Great Pakistan - arguably, the biggest - problem is water shortages. The country is facing severe water shortages by 2025 and will be the largest water-focused country in South Asia within two decades. About 30 million Pakistanis do not have access to safe drinking water
Quality and Water, Sanitation and Health
The water crisis in Pakistan is not limited to the growing shortage, with poor water quality also creating a major problem. Both surface and groundwater resources are affected by this issue. Currently, about 56 percent of people in Pakistan have access to safe drinking water, while 30 percent of diseases and 40 percent of deaths are linked to unsafe water. The gap is also greater between rural and urban people; 70 percent of Pakistan's rural areas lack access to clean water. According to a report by the World Bank, water and soil pollution levels have skyrocketed over the past 15 years. That water is left untreated, posing a serious health risk.
Unsustainable wastewater treatment plants are an important factor in introducing low water quality in Pakistan. Only Islamabad and Karachi have waste treatment centers, and, at the very least, operate only partially. Although they would be fully operational, it is estimated that they will be able to treat only eight percent of Pakistan's wastewater. In addition to dedicated water treatment facilities, many toilets are connected to leaky pits or septic tanks, connected to open drains, while many rural households still rely on toilets. Open exercise is rare in rural areas. Families then dispose of wasteful waste from toilets and fuel tanks in the river and fields, where there are no voluntary waste disposal programs. The effects of poor waste management practices are particularly evident in rural areas, where toilets and running water are often scarce. As a result, diarrhea is rampant in rural areas.
Pakistan's water supply is also prone to pollution from other sources. Industrial waste is often treated with minimal treatment, which has led to an increase in water pollution as industries (especially textiles and leather) have become more common. Of the more than 6,000 registered industries, 1,228 are considered to be “extremely polluting.” In Karachi, Pakistan's two largest industrial areas simply release heavy metals, oil, and other hazardous substances directly into the rivers. This problem is exacerbated by the relaxation of environmental regulations and the deliberate approvals offered to industrial organizations by the government. To protect the foreign currency, Pakistan promotes the growth of key industries by offering discounts and reducing more expensive regulations that could help protect polluted waterways. The agricultural sector is also responsible for much of the pollution of Pakistan's water resources, due to the flow of chemical fertilizers and pesticides.
While these events appear to significantly impact surface water, Pakistani aquifers also tend to have poor water quality. Water from the Indus Basin is naturally high in arsenic and, while arsenic toxicity research in Pakistan is limited, estimates suggest that 50 to 60 million Pakistani-dependent groundwater reserves are at risk, particularly near Lahore and Hyderabad. The study also found a high rate of arsenic-related skin disorders in rural Pakistan. Additionally, Indus Basin aquifers are closely linked to surface water, allowing surface contaminants to enter the groundwater easily. The strong extraction of groundwater is also accompanied by rising salinity in waterways.
Policy, Politics, and Implications for the future
Along with visible barriers to water security, water politics has also exacerbated the crisis. Due to colonial water laws and the lack of strict governance, Pakistan's water policies are now governed by three main factors: reliance on increasingly old-fashioned laws and frameworks; a powerful selection of major engineering projects to solve water issues (the latest drive to build two large dams, without worries, is a common example); and freely defined water rights. In most cases, land ownership determines who is entitled to water. Pakistan's vast water infrastructure is also in dire straits, due to the culture of "building / neglecting / rebuilding" in the management of public works. That is true even of large-scale engineering projects in Pakistan that invest heavily in it, including dams, the failure of which can be catastrophic.
Pakistan's water resources are managed at the provincial level, which poses another water management problem. Disputes between the provinces have been the driving force behind the controversy over water reform. Although the 1991 Water Agreement reduced some provincial concerns (by allocating water to provinces on a case-by-case basis) the implementation plan, overseen by the Indus River System Authority (IRA), is lacking and there is no way to monitor the flow of the conflict. Criticism of IRA has escalated over the past decade due to its failure to manage the needs of all provinces, caused by the continued decline in water flow. Other reform efforts have created many agencies with interdependent functions and responsibilities, making management inefficient and reducing and reducing the chances of good water management.
While current trends in water management are alarming, there have been some positive indicators for the future. In 2018, Pakistan's General Interest Council finally approved the most important National Water Policy (NWP). The 41-page full-text states, among other things, that 10% of funding from the National Sector Development Program will go to water infrastructure, as well as setting goals to reduce water loss through damaged infrastructure. Although the document represents the development of water management, there has been concern that there are too many recommendations outlined in the policy, making the sections controversial and unclear. While the NWP can help advance water management and reduce tensions between the provinces, without strict management or coercion, it is likely that little will change, leaving Pakistan's water security in an increasingly dangerous position.
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