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Dr. (Ms.) Buddhika Gunawardana

Senior Lecturer Grade I (On Contract)
Department of Civil Engineering

B.Sc. Eng. (Moratuwa), MEng. (St), MEng (New Zealand), Ph.D (New Zealand)

Research interests : Water pollution and remediation, Advances in water treatment, Nanomaterials application for water purification, Contaminants of Emerging Concern, control and treatment, Phytoremediation, Permeable reactive barriers for groundwater remediation, Use of Zero Valent Iron and Bimetals for remediation of contaminated waters.

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  bgunawardana@eng.jfn.ac.lk


Dr. (Ms) Buddhika Gunawardana is a Senior Lecturer attached to the Department of Civil Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Jaffna. She obtained her B.Sc. (Eng) degree from the University of Moratuwa in Year 2002. She received her MEng (studies) and MEng degrees in Environmental Engineering, and PhD degree in Civil Engineering in Year 2007, 2008, 2013, respectively, from the University of Auckland, New Zealand. She was awarded the Asian Development Bank–Japan (ADB-Japan) Scholarship for MEng degrees and New Zealand International Doctoral Research Scholarship (NZ-IDRS) for her PhD studies.

Some of her research interests and expertise include Surface/Groundwater, potable water pollution and remediation techniques; Persistence and degradation of chlorinated aliphatic/aromatic compounds, pesticides, and emerging contaminants; Pollution remediation with permeable reactive barriers; Phytoremediation of heavy metals and organics from soil and water; Advanced water treatment systems; Nanotechnology Applications for water purification, Contaminants of Emerging concern: detection and remediation.

Before she joined the University of Jaffna, she worked as a Lecturer, Senior Lecturer, and Professor at the University of Moratuwa from January 2003 to August 2023. During her academic career, she has secured research and equipment grants, including NRC and NSF Grants, to successfully conduct research projects at the UG, MSc and PhD levels. She also secured academic and professional awards, including President’s Award for Excellence in Scientific Research and in recognition of the outstanding research performances. She also extended her professional contribution as the Program Advisory Committee Member for organizing IWA International Conferences. She extended her expertise in many national and international projects as the principal researcher, technical expert, and Environmental specialist.


Overall: Environmental pollution and control, Contaminants of Emerging Concern, Conventional and Advanced treatment technologies for polluted waters

In detail:

  • Surface/Groundwater, potable water pollution and remediation
  • Degradation of chlorinated aliphatic/aromatic compounds, pesticides, and emerging contaminants
  • Contaminants of Emerging concern: detection and remediation
  • Use of Zero Valent Iron and Bimetals for remediation of contaminated waters
  • Pollution remediation with permeable reactive barriers
  • Phytoremediation of heavy metals and organics from soil and water
  • Advanced water treatment systems
  • Nanotechnology Applications for water purification


Book Chapters

  1. Chlorophenols Dechlorination Water Treatment Using Ni-Iron Bimetallic Systems:
    Implications of the Degree of Chlorination, Nickel Coating, and Iron Oxide Phases (2021).

    Buddhika Gunawardana, Naresh Singhal, and Peter J. Swedlund. Contaminants in Drinking and Wastewater Sources: Challenges and Reigning Technologies.
    Springer Transactions in Civil and Environmental Engineering. Editors: Manish Kumar, Daniel D. Snow, Ryo Honda, Santanu Mukherjee.
    ISBN 978-981-15-4598-6; ISBN 978-981-15-4599-3 (eBook).
    DOI: 10.1007/978-981-15-4599-3.
    © Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2021.

  2. Evaluation of Water Quality of Community Managed Water Supply Schemes (CMWSS) in Galle District (2020).

    M. N. M. Shayan, G. G. Tushara Chaminda, K. C. Ellawala, and W. B. Gunawardana.
    Resilience, Response, and Risk in Water Systems: Shifting Management and Natural Forcings Paradigms.
    Springer Transactions in Civil and Environmental Engineering.
    Editor-in-Chief: T. G. Sitharam, Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, Karnataka, India.
    ISBN 978-981-15-4667-9; ISBN 978-981-15-4668-6 (eBook).
    DOI: 10.1007/978-981-15-4668-6.
    © Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2020.

Some of the Research Monographs

  • Educational tool on technologies for efficient water use using virtual application sites (ED-WAVE).
    Compiled by O. Anson, D. Gutierrez, F. J. Seron, A. Muñoz, M. Balakrishnan, V. S. Batra, E. Diamadopoulos, P. Paraskeva, A. Kraslawski, Y. Avramenko, N. Ratnayake, B. Gunawardana, T. Mungcharoen (2005).
  • Course Notes — Technologies for Efficient Water Use.
    M. Balakrishnan, P. Paraskeva, N. Ratnayake, B. Gunawardana, T. Mungcharoen et al. (2005).

Newsletter Articles

  1. “Could potable water in CKDu prevalent areas be contaminated with Glyphosate?” (2019).

    Eng. (Dr) Buddhika Gunawardana, Digital SLEN, Sri Lanka Engineering News, The official E-Newsletter of The Institution of Engineers, Sri Lanka; Issue 43, January 2019.
    Link: ioes18.wildapricot.org/ckdu

  2. “Is Aruwakkalu sanitary landfill a viable option for the garbage menace in Colombo?” (2019).

    Eng. (Prof.) Mahesh Jayaweera and Eng. (Dr) Buddhika Gunawardana, Digital SLEN, Sri Lanka Engineering News, The official E-Newsletter of The Institution of Engineers, Sri Lanka; Issue 43, January 2019.
    Link: ioes18.wildapricot.org/article_landfill

  3. “Perils of fecal contamination in Golden Mile of the Mount Lavinia beach: are we circumspect enough?” (2019).

    Eng. (Prof.) Mahesh Jayaweera and Eng. (Dr) Buddhika Gunawardana, Digital SLEN, Sri Lanka Engineering News, The official E-Newsletter of The Institution of Engineers, Sri Lanka; Issue 44, March 2019.
    Link: iesl.lk/SLEN/44/Golden-Mile-Mount-Lavinia.php

  4. “Intriguing levels of phthalic acid esters in coastal urban watercourses of Colombo and its suburbs: A bizarre situation caused by urban sprawl” (2019).

    Eng. (Prof.) Mahesh Jayaweera, Eng. (Prof.) Jagath Manatunge, Eng. (Dr.) Buddhika Gunawardana, Prof. Nilanthi Bandara,
    Digital SLEN, Sri Lanka Engineering News, The official E-Newsletter of The Institution of Engineers, Sri Lanka; Issue 45, May/June 2019.
    Link: iesl.lk/SLEN/45/…phthalic%20acid%20esters…

  5. “Abounding levels of mercury in coastal urban watercourses of Colombo: an imminent impediment to aquatic ecological sustenance” (2019).

    Eng. (Prof.) Mahesh Jayaweera, Eng. (Prof.) Jagath Manatunge and Eng. (Dr.) Buddhika Gunawardana,
    Sathsamudura — Marine Environment Protection Agency (MEPA) News Magazine, October 2019.

  6. “Glyphosate application in Sri Lankan agricultural Lands: do we circumvent Chronic Kidney Disease of unknown etiology?” (2019).

    Dr. Buddhika Gunawardana and Prof. Mahesh Jayaweera, International Water Association (IWA) Publishing — IWA Blog on current environmental issues, October 2019.
    Link: iwa-network.org/chronic-kidney-disease-of-unknown-etiology-in-sri-lanka/

  7. “Solving the Water Crisis in CKDu Prevalent Areas: Need for a New Technology Development for Water Purification.” (2015).

    Rathnayake, N., Sudasinghe, M. I., Gunawardana, B., Jayaweera, M. W., Manathunga, J. M. A.
    E-Update, EWRI Currents Spring 2015, Environmental and Water Resources Institute (EWRI), American Society of Civil Engineers, published on 04 May 2015.
    Link: issuu.com/asce-ewri/docs/springcurrentsissuu