Pakistan ‘may run out of water by 2025’ if steps not taken on time

[Abdullah719]

Pakistan may run out of water by 2025 if quick measures were not taken up now. Severe water shortage had already started to put negative impact on the economy and public health.

This was said by Muslim League (PML) Central Leader Moonis Elahi during the meeting of party’s policy development group held on Wednesday. He said that the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) had criminally deployed vital funds to exhibitionist projects like Lahore Orange Line Metro Train and metro bus projects while overlooking the present and future water needs of the nation.

Quoting a recent study conducted by the Pakistan Council for Research in Water Resources, Elahi warned that Pakistan’s water demand will have risen to 274 MAF by 2025 while its water supply will be down to 191 MAF creating an unbridgeable gap of 83 MAF.

He blamed the rapidly increasing population coupled with poor water resource management, non-allocation of funds for building a sustainable water infrastructure and the ruling party’s failure to prepare a comprehensive water policy as key reasons for the imminent crisis.

“We are a water intensive economy. Pakistan’s agriculture won’t survive if water shortage forecasts came true,” he warned and condemned the PML-N leadership for their failure in creating a national consensus on building the Kalabagh Dam for their own vested political interests.

https://tribune.com.pk/story/1583420/1-pakistan-may-run-water-2025-steps-not-taken-time/

 

[UN talkz]

It don't think there will be no water in Pakistan in 2025... doesn't look like it when u look at water resources of Pak... maybe at the end of 2040 or so but 2025 looks too early to me.

 

[carbon11]

Now you know why cpec is a farce because for cpec to be a success u need these large mega dams that hold copious amount of water and generate massive amount of clean cheap energy than can then power our industry and young population into productive action and onto prosperity .

No mega dams are not being built but infact defunct small coal plants from china mainly imported coal that won't address the power problem but instead will churn massive pollution and degrade the environment more we are not even getting clean coal tech but outdated tech .

Water crisis will lead to a calamity , the Syrian civil war one of the biggest reason of the rebellion gaining momentum was due to water table being depleted and agriculture failing

 

[KB]

Tangentially related to this, there is a long but interesting piece on the water tanker business recently published by the Dawn:

https://www.dawn.com/news/1377090/a-day-in-the-life-of-a-water-tanker

 

[English August]

Not just Pakistan, the whole of South Asia is sitting on a time bomb -- there is going to be a supply-side crisis for water. Deforestation is happening at an alarming rate and there is not control on pollution.

This is bigger than the Kashmir problem, Ind-Pak tension, border disputes, terrorism etc. All these problems will look puny when compared with the real environmental disaster we're staring it (it's already happening, e.g., pollution in Delhi, waterlogging in Chennai, Mumbai, ...)

Worst part is: no one is talking about it.

 

[good guy]

Pakistan urged to avert disastrous water crisis

About 200 million Pakistanis face running out of water within the next 10 years. Government leaders are being urged to build more reservoirs and dams, and improve an extensive network of irrigation canals built more than a 100 years ago

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018...-disastrous-water-crisis-180326123558125.html

 

[carbon11]

Thats why I said cpec is rubbish

If cpec was a genuine project of economic uplift it would have made the big dams which would have given us cheap electricity and helped out water woes
And also desalination technology for coastal areas and brackish areas of country

There is non just Nooras fancy motorway

 

[PakLFC]

Why did are we we not building dams? People and politicians keep fighting over who will get what whilst the people suffer.

 

[shortbread]

Why did are we we not building dams? People and politicians keep fighting over who will get what whilst the people suffer.

The issue was built over time by successive governments, both democratic and military. The wealthy, connected, defence colonies do not have an issue. It's the awam, farmers, poor who will suffer due to the shortage. The overvalued rupee and drought is killing Pakistan's biggest industry and export, cotton.

Dams require massive investments and even more political/administrative will. It is difficult to implement but the long term benefits are massive. The issue is a dam project takes time and delivery will be outwith a standard political/government cycle. That is if a certain Government implements and invests in it, by the time it finishes some other government will reap the benefits of it's success.

 

[OoparCut]

Why did are we we not building dams? People and politicians keep fighting over who will get what whilst the people suffer.

Dams are expensive. AFAIK, Chinese companies offered to do it, but wanted more profits and pricing control from the electricity that would be generated. And the project talks broke off due to disagreement on this point.

 

[BlackShadow]

Pakistan needs dams, lots of them. The volume of water being wasted isn't hurting just Pakistan, but it will hurt India too.

 

[carbon11]

I personally believe we need to change our dietrary habits and change the crops we farm and animals we raise .
Basically adopt to crops and animals that can tolerate drought and harsh conditions

Thirsty cash crops should not be grown like wheat maize rice and cotton.

 

[PakLFC]

Dams are expensive. AFAIK, Chinese companies offered to do it, but wanted more profits and pricing control from the electricity that would be generated. And the project talks broke off due to disagreement on this point.

So the problem is political then. Wjy are we given the impression that there is a lack of water?

 

[OoparCut]

So the problem is political then. Wjy are we given the impression that there is a lack of water?

Because its easier to blame India, or natural causes, instead of owning up to decades of mismanagement and abject failure of planning.

 

[gani999]

Because its easier to blame India, or natural causes, instead of owning up to decades of mismanagement and abject failure of planning.

India isn't a good example of water management either. In fact, Indian water management is a joke that is threatening to turn the entire country into an unlivable cesspool.

 

[OoparCut]

India isn't a good example of water management either. In fact, Indian water management is a joke that is threatening to turn the entire country into an unlivable cesspool.

I don't disagree with you. At all. But if you compare Pak-India head to head, Indian water management will start looking award-winning good.

 

[PakLFC]

Because its easier to blame India, or natural causes, instead of owning up to decades of mismanagement and abject failure of planning.

That is exactly my point. We blame India for everything even our own errors. Don't blame the neighbour when our own politicians are sell outs.

 

[Abdullah719]

'A tsunami is coming and we aren't doing anything to prevent it'

Since 2018 is an election year, all political parties need to clearly mention in their manifestos how they are going to resolve the issue of water in the country.

This was stated by Oxfam Country Director Mohammed Qazilbash while he was speaking with The Express Tribune about the possibility of water scarcity hovering like a spectre over the country and the need for concerted efforts to conserve water.

Qazilbash has been serving as the country director of Oxfam since April, 2016. Oxfam is an international confederation of several non-governmental organisations (NGOs) working to eradicate poverty and bring improvement in human lives. In Pakistan, the organisation has been registered through Oxfam Great Britain and has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Pakistani government. It established its office in the country in 1973. However, the NGO’s history of providing support to Pakistan dates back to the 1950s.

Many sister organisations of Oxfam Great Britain, including Oxfam Canada, Oxfam Hong Kong, Oxfam Australia, Oxfam United States and Oxfam Netherlands, have been supporting the NGO’s work in Pakistan.

Water-related issues are one of the key areas of Oxfam’s interventions globally, Qazilbash said. Currently, the organisation is working on a programme related to water management as it believes that without improvement, Pakistan will not be able to conserve enough water for its citizens, agriculture and industry in the future.

“Pakistan is a water scarce country. Whether you are living in urban centres or in rural communities, getting access to clean drinking water is a challenge,” he said. Citing experts, he claimed that Pakistan will run out of water by 2025, adding that unless some action on a very large scale was taken, the country will be in a bad situation.


Offering solutions

Various NGOs, including the Statutory Participatory Organisation, Aware and Oxfam, have come up with a proposal to amend the Sindh Water Management Act, 2002, which regulates the use of water for irrigation.

Qazilbash pointed out that according to the Act, water governance bodies have been set up on different levels in Sindh. However, such bodies have no or very tokenistic representation of women. He asserted that women were more conscious of water-related issues as they were the ones who fetched water from other sources, used it for cooking and other domestic work, and also participated in agriculture along with men. “43% of the labourers in the agricultural sector in Pakistan are women,” he said, adding that no water governance system could be effective and efficient without the active participation of women at every stage.

“They [women] know how best to manage water and they know the actual value of water,” Qazilbash said.

When asked whether the laws in other provinces enable women to actively participate in water management, he replied in the negative. The situation is more or less the same in all provinces, he said, adding that the NGOs proposed amendments in Sindh’s law because Sindh, being the most progressive province, could lead other provinces in this regard. “There is a greater interest [in Sindh] in adopting new and more progressive policies,” he said, mentioning that Sindh was the first province to increase the minimum age of girls for marriage from 16 years to 18 years. “We tried to convince the Punjab government to do the same but it did not work.”

Besides this, the Oxfam country director also called for prudent use of water and review of agricultural policies.

“The dilemma is that we talk about water scarcity [but] are also net exporters of rice and sugar cane [which are water intensive crops],” Qazilbash said. “Not only do we grow these crops, but we also grow them in excess of our needs and then export them.”

According to him, new research helped develop water conservative irrigation techniques such as drip irrigation which also resulted in high yields. “These techniques are also being practised in many other countries in the world where there is water scarcity,” he said.

Qazilbash stressed the need for taking steps to reduce water wastage in urban areas. He called for recycling water at homes and adopting water conserving technologies such as dry flushes in toilets.

He also urged each citizen to take part in water conservation. Millions of gallons of water could be saved if we turn off our taps while brushing our teeth. Teachers need to educate children about water conservation and every member of society should feel responsibility in this regard, he said.

“A tsunami is coming. We know it is coming and we are not doing anything about it as dramatically as what we should be doing,” Qazilbash remarked. “You can’t even last more than three days without water,” he said, adding that water scarcity should be a major concern for the public. If we became a water-deficient country, it would be irreversible and we would have nobody else to blame but ourselves, he said.

https://tribune.com.pk/story/1692576/1-tsunami-coming-arent-anything-prevent/

 

[shortbread]

I don't disagree with you. At all. But if you compare Pak-India head to head, Indian water management will start looking award-winning good.

Off topic......I think India's immediate problem is the critical air pollution problem, but seems like everyone is ignoring it just like how Pakistan is looking the other way at the impending water crisis.

These two countries are so much alike!

 

[PakLFC]

It is funny when people make predictions of what will happen in future years. Take care of today and tomorrow will be good as well.

 

[Abdullah719]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Pakistan has only 15 days of water storage left, only 8 million litre feet, as compared to 900 days of the United States, and over 200 days of India”. Wake up fools.</p>— Dr Saqlain Shah (@DrSaqlainSh) <a href="https://twitter.com/DrSaqlainSh/status/1001835282939940869?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 30, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

 

[Abdullah719]

Chief justice takes suo motu notice of water shortage across the country

Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar on Monday took suo motu notice of water shortage and its lack of supply throughout the country.

On June 7, the Supreme Court will hear cases regarding water shortage in the capital, while the apex court's Karachi and Lahore registries will hold hearings on June 9 and 10, respectively. The chief justice will also hear cases related to water issues in the Peshawar and Quetta registries.

The SC issued notices to top officials from the Capital Administration and Development Division as well as the attorney general, advocate general, and others, and demanded an explanation regarding the water shortage in the capital.

Justice Nisar was heading a three-member SC bench that was hearing a 20-year-old petition filed by Barrister Zafarullah, a senior lawyer from Lahore, concerning the Kalabagh dam. He had argued that 20 per cent of Pakistan's growth rate depended on water supply, yet no dam had been built in the country for the past 48 years.

The CJ replied that water shortage is now the "top priority" of the court and took a suo motu notice of the matter. Justice Sardar Tariq Masood regretted that none of the political parties had taken the water issue seriously enough to include it in their manifestos.

Expressing concern over the dam built on the Kishanganga River by India as part of its Kishanganga hydropower plant project, the chief justice said that the Neelum River, which is a tributary of the Indian river, has dried up.

"What have we done for our children if we can't even provide them water?" he remarked.

https://www.dawn.com/news/1411992/c...u-notice-of-water-shortage-across-the-country

 

[Abdullah719]

Pakistan to adopt UN Decade of Action for water sector

ISLAMABAD: Facing a grim water situation, Pakistan plans to adopt the United Nations’ Decade (2018-28) of Action: Water for Sustainable Development programme envisaging integrated water resources management including seawater treatment for Karachi, Gwadar, Pasni, Jiwani, Keti Bandar and other coastal areas.

This was the crux of a consultative session attended by local and international consultants and representatives of the federal and provincial governments and companies, arranged by the Planning Commission as part of its efforts to implement the country’s first Natio*nal Water Policy recently approved by the Council of Common Interests (CCI).

The conference was told that Pakistan was a water-scarce country and its availability was likely to further reduce and make it more vulnerable on supply side due to upstream water use by India, Afghanistan and China. Moreover, Pakistan’s water scarcity will increase due to climate change and enhanced demand due to urbanisation, industrial development, population increase, changes in life patterns and food consumption patterns, increased GDP and higher irrigation requirements due to global warming.

The session was told that groundwater aquifers, due to unsustainable withdrawal of water, had dangerously declined in Quetta and Lahore while out of 43 canal command areas, 37 had shown drastic decrease in groundwater level, with alarming consequences.

Groundwater quality has been deteriorating due to excessive mining, causing aquifer mixing of saline water and pollutants, including heavy metals like arsenic, lead and fluoride, while surface and ground water are also contaminated by pathogens due to mixing of sewerage and industrial wastewater contamination.

The conference noted that water borne-diseases generally included conventional diseases like malaria and typhoid, but now hepatitis was also increasing as reported from the districts of Gujranwala and Bahawalnagar, Rivers of Ravi, Sutluj, Malir and Lyari are now filled with sewage whereas Islamabad’s fresh water streams are now causing health hazards. Likewise, the greater Karachi area has damaged aqua life and water quality in the coastal areas.

The session recognised that the cosmopolitan city of Karachi and the emerging commercial hub of Gwadar required seawater treatment to meet their growing water demands for which innovative models should be devised for financial sustainability of the system.

It noted that solar desalination was highly suitable option for Keti Bandar, Thatta and Badin in Sindh and Ormara, Pasni and Jiwani in Balochistan and suggested that measures should be adopted to promote this technology in these areas.

https://www.dawn.com/news/1415084/pakistan-to-adopt-un-decade-of-action-for-water-sector

 

[shortbread]

 

[Markhor]

And yet the population continues to explode despite increasingly scarce natural resources.

Investment is needed in water treatment especially. Too many people are drinking filthy water and picking up water borne diseases as the dengue outbreak of a few years ago exposed.

 

[troodon]

And yet the population continues to explode despite increasingly scarce natural resources.

Investment is needed in water treatment especially. Too many people are drinking filthy water and picking up water borne diseases as the dengue outbreak of a few years ago exposed.

God will provide water and food. Stopping kids is against the will of God. That is what I learnt in my stay at PP.

 

[Greenstorm]

And yet the population continues to explode despite increasingly scarce natural resources.

Investment is needed in water treatment especially. Too many people are drinking filthy water and picking up water borne diseases as the dengue outbreak of a few years ago exposed.

Obviously population growth needs to be controlled but this water issue is more because of mismanagement than scarcity of resources at the present moment.

 

[KB]

Obviously population growth needs to be controlled but this water issue is more because of mismanagement than scarcity of resources at the present moment.

I would agree that poor management of the irrigation network has ultimately led to Pakistan becoming a 'water-stressed' nation. There is of course the issue of an insufficient reservoir capacity, frequently commented on. Much of the water is wasted because of the inadequate attention paid to the maintenance of the irrigation system, resulting also in water logging and salinity. Substandard drainage facilities is leading to loss of cultivable land. The variable access to water also points to the entrenched inequities in Pakistan, with large landowners appropriating water in excess of their fair share, and smaller farmers and those at ‘tail end’, especially in Sindh, suffering in comparison.

Viewed historically, the ability to harness the use of water has been central to advances in economic growth in the areas that constitute Pakistan. Much of the areas around the western doabs in Punjab, that are now part of Pakistan, were sparsely populated until the major irrigation projects which established a network of perennial canals from the 1880s onwards. The result was a large-scale agricultural colonisation of previously uncultivated or semi-cultivated land. The district of Faisalabad - or Lyallpur as it was known in colonial times - was the quintessential canal colony district. Prior to the opening of the Chenab Canal it was inhabited by only a few, consisted of impenetrable jungles and sandy waste land. The city of Lyallpur itself was founded in 1896 and grew from just over 9,000 inhabitants in 1901 to a million in 1976.

It was not just the Punjab, but Sindh as well which witnessed change on a revolutionary scale. This was especially after the construction of Sukkur Barrage, which was completed in 1932. There was an explosion in the cultivation of cotton and wheat as significant amounts of new area was brought under cultivation. This contributed to the commercialisation of agriculture and in an expansion of numerous towns as well as inward migration.

In the post-independence period, Ayub Khan in particular strove to legitimise his regime in the idiom of ‘development’. This involved amongst other things a focus on dams - Tarbela and Mangla dams being the preeminent examples. But even more than this, the ‘Green Revolution’ in the 1960s which resulted in a spurt in agricultural output, would not have been possible without the additional water resources generated by private tube wells. In contemporary Pakistan, of the total cultivated area, over 80% is said to be dependent on irrigation sourced mainly through canals and tube wells. The threat of running ‘dry’ is therefore very serious indeed.

 

[aloo paratha]

God will provide water and food. Stopping kids is against the will of God. That is what I learnt in my stay at PP.

People with these beliefs really annoy me. You have to put in effort for results. If I sit here all day doing nothing believing "I don't need to work, gods got my back", I'll be dead in a month at the most.

God gives opportunities, it's our job to use them.

 

[Abdullah719]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="ur" dir="rtl">پاکستان کو بنے 70برس ہوگئے مگر کراچی شہر جو پاکستان کی شہ رگ کی حیثیت رکھتا ہے اس کےمسائل آج تک حل نہیں کئے جا سکے، سمندر کے کنارے ہونے کے باوجود اس شہر کے مکین پانی کے بوند بوند کو ترس رہے ہیں، حکومتیں آئیں اور گئیں مگر پانی کا مسئلہ ٹھیک نہیں کیا، آخر کب پانی کا مسئلہ حل ہوگا؟</p>— Shahid Afridi (@SAfridiOfficial) <a href="https://twitter.com/SAfridiOfficial/status/1011126741367230465?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 25, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>