EDITORIAL: It’s unfortunate that days like World Environment Day still do not raise the kind of seriousness they should in Pakistan. For, environment and climate degradation go hand in hand, and the Pakistani government or its people may not be to blame for the bulk of carbon emissions that cause climate change, even though the country is one of the most affected by it, the same cannot be said for much of the environmental damage that we suffer from.
We have seen excess rains, flash floods and unexpected droughts ravage habitats and agri production patterns for decades now, yet we’re still without an effective policy to handle them. Also, as the UN warns about increasing desertification, we’ve just watched as the Indus River basin, which has sustained life in these parts since antiquity, dried and shrank without doing much about it.
We have also, almost deliberately, failed to upgrade our agriculture system even though it has traditionally employed the most number of people and has had the maximum families associated with it. Even now, despite all the degradation, we continue to rely on ancient irrigation and cropping techniques. Yet since over the last few decades we’ve moved from one of the world’s most water abundant countries to one of the most scarce ones, this has affected agri production patterns, substantially reduced output, and made the already shaky exchequer rely more on imports to fill often unforeseen gaps.
For the longest time, onlookers and stakeholders – this space being no exception – have advocated a proper, planned transition to modern techniques and methods like use of drip irrigation, soil conservation, better seeds, etc., yet such initiatives have never got off the ground because no government has taken the trouble of properly educating the agri force about their desperate need. We’ve also, tragically, done nothing about the criminal level of deforestation that this country has been put through for ages; to the point that now we’re left with less than five percent forest cover.
To its credit, PTI’s (Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s) was the only administration that made an issue about forests and trees – especially with its famous/notorious billion tree tsunami. But while it must be appreciated for raising awareness on an unprecedented scale, it should still be said that its actions left a little to be desired when seen against its rhetoric. And with PTI out of office, it’s no surprise that talk of planting trees and protecting the environment also fell silent.
The biggest problem lies with the rulers of this land. They have never been able to see beyond their own petty political intrigues and battles to give long term, real issues much thought. Even now, the talk of town is centred around which coalition partner will give the ruling party more headaches, or how much the House of Sharif is internally divided, or which new cases will be slapped on opposition members. This cycle always repeats itself, regardless of which bunch is in power or opposition at any given time.
While we’ve been busy with this circus, the world has been working on overcoming some of the most serious issues of the 21st century, like climate and the environment. And here we are, in the eye of the storm and still without a proper action plan.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2024