HYDERABAD: A study found that multiple sources are polluting water of Keenjhar Lake and they include KB Feeder transports, pollution of several cities and towns, untreated domestic and agricultural waste of villages, effluent of Kotri and Nooriabad industrial estates and litter created by tourists continuously making its way into the Indus.
The study conducted by Uzma Imran, principal researcher, under the US-Pakistan Centre for Advanced Studies in Water at Mehran University of Engineering & Technology (MUET) probed water quality status of the lake and estimated critical factors adversely affecting ecosystem.
Ms Imran shared her findings at a seminar on ‘Keenjhar Lake Water Quality Assessment and Valuing Ecosystems Services (KL-Waves)’ at the Jamshoro campus on Friday and said that multiple sources were damaging water quality of the lake.
She said that it led to decline in fish population and migratory birds and forced people to opt for alternative livelihood sources or live in miserable conditions.
She explained sampling methods of water and fish samples to investigate major effects and concluded the research project presentation by sharing reliable data on water quality hazards and effects of ecosystems.
She urged active ownership by all stakeholders to protect the freshwater reservoir of Pakistan that faced threats from pollutants and mismanagement. “Not only quality of water is [bad] but ... such conditions may cause diseases and increase risk of cancer,” she said.
She highlighted significance of arguably one of Asia’s biggest semi-natural lakes which was 27.6km long and was a major source of water for Karachi and nearby communities in Thatta district.
She said that over 50,000 people were directly dependent on the lake for their livelihood. “Keenjhar hosts migratory birds in winter and is considered one of the most visited tourism place in Sindh,” she added.
Prof Dr Bakhshal Khan Lashari, project director at USPCAS-W; Shafqat Hussain Wadho, chief engineer of Kotri Barrage; Dr Abdul Jabbar Memon, deputy director fisheries; Altaf Shaikh, manager conservation Sindh in WWF Pakistan and Prof Dr Rasool Bux Mahar, deputy director at USPCAS-W, also spoke at the seminar.
Dr Lashari appreciated Ms Imran’s research and highlighted progress of water study centre, giving credit to faculty and research scholars for the completion of over 200 research projects in only three and a half years. “We have reliable data available for environment and water policy development,” he added.
Shafqat Hussain Wadho, Dr Abdul Jabbar Memon and Altaf Shaikh endorsed research findings and praised the study. They called for departmental coordination to implement laws and policies.
Uzma Imran thanked the research team comprising Dr Asmatullah, Dr Jenifer Weidhaas of University of Utah USA, Mohammad Hammad, Rafiuzzaman, Mohammad Irfan, Raima Mehmood, Soomal Hamza, Veengas Panhwar, Ahsan Latif, Azizullah Gabol, Kaleemullah Shaikh, Suresh Kumar and Shoaib Qureshi.
The seminar was attended by representatives from CBOs, NGOs, industry partners, faculty members, scholars and students of MUET.
Published in Dawn, October 12th, 2019
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