MAN-MADE destruction of the environment has acquired monstrous proportions in this country. Yet another instance of this appalling state of affairs is highlighted in a study of the impact of untreated effluents in Korangi Creek carried out by Karachi University’s environmental institute. A number of factories from the Korangi and Landhi industrial areas, and the nearby Cattle Colony constantly discharge industrial effluent, and solid and liquid waste into this tidal channel, whose name is familiar to most Karachi residents. Adding to the environmental nightmare are settlements and fishing villages along the banks that do not have a proper sewage disposal system. The study, based on 38 samples of water and sediment, shows — to cite but a few alarming indicators — high levels of organic pollutants, such as phenol and cyanide, and the presence of heavy metals, particularly lead. The concentration of oil and grease in the samples is described as being “exceptionally high”, a factor detrimental to marine life. That in turn adversely affects the livelihoods of some 100,000 people directly or indirectly connected with the fisheries industry.

This creek is where the Malir nadi is supposed to bring rainwater from the Kirthar mountain range enabling it to flow into the Arabian Sea. That, however, is how nature intended it to be. The reality is very different. Pollution along Karachi’s shoreline has in fact come to such a pass that, according to the Karachi Port Trust chairman, KPT spends up to five times more than it needs to on maintenance of its ships due to sea pollution, a factor that could lead to foreign shipping lines refusing to come to Karachi port. The incoming provincial setup must ensure that laws pertaining to environmental pollution are implemented and a viable plan for treatment of toxic waste devised. Moreover, given that leather and textile exports and the lucrative fisheries sector are partly controlled by the centre, the new federal government should also dedicate all available resources to clean up pollution off Karachi’s coastline.

Published in Dawn, August 1st, 2018