KARACHI: Expressing a deep concern that Pakistan has been placed in the category of the critically water insecure countries of the world, Pasban Democratic Party PDP Chairman Altaf Shakoor here Wednesday said a mega national desalination plan on war footings is a must to make the country a water surplus nation.
He said the country is facing a severe water crisis, and as per the latest UN report ‘Global Water Security 2023 Assessment’, Pakistan is placed in the critically water-insecure category. He said this report shows that the country is facing a water emergency that requires the most urgent attention. He said it is sad that this country of the five rivers today is among the most water-stressed countries in the world, with rapidly declining water availability per capita.
He said Pakistan’s water availability per capita has decreased by more than 80% in the last 70 years, and the country is now facing a looming water crisis. As per IMF, Pakistan’s per capita annual water availability has reduced from 1500 cubic meters in 2009 to 1017 cubic meters in 2021.
It is estimated that by 2025 it will fall to 274 million acre-feet (MAF) while the resources remain the same at 191 MAF, a demand-supply gap of approximately 83 MAF. He said besides erecting new dams and reservoirs to store surplus water available only in the flood seasons, an ample desalination of sea water and brackish water of salty lakes is the most feasible way to fight water shortage. He said we have abundant sunlight to generate enough electricity to run hundreds of big desalination plants in the whole country.
He said if properly planned in Karachi, this desalination method alone can cater the water needs of our megacity. He said if desalination plants are installed near salt water lakes of the Thar Desert, we can easily convert the whole Thar into green farmlands. He said there are three big lakes in Sindh, Hamal, Manchar and Shakoor lakes, whose water, presently not fit for drinking and agriculture, could be easily desalinated and used for both drinking and agriculture purposes.
He regretted that instead of promoting the desalination culture in Pakistan, a certain lobby is hell bent to discourage it. A textbook example in this regard is the Cogen plant built on a 10-acre area in DHA Phase-VIII Karachi, with the capacity of producing 94 megawatts of energy and producing 14 million liters of drinking water daily.
It was considered to be a key component of a $600million infrastructure project undertaken by the Defence Housing Authority. However, this plant was closed down even before its functioning for reasons better known to the authorities concerned. He said if the chief of army staff takes notice of this scandal, this hidden anti-country lobby could be unearthed.
Shakoor said Saudi Arabia, China, Australia, Israel and many other countries are using the desalination technology to cater their water needs but here in Pakistan certain lobbies are hindering it. He said the rulers should reconsider their hidden policy of discouraging the desalination culture and instead promote it on an urgent basis.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2024
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