By Amin Ahmed
Friday, 20 Mar, 2009
RAWALPINDI: The Asian Development Bank has announced to carry out a study on glacier melt and downstream impacts on Indus-dependent water resources and energy which is expected to lead to concrete adaptation measures for investments in the water and hydro-power sectors in Pakistan.
A new report of ADB released on Friday says the information generated on glacier retreat and impact on loan-related downstream basins will be of practical importance to ADB climate change interventions in Pakistan.
The proposed project can also cover an analysis of the impact of predicted climate changes on water and land use, and their effects on the rural livelihoods of small farmers and other actors along the agriculture supply chain; a strategy for adaptive measures for the farm and non-farm rural economy, including an evaluation of coping strategies such as crop insurance, information warning systems, and research into developing crops and cropping systems that are more robust and better able to resist the expected impact of climate change; and capacity building for the use of adaptation and mitigation instruments for coping with climate change.
The ADBs 2009 pipeline includes a 1,000,000 dollar proposed regional technical assistance (RETA) on climate change for Central Asian Countries including Pakistan.
Under the proposed technical assistance, potential outputs envisaged for Pakistan could include improved enabling environment and programme development for renewable energy and energy efficiency improvements; adaptation investment plan for water resources management and sustainable land management; and increased government capacity for administration of Pakistans responsibilities for Kyoto protocol and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
The ADB environment analysis report on Pakistan pointed out that the environment and natural resources of Pakistan were under stress due to a rapid population growth and environmentally unsustainable practices, reveals a new report of Asian Development Bank published on Friday.
Renewable freshwater resources were fast depleting pushing the country into the category of water stressed countries. Freshwater flows in Pakistan have been substantially reduced by water diversion for agricultural irrigation in recent decades, says the analysis.
Canal irrigation, due to low levels of efficiency has resulted in salinization, thus adversely affecting crop yields.
An excessive and improper use of pesticides is destroying the natural biotic balance in agriculture soils and reducing the diversity of invertebrate fauna.
Mangroves, the traditional breeding grounds for commercially important sea life, have also declined. Similarly, Pakistan's arid and semi-arid rangelands are extensively degraded, due to large increase in livestock grazing.
The trends and prospects for the future vary greatly depending on climatic conditions and social responses.
Pollution due to a lack of effective management has emerged as a major environmental concern in Pakistan.
Measures such as conversion of vehicles to cleaner fuels (CNG), lead-free gasoline and low sulphur diesel have been implemented but remain insufficient to prevent deteriorating in ambient air quality in the urban areas due to increasing vehicle numbers and their hazardous emissions.
Industrial discharges of toxic and persistent pollutants were contaminating some of the countrys best soils and water resources. Solid waste dumped on low-lying land or burnt pollutes groundwater or generates dust and carcinogenic pollutants with adverse health implications.
The disposal of untreated urban sewage is contaminating fresh water sources for downstream users. Poor sanitation and hygiene and lack of access to safe drinking water supply are contributory factors to high rate of diseases such as diarrhea in the country.
The report says Pakistan also faces environmental challenges from natural hazards including floods, earthquakes, droughts, and cyclones. Pakistan is a flood prone country, while earthquakes and droughts are recurring phenomena in susceptible regions.
Additional environment challenges due to climate change are expected to directly impact on Pakistans economy. Pakistans overall macro policy framework takes into account environmental considerations to an extent by setting targets as well as allocating resources for environmental programmes.
Despite a fairly adequate environmental legislation - Pakistan Environment Protection Act, 1997 - and related policy frameworks together with supporting institutional mechanisms in Pakistan, there are various policy, legislative and institutional gaps.
The environment impact assessment (EIA) guidelines are not adequate to ensure effective appraisal of large infrastructure projects such as dams and mega water projects.
A major challenge associated with the large infrastructure projects would be to address resettlement and compensation issues in the absence a resettlement policy.
It is critical that the existing environmental legislation be reviewed and updated to align with the new growth and development strategy. Effective enforcement of environment rules and regulation requires delegation of necessary authority to the public institutions such as environment protection agencies (EPA) both at federal and provincial levels and more importantly building up their environment management capacity.
Pakistans present pro-growth strategy and its development agenda foresee major investments in large infrastructure projects including the priority areas of urban development, energy, power, roads, water and irrigation.
The potential environment challenges associated with the new policy accentuate the need to address the existing environmental issues at the outset to support the sustained growth in the long run.
Friday, 20 Mar, 2009
RAWALPINDI: The Asian Development Bank has announced to carry out a study on glacier melt and downstream impacts on Indus-dependent water resources and energy which is expected to lead to concrete adaptation measures for investments in the water and hydro-power sectors in Pakistan.
A new report of ADB released on Friday says the information generated on glacier retreat and impact on loan-related downstream basins will be of practical importance to ADB climate change interventions in Pakistan.
The proposed project can also cover an analysis of the impact of predicted climate changes on water and land use, and their effects on the rural livelihoods of small farmers and other actors along the agriculture supply chain; a strategy for adaptive measures for the farm and non-farm rural economy, including an evaluation of coping strategies such as crop insurance, information warning systems, and research into developing crops and cropping systems that are more robust and better able to resist the expected impact of climate change; and capacity building for the use of adaptation and mitigation instruments for coping with climate change.
The ADBs 2009 pipeline includes a 1,000,000 dollar proposed regional technical assistance (RETA) on climate change for Central Asian Countries including Pakistan.
Under the proposed technical assistance, potential outputs envisaged for Pakistan could include improved enabling environment and programme development for renewable energy and energy efficiency improvements; adaptation investment plan for water resources management and sustainable land management; and increased government capacity for administration of Pakistans responsibilities for Kyoto protocol and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
The ADB environment analysis report on Pakistan pointed out that the environment and natural resources of Pakistan were under stress due to a rapid population growth and environmentally unsustainable practices, reveals a new report of Asian Development Bank published on Friday.
Renewable freshwater resources were fast depleting pushing the country into the category of water stressed countries. Freshwater flows in Pakistan have been substantially reduced by water diversion for agricultural irrigation in recent decades, says the analysis.
Canal irrigation, due to low levels of efficiency has resulted in salinization, thus adversely affecting crop yields.
An excessive and improper use of pesticides is destroying the natural biotic balance in agriculture soils and reducing the diversity of invertebrate fauna.
Mangroves, the traditional breeding grounds for commercially important sea life, have also declined. Similarly, Pakistan's arid and semi-arid rangelands are extensively degraded, due to large increase in livestock grazing.
The trends and prospects for the future vary greatly depending on climatic conditions and social responses.
Pollution due to a lack of effective management has emerged as a major environmental concern in Pakistan.
Measures such as conversion of vehicles to cleaner fuels (CNG), lead-free gasoline and low sulphur diesel have been implemented but remain insufficient to prevent deteriorating in ambient air quality in the urban areas due to increasing vehicle numbers and their hazardous emissions.
Industrial discharges of toxic and persistent pollutants were contaminating some of the countrys best soils and water resources. Solid waste dumped on low-lying land or burnt pollutes groundwater or generates dust and carcinogenic pollutants with adverse health implications.
The disposal of untreated urban sewage is contaminating fresh water sources for downstream users. Poor sanitation and hygiene and lack of access to safe drinking water supply are contributory factors to high rate of diseases such as diarrhea in the country.
The report says Pakistan also faces environmental challenges from natural hazards including floods, earthquakes, droughts, and cyclones. Pakistan is a flood prone country, while earthquakes and droughts are recurring phenomena in susceptible regions.
Additional environment challenges due to climate change are expected to directly impact on Pakistans economy. Pakistans overall macro policy framework takes into account environmental considerations to an extent by setting targets as well as allocating resources for environmental programmes.
Despite a fairly adequate environmental legislation - Pakistan Environment Protection Act, 1997 - and related policy frameworks together with supporting institutional mechanisms in Pakistan, there are various policy, legislative and institutional gaps.
The environment impact assessment (EIA) guidelines are not adequate to ensure effective appraisal of large infrastructure projects such as dams and mega water projects.
A major challenge associated with the large infrastructure projects would be to address resettlement and compensation issues in the absence a resettlement policy.
It is critical that the existing environmental legislation be reviewed and updated to align with the new growth and development strategy. Effective enforcement of environment rules and regulation requires delegation of necessary authority to the public institutions such as environment protection agencies (EPA) both at federal and provincial levels and more importantly building up their environment management capacity.
Pakistans present pro-growth strategy and its development agenda foresee major investments in large infrastructure projects including the priority areas of urban development, energy, power, roads, water and irrigation.
The potential environment challenges associated with the new policy accentuate the need to address the existing environmental issues at the outset to support the sustained growth in the long run.
