THIS is apropos the report (July 9) that spoke of a 50-foot-wide breach in the Shah Canal dyke, Jacobabad, that flooded villages and destroyed several hundred acres of paddy crops.

One wonders why canal dykes fail in Pakistan so frequently. A breach in a canal dyke leads to loss of already scarce water resources. The competition for water resources is growing, and needs to be resolved to protect our economy and communities. To achieve this, it should be ensured that that breaches or breakdowns are minimised, if not eliminated.

In the US and other advanced countries breach occurrence is rare. A major reason is the usage of PVC geo-membrane to line canals. Even if burrowing rodents make holes in the lining, unlike the earthen lining, the geo-membrane does not let the two-inch-diameter rodent burrow become a 200-foot-wide opening.

It is important that authorities take notice and use PVC geo-membrane to line the canal to avoid loss of our precious water.

Rafia Farooqui

Karachi

Published in Dawn, July 12th, 2015

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