ISLAMABAD: The fish die-off in Rawal Dam on Saturday raised serious concerns as the water level in the reservoir continues to plummet. The situation has prompted action from the Pakistan Environment Protection Agency (Pak-EPA).

In response to the incident, an inspection team led by Dr Zaigham Abbas, director (lab/NEQS), and Ashiq Nawaz, director (EIA/Mont), collected water samples from Kashmir Chowk Point, Diplomatic Enclave near Lake View Point, AQ Khan Road Korang Point, centre of the dam and the spillway point.

On-site testing was conducted to measure crucial water quality indicators, including dissolved oxygen (DO), pH, turbidity, total dissolved solids (TDS), electrical conductivity (EC) and water temperature.

According to Pak-EPA, these parameters were essential for understanding factors affecting aquatic life in the dam.

The environmental watchdog said to ensure a thorough investigation, samples had been sent to the CLEAN laboratory of Pak-EPA for chemical and microbial analysis.

As Rawal Dam continued to face environmental challenges, the findings from this inspection could play a key role in protecting the ecosystem.

Last week, numerous dead fish had been discovered along the dam’s banks. While the cause of death has not been determined officially, locals attributed it to potential factors such as low water level, drought and heatwave.

According to authorities, apparently, less water and oxygen was the reason behind the death of fish, a problem which was likely to be sorted following forecast of more rain which would increase the water level.

An official had confirmed that while low water level seemed to be the primary cause, an investigation was being conducted.

Earlier in 2017, a similar incident occurred in which thousands of fish had died in the dam allegedly due to poisoned water.

The police had registered a first information report (FIR) following claims that poison had been mixed in the water deliberately by someone to settle scores.

Talking to Dawn Dr Zaigham Abbas attributed the dying of fish to untreated municipal waste water flowing into Rawal Lake from Banigala and Bara Kahu.

No sewage treatment plant had been installed by civic authorities to treat waste water before it entered the reservoir, which was also a major source of drinking water for the residents of Rawalpindi, Dr Abbas said.

“Fish died due to low oxygen level caused by mixture of waste water into Rawal Lake and high levels of turbidity,” he added.

Published in Dawn, August 4th, 2024