In the aftermath of the Tsunami, a pressing problem for the affected was the lack of potable water. There was a request for water treatment equipment, from Prof. Raveendranath the Acting Vice-Chancellor at the Eastern University to Dr. M.C.M. Iqbal and Dr. Zubair. This request came after tests proved that almost all the wells, even those inland have been contaminated by the Tsunami and is unsuitable for human consumption. We fabricated and installed a prototype unit at the Eastern Universities Disaster Management Center with instructions on reproducing it.

Symposium on Pinga-Oya (February 2013)

Symposium on Pinga-Oya was organized by the Foundation for Environment, Climate & Technology and hosted at the Department of Geography, in the University of Peradeniya. The symposium was attended by scientists, researchers, teachers, undergraduates, school students, members of women’s associations, and journalists. The papers presented at this symposium are published as a proceeding.

Environment Day for Schools in the Pinga Oya Catchment

An Environmental day program along with an exhibition was organized for the school children in and around Akurana. The program was conducted with the assistance of the Akurana Pradeshiya Sabhawa. Children from seven schools in the area, employees from the government and private sector, and community groups participated and contributed to this program. The aim of this event is to raise awareness to take positive environmental action to protect nature and the planet Earth. This was an enriching event which included environmental speeches by the participating organizations, students’ programs and exhibition in reference to the environment day.

Manmade:

Sethusamudram

The project Sethusamudarumwas proposed by the Defense Minister of India in 1999, George Fernandez includes a canal that is to be excavated through the Palk Straits. This had raised many questions in Sri Lanka about the impact of the project on Sri Lanka. The aim of this project is to reduce the travel time of Indian ships that have to circumnavigate Sri Lanka. But this project earns the consideration of the people of Sri Lanka and Tamil Nadu as it may be accompanied with grave environmental damage. In this regard, Dr. Lareef took an immense effort to prove the social and environmental impacts on Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka to the relevant authorities through articles published in the newspapers.

Published articles: http://www.climate.lk/sethu/