Speakers at a seminar have stressed the need for proper water management in Pakistan saying that over 250,000 children die due to water-borne diseases in the country annually. Academia and experts giving their viewpoint on the seminar titled "Rain Water Harvesting and Conservation" said it was estimated that Pakistan wasted potential revenue of around Rs 240 billion (US $2.8 billion) since it could not store 40m acre-feet (MAF) of flood water and it simply went to the sea.
Water scarcity is a long-standing problem for agriculture, which contributes over 21 per cent to country's GDP. A single MAF of water can generate Rs 6 billion (US $70m) in revenue, according to Federal Flood Commission (FFC) estimates, they maintained. The seminar was arranged by Earthquake Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Authority (ERRA) in collaboration with National University of Science and Technology.
Challenges to water management are numerous that encompasses chronic water shortages; low productivity of those using land and water; increasing competition among agriculture, households and industry; environmental woes, aging and underperforming infrastructure, increased maintenance costs, low cost recovery, sedimentation of reservoirs and droughts.
Lieutenant General Sardar Mehmood Ali Khan, Deputy Chairman ERRA, speaking as chief guest on the occasion said that conserving water was preserving the country and ERRA had taken a number of steps in this connection. He said that ERRA had introduced Rain Water Harvesting Programme under its Water and Sanitation Programme for rebuilding the destroyed areas of KP and AJK after earthquake 2005. Jesus Zenen Buergo Concecion, Cuban Ambassador to Pakistan, representatives of US Embassy, Dr Shehbaz from UNESCO and others attended the seminar.
The participants were informed that the management of scarcity of water and exploring avenues for the effective implementation of water conservation strategy in Pakistan was the area of main focus where international and national experts discussed rainwater harvesting as one of the most important and effective system of water conservation.
To popularise rain water harvesting, ERRA is implementing the Rainwater Harvesting Pilot Project, in 20 Union Councils of the affected areas of AJ&K and KPK. The project ensures installing rainwater harvesting systems on rooftop of 40,000 Pakka-houses and 400 public buildings (schools, health centers, mosques, etc) in 370 villages.
Comments
Comments are closed for this article.