Pakistan water Resources

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PCRWR to convert labs into Water Resources Centers

February 24, 2019

Pakistan Council for Research in Water Resources (PCRWR) has envisioned to convert its all the 25 water testing laboratories across the country into Water Resources Center with appointing professional people.

Chairman PCRWR, Dr. Aslam Tahir while talking to APP, said Water Resources Centers will focus on assessing water quality, water conservation and ground water monitoring to assist the general public.


Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources

(PCRWR) was established in 1964 and working is a body corporate vide PCRWR Act 2007 under Ministry of Science and Technology (MoST). The management of the Council consists of the Board of Governors, the Chairman and the Executive Committee. Since its inception, PCRWR has played its role as a national research organization by undertaking and promoting research in various disciplines of water sector, more specifically, irrigation, drainage, surface and groundwater management, groundwater recharge, watershed management, desertification control, rainwater harvesting, water quality assessment and monitoring, water conservation and development of water quality improvement technologies, etc. With its Headquarter in Islamabad, its eight Regional Offices/Research Centers are located at Tandojam, Quetta, Bahawalpur, Lahore, Peshawar, Karachi, Gilgit and Muzaffarabad.

 

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Research Areas

Water Management


The major activities of water management is to conduct research and development for the conservation and efficient utilization of available water resources to meet the current water demand for various sectors in general and agriculture in particular, as well as planning for future demands. The research and development activities are focused on three major areas:

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  • Crop Water Requirements
  • Water Conservation.
  • Groundwater Investigations
  • Hydrology Modeling & GIS/RS
  • Recharge of Depleted Aquifers
  • Watershed Management
  • Draining and Land Reclamation

Major Research Findings /Achievements / On-going Activities

Surface Water Management

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  • A survey of the farmers' existing practices showed that crop yield, conveyance and water use efficiencies are very low in the field. PCRWR explored and modified bed and furrow technique through which 30% water can be saved whereas growing crops with sprinkler system can save upto 40% of water.
  • Evaluated and identified low-cost watercourse linings materials and techniques based on the findings of research that maximum seepages take place from the side banks and not from the bed.
  • Lysimeter studies have shown that maize can be grown with only pre-sowing irrigation, by which 20% water can be saved without reducing the crop yield. Further studies provided that shallow groundwater (0.4-0.5 m) contributes to crop water requirements of various crops.
  • An assessment of unsafe disposal of sewerage and industrial effluents on the environment showed that it caused wide-spread water-borne and water related diseases, devastating various vital ecosystem components like groundwater, fisheries, agricultural produce etc besides wastage of water resources which can be recycled to reduce water stress.
  • The testing of methodologies and investigating the techniques for rejuvenation of glaciers, to improve the frozen water resources of the country, three sites have been selected, one in Chilas (Goharabad) and two in Skardu (Tarkati and Gole). After collecting the baseline data, the grafting of glaciers has successfully been accomplished with the active participation of Agha Khan Rural Support Programme (AGKRSP) and local community and monitoring of these glaciers for mass accumulation etc. is underway.
  • An empirical model for characterizing snowmelt regime of Upper Swat River Basin and forecasting seasonal flow thereof has been developed. Improvement of the model by incorporating more data is underway that would help Indus Irrigation System management.
  • Experimentation at the Research and Demonstration Farm for irrigated areas showed that rice can be grown with sprinkler system with much less water, a saving upto an extent of 40% has been found. Similarly, growing rice with bed and furrow irrigation system could save up to 30% irrigation water.
  • Introduction of low delta crops in different regions of the country with innovative irrigation methods like trickle, bed and furrow and zero tillage have been explored particularly in remote areas like Balochistan and Sindh.
  • Water potential of the country's dry lands (Pothwar plateau) has been quantified and the impact of land and water resources development activities on the socio-economic conditions of the native as well as under prospective climatic conditions has been evaluated. It was found that such activities are essential for sustained economic growth besides preventing quality degradation of streams, rivers and reservoirs.
  • Five rainwater harvesting structures were constructed in Pothwar region for on farm provision of water. The structures demonstrate best practices for on farm management of water and its efficient utilization with high efficiency irrigation system such as sprinkler and trickle.
  • Northern mountainous areas remained mostly out of focus due to being rugged and remote. PCRWR launched water conservation programme for that area and provided water storage and conveyance system, water lifting system and high efficiency irrigation systems at 30 sites. Those serve as demonstration units for large scale adoption leading to improved farm level water conservation, land use intensity and cropping intensity.
  • Development of an integrated national water management plan is underway as site-specific state of the art packages have been implemented at pilot-scale in all agro-ecological zones of the country for evaluation and improvement like northern areas, upland mountainous areas, deserts, irrigated areas, coastal areas and Azad Jammu and Kashmir . The package include different technologies like innovative watercourse improvement, construction of check dams, mini dams, dug wells, installation of high efficiency irrigation systems (lift, sprinkler and drip) and laser land leveling etc.

Groundwater Management

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  • PCRWR introduced concept of participatory On-Farm Tile Drainage in Sindh Province to reclaim waterlogged and saline soils. Under this programme, 1000 hectares of abandoned farmers’ land was recovered for production. The replication of this concept to other parts of Sindh would help reclaim thousand acres of unproductive land, besides sustaining the system on long term basis
  • Investigations and mapping of groundwater zones in Indus Basin has identified about 5 million-acre feet (MAF) of additional fresh groundwater sources from unexplored zones. This may irrigate 3.3 million acres of additional land.
  • Water table is monitored in large cities of the country and it is found that water table is falling in most of the cities, for which in Islamabad artificial groundwater recharge has been initiated by making use of rainwater runoff of the Faisal Mosque. Similar projects are being planned for rest of the cities.
  • Groundwater is rapidly depleting in Balochistan for which the Government of Balochistan constructed over 165 delay action dams, however the efficiency of these dams has been very low due to various technical and management problems. In order to resolve these issues, PCRWR devised low-cost innovative recharging structures like leaky dams which are much efficient for groundwater recharge besides reducing the flood effects; the same is being replicated in other parts of Balochistan due to its efficacy.
  • Design and operational faults of the skimming wells (used in fresh irrigated areas to harness groundwater from the overlying thin freshwater layer above saline water) have been leading to pumpage of low quality water and subsequent degradation of soil and agriculture. Improvement in the well designs and operational strategies have been devised after extensive experimentation to overcome these problems.
  • Conjunctive use of canal and groundwater with different strategies has been explored to find the best treatment suitable under different hydro-salinity conditions. Implementation of suitable treatments would lead to resolve not only water stress but also improve farm productions.
  • The prospects of On-Farm Groundwater Recharge are being explored to devise the most suitable ways of injecting surplus irrigation water to improve groundwater resources and reducing flood damages as well.
  • The groundwater assessment and monitoring in Soan Basin of Pothwar Region has shown that the water table dropped up to 4.0 m since 1981. The "Strategic Water Utilization Plan" proposed by the PCRWR would help sustainable management of available groundwater resources in the region.

Indigenous Development of Agriculture Water Management Instruments

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    For various research and monitoring activities in agricultural water management, the availability of requisite instruments has always been expensive due to import involved. The Council has made tremendous achievement by designing, fabricating and manufacturing such instrument indigenously like tensiometer, gypsum block, water level indicator, sprinkler heads, rainguns, and salinity sensor which are being provided to various research and development organizations in the country, at a low cost. Moreover, establishment of Technology Demonstration Centre at Lahore is underway for the regular metamorphic development of the indigenous technologies with stakeholder participation. Similarly, establishment of a consultancy cell for providing consultancies and services like laser leveling, farm planning, high efficiency irrigation systems, replacing high returning crops with low ones etc is in progress as well.

 

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Water Quality

The Water Quality component is one of its focused organs due to its crucial significance in the recent past. Rapid industrial and population growth and subsequent disposal of untreated wastewater from the urban, semi-urban areas as well as from the industries is contaminating the surface and groundwater resources which is not only limiting its intended use but giving rise to various water-borne and water related diseases in the country. The focused areas are as follows:

1. Regular monitoring of water
2. quality of surface, subsurface water, sewerage and industrial effluents
3. Establishment of regional water quality testing laboratories
4. Development of low cost water testing and treatment/filtration technologies
5. Development of national water quality database
6. Capacity building of Professionals/Staff from water supply agencies

A Network of Water Quality Testing Laboratories in Pakistan

National Water Quality Laboratory (NWQL): ISO-17025 Accredited National Water Quality Laboratory (NWQL) at Islamabad having analytical capabilities for more than 200 parameters. The NWQL is a premier laboratory of water quality in Pakistan. In a short span of time, it has established itself as a centre of excellence in water quality management, by upgrading its infrastructure and improving the expertise of its professionals. It has the capacity to analyze more than 114 water quality parameters (drinking, irrigation and wastewater) and is fully capable to support industry, research institutes and universities in this area. The NWQL has three main sections: Microbiological Analysis Section; Chemical Analysis Section; and Wastewater Analysis Section. The National Water Quality Laboratory has the capability to analyze the following physical, chemical, microbiological parameters and trace elements. The Laboratory has achieved continuation of accreditation for 26 water quality parameters, after the successful surveillance audit of the Laboratory Quality System. After which a full assessment of NWQL simultaneously by Norwegian Akkreditering (NA) and Pakistan National Accreditation Council (PNAC) on September 8-9, 2010 and another full assessment by PNAC on February 19-20, 2013 have been conducted. The last assessment audit was performed by PNAC on July 2015.

Network of 23 Water Quality Laboratories at district level in all provinces: Punjab (Lahore, Faisalabbad, Gujranwala, Mianwali, Sahiwal, Sargodha, Sialkot, Bahawalpur, DG Khan, Multan), Sindh (Tandojam, Badin, Hyderabad, Karachi, Nawabshah, Sukkur), Balochistan (Quetta, Loralai), Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (Peshawar, Abbottabad, DI Khan), AJK (Muzaffarabad) Gilgit Baltistan (Gilgit).


Water Quality Testing and Advisory Services


PCRWR has the honour to offer water quality testing and advisory services as a continuous activity for the detection and source localization of pollution and quantification of pollutants by using international standard methods for evaluation and assessment of:

1. Drinking water (potable, bottled and mineral water)
2. Irrigation water
3. Industrial effluents
4. Aquatic life and ecosystem (fisheries etc.)
5. Filtration systems
6. Recreational pollutants
7. Environmental impacts

Completed Projects

1. Water Quality Monitoring in rural Areas of Pakistan and Installation of Water Conditioning and Filtration Units
2. Strategic Basin Assessment of Indus Pakistan with the financial assistance of Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO), Australia from August, 2015 to July, 2016.
3. Water Quality Monitoring in Rural Areas of Pakistan and Installation of Low Cost Water conditioning and Filtration Units (Phase-I) a PSDP project - 2004-2009
4. Water Quality Monitoring in Rural Areas of Pakistan and Installation of Low Cost Water conditioning and Filtration Units (Phase-II) a PSDP project - 2009-2014
5. Provision of Safe Drinking Water - Khushal Pakistan Programme PSDP project 2006-2015
6. Monitoring of Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs), in Asian Coastal Hydrosphere sponsored by United Nation University (UNU), Tokyo, Japan and Shimadzu Corporation, Japan. PCRWR joined UNU-IAS in October, 2005 for monitoring of POPs, including PCBs, PPDEs, in surface water bodies of Pakistan for 6-Phases 2005 to 2015.
7. National Water quality Monitoring Program a PSDP project - 2002 to 2006

Ongoing Projects

1. Establishment of National Capacity Building Institute (NCBI) for Water Quality Management a PSDP project also sponsored by KOICA - 2014 to 2019
2. 7th Phase of the project "Monitoring of Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs)", in Asian Coastal Hydrosphere sponsored by United Nation University (UNU), Tokyo, Japan and Shimadzu Corporation, Japan. PCRWR contributing in monitoring of PFCs, in surface water bodies, sediments, drinking water and biota of Pakistan (2016-2018).
3. National Water quality Monitoring Program Phase-II a Non-Development study - 2014 to 2017