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Monday, May 28, 2012

Water issues faced by Pakistan


Water issues faced by Pakistan
The alarming water issues that require immediate solutions are, Water shorter, hydro-power shortage, Floods, rapid silting of reservoirs, preventing salinity in the Indus basin, one million small tube wells indiscriminately pumping huge ‘saline drainage effluent as groundwater’ for irrigation use that increase salinity, Water wastage in the 150 years old, incompatible and obsolete canal irrigation system requiring modernization, no drainage system to evacuate salinity, undertaking Integrated Comprehensive Water Management to save water, Water shed Management of Indus River to control Silting of reservoirs and selecting multipurpose dam site.

 General issues are;
1.     The Kalabagh Dam hydraulic design and its dam site created political and technical controversies. The KBD Consultants recommended 100 days low-level silt sluicing hydraulic design whereas WAPDA, under the tailored TOR insisted for 50 days restricted mid-level sluicing design. Status quo prevailed on political controversy for 37 years as no other dam was considered to be built though feasibility of Basha was ready in 1981, about 31 years ago. Basha Dam will take another 10 years. The result for absence of dam is flood havoc of 2010, crippling load shedding, water shortage and economic destruction. More floods are expected in the absence of Katzarah Dam, Guroh Dop Dam and Raised Fateh Barrage. Kalabagh is not the dam site as its capacity-inflow ratio indicates. There is best site for raised barrage only three miles upstream of KBD—with a unique combination of low dam and barrage over it. I prepared unique substitute for KBD in 1994. It is now resubmitted. 

2.     Climate change is a serious threat. It will affect rivers flow. First more river discharge and in the second phase less discharge. The building of dams for both phases is a dire necessary. Plan multipurpose dams to increase greenery. I recommend the 35 maf Katzarah Dam and the 8.5 maf Guroh Dop Dams. If Kazarah is not built, Pakistan will lose two-third of its storage potential, waste floodwater and India would assume we do not need water.   

3.     Has any Master plan for flood control, hydropower generation and silt control projects conceived? If so, name the feasible dams with storage capacity.

4.     Rapid silting of reservoirs is the greatest danger to the useful life of our limited reservoirs. There are no dam sites on Kabul, Jehlum and Chenab Rivers. Tarbela and Mangla gross storage silted up by 6.5 maf that affected IWT replacement storage, the Water Accord and created shortage of water. It affects agriculture production. Had any steps for Water shed management taken to reduce silt in the Indus? This is necessary to increase life of Basha Dam and other on its downstream. The source of silt in the Indus, according to the study conducted by Dr Attaullah, appointed by the World Bank, is the highly erodible soil of Skardu valley. Katzarah will submerge the silt generating area in Skardu valley, stop silt flow by working as Water shed Management Dam. Please seriously consider it. Katzarah  is recommended by the Government of Sindh, and the Parliamentary and Technical Committees appointed by the President. In this respect, I do not agree with the views of WAPDA to ignore Katzarah on the grounds that Baltic culture will be submerged. The unique technical merits of Katzarah cannot be ignored. Moreover, the Government should make decision to build or not to build Katzarah and not WAPDA after considering its unique and multipurpose technical merits. WAPDA is habitual in creating controversies from day one. Will WAPDA prefer that Pakistan should go water scarce, its 18 crores population may suffer hunger, but Baltic culture should not be displaced? Should 35 maf floodwater go waste, by not building Katzarah?  Can two-third water storage potential be sacrificed?  Which technical flaws WAPDA has found in Katzarah? This shows WAPDA must jointly work with IRSA at Islamabad.

5.     IRSA declared its storage water requirement as 22 maf. Which feasible dams would create 22 maf of storage? WAPDA should name the dams without Katzarah.

6.     Please note that Akhori Dam is rejected by Dr Pieter Lieftnick as stated in his report Vol-I on the grounds that it has weak foundation for a dam height of 250 feet, but now WAPDA has raised its height to 420 feet, increasing storage capacity, involving huge water diversion in short period, ignoring Dr Lieftnick’s  recommendations.  Akhori involves earthwork more than two times of Tarbela Dam. Moreover, Dr Pieter Lieftnic says, to divert huge Indus water in two months, the height of Tarbela Dam shall have to be raised by 15 feet. Is that possible?

7.     Water Accord paras 2, 4, 6, 7, 14 (e) of IRSA Act is not implemented for the past 20 years. On the contrary about 6.5 maf of gross storage is lost due to rapid silting. Thus water shortage problem is not yet solved. Let IRSA and WAPDA jointly work at Islamabad to solve issues.

8.     IRSA is responsible to implement Water Accord under para 13, but it is given no powers. IRSA should be given powers. At the same time, WAPDA Head quarter may be shifted to Islamabad for close coordination with IRSA to implement Water Accord and to replenish lost storage to revive IWT and remove water shortage. This is why Chairman WAPDA is made ex-officio Member IRSA. On the expiry of the present non-professional Chairman WAPDA, the next Chairman should be experienced irrigation engineer to actively participate and foresee these water issues and help solving them. I recommend Riaz Ahmad Khan Advisor—the most suitable and experienced water resource engineer who knows these problems.

9.     Prepare a Master plan to control floods, solve water shortage, hydro-power shortage, rapid silting of reservoirs, salinity, and water wastage. It is direly essential to save huge wastage of water in the canal system that is 150 year old, incompatible and obsolete wasting about 45 to 50 maf of water. Moreover, new area is also to be brought under irrigation,  preferably  Kachi plain, to meet food needs of the expanding population. It is IRSA, WAPDA and PARC joint responsibility to avoid delay. I discovered Khajuri Kach dam site in 1959, started work on it but WAPDA delayed its completion till 2012.

10.  It is surprising that the world’s largest contiguous canal irrigation system is without its integral component of drainage system to control and remove saline drainage effluent. The canal irrigation system requires protection against salinity, sodicity and water logging. Drainage is essential part of irrigation, but is missing. Tile drainage will protect land from getting infertile otherwise water will be of no use when Indus basin goes saline waste.

11.  Two mega drainage projects of SCARPs and NDP based on wrong project concept of tube well to evacuate and control salinity failed one after the other. Later on, these were abandoned. It appears nobody could conceive the correct technical definitions of Drainage. Similar is the case of defining Irrigation, Leaching and Water Management. I can provide recognized technical definitions to correctly conceive project concept if asked for. Projects should be prepared as per their technical definitions, adopting correct project concept. Therefore, it is vital that Food and Agriculture department, WAPDA, IRSA must jointly work at Islamabad as water is basic input of agriculture.

12.  Farmers after knowing that groundwater is available installed more than one million private small tube wells, indiscriminately pumping about 50 maf of injurious saline drainage effluent as groundwater for irrigation. This injurious drainage effluent injects about 350 million tons of injurious salts each year into the soil rendering it infertile. The process of salinity is going on gradually and invisibly. The Indus basin is turning into saline waste. Over and above, the one million tube wells could be consuming about 2000 MW of power.

13.  Lacy canal system has become obsolete and highly wasteful besides incompatible to meet intensive crop water requirements in time and in proper dozes. Silting shows canal has failed. It needs modernization by carrying out integrated comprehensive water management (ICWM) as per its true definition. The canal system may need redesigning as per Mannings Formula with silt carrying velocity. Let us consider If 20 maf of water is saved by lining the obsolete canal system, then, will it be possible to use the saved water to bring new area outside the command or the saved water used on the existing crops?  Moreover, the one million miles of water courses be replaced by pipe supply to avoid seepage losses, evaporation losses and theft. Use sprinkler and drip irrigation methods to save more water. Abandoned the wasteful and obsolete Warabandi. This will again save water with in the old command area. How and where to use the saved water? All water losses are to be removed in view of para 14 ( e ) of the Water Accord – a legal binding. Therefore, ICWM is necessary.
Indian water threat is hanging over our heads as India has built 32 water projects.

14.  Salinity and sodicity is a great problem. This needs control by maintaining water table and evacuating excessive salts out of the area. This requires surface and sub-service tile drainage. After leaching the soil, evacuating salinity, reclaiming land, the return drainage effluent from the reclaimed soil would be useable for irrigation on the downstream.

15.  All natural drains in the country are blocked by encroachments in violation of the Canal and Drainage Act of 1857. This needs revival. Sindh is a drainage bowl of the Indus basin. I understand flood water of 2010 and rainwater 2011 is still standing in pockets as natural drains are encroached.  

16.  All Pakistan Grand Canal from Chashma barrage proposed by me in 1961 was ignored. The gravity flow canal would have passed through Sibi Town, irrigating the whole of Kachi plain, besides other provinces. Kachi canal from Mithan Kot failed due to poor planning, and now is taken off from Taunsa barrage still depriving large area of Baluchistan. Is Chashma site not a great loss forever? Can we do something now?

17.  I understand there are huge losses (about 16 maf) due to theft/unauthorized water use in Indus River from Chashma to Kotri. Investigate these losses. Indus River needs channelization after building Basha Dam and Katzarah Dam. It will reclaim about 3 to 3.5 million acres of fertile land from its 14 miles wide waterway. Grow forest on recovered land.

18.  Pakistan is not a member of the UN Watercourses Convention. Why? Get membership. It  will help solving water issues with disputing countries like India and next Afghanistan.

Recommendations
Such series of meetings for the first time, have initiated steps to solve chronic water issues under the
 chair of Riaz Ahmad Khan, technical advisor and other experts from all professional organizations -- a right step to solve chronic issues.  I would also recommend hiring foreign company, like HARZA for detailed preparation of projects. HARZA worked in the Indus basin for 40 years as General Consultants to the Ministry of Water, and WAPDA. Let they work on new projects with IRSA to implement Water Accord and solve other water issues. Alternately, Chinese Consultants be considered. The current discussion will prove more helpful if written views are given by the participants in case where they disagree. Money or no money, project concept for solving water issues must be conceived and be ready. There should be Constitutional provision to solve these issues in 5 year plans each Government. Political parties should include this in their mandate. This implementation falls under Article 38 of the Constitution that may further be amended.    
It is surprising that Army has banned the issue of GTS maps from the Survey of Pakistan. Water Resource Engineers cannot plan without the GTS maps. The ban should be removed from Engineers. They should be allowed to place indents on the Survey of Pakistan as before. I found GTS maps as seven wonder of the world. A gift left by the British.

Engr. Fateh ullah Khan Gandapur                                                 Dated May 26, 2012
Former Chairman IRSA
Mobile 0300-5920641.

Thursday, May 10, 2012

Definitions of technical terms used in Dams and Reservoirs derived from Readers Digest Great Dictionary and other sources



Pondage.
 A still body of water, smaller than a lake, often of artificial construction. Pondage has no storage and is therefore subjected to seasonal flow, like the run-of-river flow.
Full Pondage level.  The same definition

Surcharge storage.
An additional discharge added to the usual discharge. An overcharge specially unlawful. An additional or excessive discharge, an overload, to fill beyond usual capacity, over fill. A discharge stored without authorization.

Operating pool.
A small body of still water, a small pond. A deep place in a river.

Run-of-the-river.
Means the flow of the river as it is, with no live storage in generating power. Run-of-the-river has no water storage or a limited amount of storage in the form of small pond.

The Indus Waters Treaty has fixed the limit of creating permissible storage for India at 4.19 maf from Pakistani Rivers. India cannot create more storage than 4.19 maf. This storage can be used under any definitions in Appendix–D from ( C ) to ( g ). India has misused definitions, coined by it with the purpose to cheat. Storage under any definition is subject to the extent of 4.19 maf. For authoritative definitions, refer to International established and recognized definitions as attached. India has cheated Pakistan and we failed to point it out. No one watched the working of Commissioner Water for his head quarter at Lahore. He should have been close to the Ministry who remained unconcerned. This is why India built 32 mega dams and we remained unaware for 40 years.
                                               
We came to know from John Kerry report submitted to the American Senate that India has built 32 mega dams and has acquired the ability to store enough water to limit the supply of water to Pakistan at critical moment in the growing season”. India is building 9 more dams in further violation of the Treaty.
On the basis of this information, one can estimate that India must have created Gross Live Storage of about 36 to38 maf in 32 mega dams. This will create Dead Storage of about 12 maf in addition. Pakistan’s Rabi Water requirement is about 36 to 38 maf. If this supply of water is stopped by India, the Indus Basin Irrigation System will turn non-perennial or seasonal. This means India has equipped itself for water war by using water as a weapon of mass destruction to create hunger, famine, death and genocide of the people of Pakistan. This is why John Kerry fears nuclear conflict as mentioned in his report to the Senate. Pakistan should take up the case with India, on coined definitions, and on the silting ot Tarbela and Mangla by 6.5 maf rendering the IWT inefficacious. It requires Replenishment to keep Treaty alive. We must take the case to the Security Council. It is surprising Pakistan has ignored signing the UN Watercourses Convention that can help our case with India. Pakistan inaction is surprising. Apply immediately for Membership.

External and Internal water issues faced by Pakistan




These issues require solutions under the Constitution to avoid hunger, famine, death, and water war.

IWT inefficacious on many counts. These are

Silting of replacement storage (Tarbela and Mangla) by about 6.5 maf (Gross storage), requires replenishment by India.

India used wrong definitions of Pondage, Full Pondage level, Surcharge storage, operating pool and run-of-river. India created 38 maf of Live Storage against the permissible of 4.19 maf illegally. There will be no water for Rabi crop. This violation amounts to cheating.

India took perennial water and in return gave time-based storage water and that too on our rivers. This is unjust an
d inequitable.

Pakistan has no control on its rivers allocated to it. These are under the control of India.

Preamble and Article XI (3) guarantees water rights to each party. This is violated.

The Treaty provides modification if water rights are affected or some unseen problem arises.

India uses water as a weapon of hunger, famine, death and genocide against Pakistan . Water is to be used as weapon of mass destruction.

India is planning to build 12 dams on Kabul River. This will further reduce Rabi crop water requirement.

India plans to build 9 dams on the Indus, Jehlum and Chenab Rivers

We have no reaction on Senator John Kerry report. Pakistan should protest to India for violation of the IWT.

Pakistan must report to the Security Council for serious violations as there is fear of nuclear war as feared by John Kerry, John Briscoe and many other authorities.

It is surprising that Pakistan is not the Member of UN Watercourses Convention

Whose duty is to watch, and correctly implement the Treaty.

Internal Water issues faced by Pakistan;

The Kalabagh wrong planning,  created controversy on two counts, and there was statu quo for 37 years as no dam was allowed to be built. This resulted in flood havoc of 2010 and the crippling load shedding destroying economy. This will continue till Katzarah, Guroh Dop, Mirkhani and Fateh Barrage are built.

Climate change is a serious threat. No steps are taken to mitigate it. The building of dams and the creation of more greenery would mitigate it.

Has any flood control and power mitigation projects conceived? If so, What is that.
Rapid silting of reservoir is the greatest danger. What steps are taken to reduce silt, control it and increase the life of Basha Dam and others on the Indus..

IRSA declared its storage water requirement as 22 maf. Which dams would meet these water requirement. Name these with storage capacity.

Please note carefully that Akhori Dam is rejected by Dr Pieter Lieftnick report Vol-I on the grounds that it has weak foundation for a dam height of 250 feet and involves earthwork more than two times of Tarbela Dam. Moreover, to divert Indus water, the height of Tarbela Dam shall have to be raised by 15 feet. Is that possible?

Water Accord para 2, 4, 6, 7, 14 (e) are not implemented for the past 20 years. On the con trary about 6.5 maf of gross storage is lost due to rapid silting. Water Accord has become  unoperative, as water shortage problem is not solved.

It is not possible to solve water shortage problem and hydropower shortage. It is not possible to control super floods. It is not possible to control silt problem. It is not possible to irrigated new area. It is not possible to avoid all wastage as required in para 14 (e) of the Water Accord unless Integrated Comprehensive Water Management of the total water available is taken in hand.

According to record, the total water is 142 maf on the average. Out of this 105 maf is diverted into the Indus Basin Canal irrigation System designed in 1859. This system has become obsolete, incompatible, and highly wasteful, wasting 50 per cent water that enters the canals. Another about 35 maf of water is wasted as floodwater to sea on the average. The water that enters the canals of about 105 maf, about 50% that is about 71 maf is wasted. Again, India would divert about 38 maf in winter. The water to be available for crops would be about 71-38= 33 maf. It is necessary that we should take care of this horrible situation.

It is surprising that the world’s largest contiguous canal irrigation system is without its integral component of drainage system. This has resulted in salinity and sodicity besides water logging.This will render the Indus Basin infertile. Then water will be of no use when land goes saline waste.

Two mega drainage projects of SCARPs and NDP based on wrong tube well concept to control salinity failed one after the other. Later on, WAPDA abandoned the provision of drainage. It is surprising no body knows the correct technical definitions of Drainage, Irrigation, Leaching and Water Management. I can provide if asked for.

Farmers knowing that groundwater is available installed more than one million private small tube wells, pumping about 50 maf of drainage effluent as groundwater. This injects about 350 million tons of injurious salts each year into the lands rendering it infertile. The process of salinity is going on unknowingly and invisibly.

Lacy canal system has become obsolete and highly wasteful besides incompatible to meet crop water requirements in time and in proper dozes. It needs modernization by carrying our integrated comprehensive water management as per its true definition. The canal system be redesigned as per Mannings Formula and the one million miles of water courses be replaced by pipe supply, using Sprinkler and Drip irrigation methods replacing the obsolete Warabandi.
Salinity and sodicity is a great problem. This needs control by maintaining water table and evacuating excessive salts out of the area.

All natural drains in the country are blocked by encroachments in violation of the Canal and Drainage Act of 1857. This needs revival. Sindh is a drainage bowl of the Indus basin and flood water of 2010 and rainwater 2011 is still standing as the major dams have been silted up.  

All Pakistan Grand Canal from Chashma barrage proposed by me in 1961 is ignored. This gravity flow canal will pass through Sibi Town, irrigating all the four provinces, specially the Kachi plain. Kachi canal failed once and now is taken off from Taunsa barrage.

It will be in the interest of development to shift the head quarters of WAPDA and the Commissioner Water from Lahore to Islamabad as of IRSA for better coordination.

Poor governance, political interference and controversies have stopped water and power development since 1974. This resulted in crippling load shedding, water shortage, and rapid Constitution. The Government that fails to implement this programme should be disqualified for 10 years.

Recommendation

The Government has taken initial step to solve these issues. This is a colossal job for the survival of Pakistan. My experience shows that a foreign company, like HARZA who worked in the Indus basin Pakistan for 40 years be appointed as General Consultants to the Ministry of Water or IRSA to prepare a preliminary report on these issues. The next, the Chinese Consultants be considered.