Experts demand resolving water stress for sustainable future

APP

ISLAMABAD: The experts at a two-day workshop on Tuesday said that the country was a water stress nation that needed to address its growing water issues for a sustainable future on priority.

The workshop titled “Pakistan: United for Shared Responsibility” was organized by Faith For Our Planet (FFOP) in cooperation with Iqbal International Institute of Research and Dialogue of IIUI, RSPN, and ifees.ecoislam.

The event has also convened some of Pakistan’s major environmental minds to interact with the nation’s religious leadership in order to explore practical roles that the country’s religious institutions can play in addressing the region’s burgeoning climate challenges.

WWF-Pakistan Director Governance and Policy Dr Imran Khalid said that water stress and lack of access to clean drinking water was equally damaging, and impacting all factions of the society. “Only one percent of the  waste water is treated in Pakistan which is almost 100 per cent in the US”.

He added that the Nullah Lai passing between the twin cities, Rawalpindi and Islamabad, has become a wastewater conduit which could be fixed by the masses and stakeholders through collective approach as it had been a clean water reservoir in the past.

“There is a need to approach communities that are most affected due to climate change. We have to learn from the communities facing issues in real time. We have to rely on indigenous practices in rural areas. Water scarcity lies in poor water governance in Pakistan,” he suggested.

Dr Saqib mentioned that the WWF was trying to recycle ablution water in mosques as a pilot model. He added that there was a need to start water education at different tiers to conserve water.

Dr Zaigham Habib, a water and hydrology expert, said that as a Himalayan country, the region was the most affected as the low riparian country. “Every second house in ICT has a water pump where the groundwater is depleting fast. Vapor transportation has increased and more than beneficial level,” Dr Zaigham warned.

Capitalism, the hydrologist said, was developing in Asia as the maximum carbon production was in India and others, where Pakistan had become their dumping site.

“There is less information regarding water availability at higher-level of the policy making cohort that needs to be improved. At the governance level, we lack proper maps showing climate change interaction with different sectors,” she noted.

Dr Habib said that the rural areas lacked sanitation and drainage systems –– something that needed to be addressed for sustainable development. “We are among THE water stress nations which would increase with the passage of time,” she said.

Islamic Organization for Food Security Program Director Dr Ismail Abdelhamid said that 75 percent of the world’s fresh water was utilized by the agriculture sector.

“The challenge for us is to not only preserve our water but also to educate the people to conserve water. Egypt is an agricultural country facing serious impacts of climate change,” he added.

Dr Abdelhamid said that the challenge was to devise a holistic policy and how to introduce new solutions for the agriculture sector for less water usage and sustainable growth. “We are hiring experts to find solutions to ensure climate resilience and to adopt the latest solutions for Climate Change mitigation,” he concluded.

Muhammad Ismail Imam highlighted the eco-friendly initiatives launched by RSPN to help ensure access to clean drinking water, education, waste management, and nature conservation through tree plantation and public awareness.

He informed the participants that he was educating the masses and children during Jumma congregations to plant trees in order to address increasing pollution.

“We propose the authorities to develop rainwater harvesting solutions like small dams to address water scarcity in our area,” Imam said.

Lawyer and Criminology Consultant Humaira Masihuddin said that there was so much wealth in the world but its unfair distribution contributed to this disaster at all levels.

“The Jumma congregations need to be revisited and reimagined. We have to teach that every single commodity is an imanah (trust) of the Lord given to you which will be questioned on the day of Judgement for their usage.”

She added that Iran and Bangladesh reduced their population sizes through education and awareness on population control via the pulpits of mosques.

“If the examples are quoted from the lives and history of the local communities, then they would respond like the Holy Prophet (PBUH) had marked protected areas outside Madinah to ensure conservation as an Islamic principle of protection some 1400 years back.”