KPT's Initiative to Combat the Menace of Untreated Sewage in Mangroves Area

World Environment Day (WED) is being celebrated throughout the world on 5th June, 2011. The theme of WED for this year is "Forest: Nature at your Service" underscores the intrinsic link between quality of life and health of forests and forest eco-systems.
The WED theme also supports this year's UN International year of Forests with a theme of "Forest for People" with the objective to raise awareness on sustainable management, conservation and sustainable development of all types of forests. The forests are crucial for the goods and services. They provide food, shelter, livelihood, economic benefits etc, which people all over the world depend on. Strategies to enhance the contributions of the world's forests to social developments, livelihoods and poverty eradication are vital at a time when unsustainable practices and economic crises continue to threaten healthy forests and the people who depend upon them.
Mangroves Forests are the principal components of a highly productive marine eco-system, which converts organic silt into Mari-culture proteins. The mangroves for Karachi Harbour receives around 250 mgd of untreated municipal & industrial effluents from 7 major drains and over 20 smaller nallahs in both Eastern & Western Backwaters. This has been a great environmental concern for the port. In the Eastern Backwaters the major drains are Soldier Bazar Drain, Nehr-e-Khyam and Railway Nullah. The Soldier Bazar Drain, which is the biggest drain, was designed to carry the sewage to the Clifton Pumping Station from where it was to be pumped to Mehmoodabad Treatment Plant. The Clifton Pumping Station also pumps sewage from Saddar Town and Clifton Cantonment areas to the Mehmoodabad Treatment Plant but unfortunately a dysfunctional pumping station leads to discharge of raw sewage into the eastern backwaters.
The mangroves which are essential component of the food chain do not flourish due to toxicity. The mangroves also suffer when the plastic bags get stuck covering their aerial roots. In addition floating garbage and suspended plastic bags pose operational difficulties in the harbour besides being aesthetically unpleasant. The suspended polyethylene bags have far reaching adverse impact once they choke the cooling water intake of operational crafts. The crafts, at times, suffer severe damage resulting in their prolonged unavailability to attend the ship's berthing/unberthing. The delay in ships movement affect other ships and cumulatively tantamount to great economical loss to the nation.
The above adverse impact is not restricted to Karachi Harbour only because part of these pollutants is exported to the coastal water with the tide twice a day. Also, this certainly affect the fish population in the coastal water. In view of the accelerated filling up of the mangroves marsh by the sewage sludge, KPT has motivated an independent Group called PANI (People and Nature Initiative), seeking viable solution which could supplement the relevant components for S-III project in a time and cost effective manner in order to concrete the environmental uplift of the area.
PANI conducted extensive study of the situation and has presented a solution based on UASB (Up-flow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket) concept of treatment of the incoming sewage (30 mgd) from Soldier Bazar Nullah and development of a Wetland Park around 100 acres of area of mangroves marsh. The treated water would overflow from the lake to the wetland reserve, which would incorporate various zones to include visitors' area, discovery centre, grassy mound, marshes, mud flats, woodland and mangroves.
In addition, a park on an area of 12 acres attached to the wetland park, providing additional amenity, would be part of the project. A wide variety of environmental / ecological educational activities available in the Wetland Park would transform the area into a unique and wonderful environmental complex with lasting benefits for the nation. Implementation of the project is awaiting resolution of claims on a portion of this area by certain parties. KPT has also deployed a small dredger to offset the effect of siltation and facilitate tidal flow to support and improve mangroves in this area.