Environment of

Pakistan
O Level Pakistan Studies (2059)
O Level Pakistan
Studies (2059)
Water
 Natural Resources
Resources: are defined as a means of meeting a need particularly
Resources
an economic or social need of the people. The term usually refers
to natural resources like land, water and air. Natural resources are
large unchanged, materials of land that are valuable to people and
used in a variety of way natural resources can described as
Renewable or Non-renewable.
Renewable Non-Renewable
Renewable Resources can be:
1. Continuous so that they can be used over and over again, e.g water, sunlight, wind, power, tidal
power, and geothermal power.
2. Sustainable, for example, vegetation, fish, wildlife, soil. Their value may be reduced overtime
for example, if forest are cut down and not replaced or soil is exhausted the result may be
harmful

Nonrenewable Resources occur in limited quantity, and if their use continues, they will run out like
fossil fuels and minerals
 Hydrological Cycle
Hydrological cycle YouTube video
Water is a natural resource. The water that reaches the
ground from the atmosphere falls in various forms such
as rain, snow or hail. All these are included in the term
precipitation. Some of the water runs directly of the
earth surface as rivers and streams, draining into lakes
and the sea. The rest of it is this either utilized by plants
or soaked into the ground.

Water is returned to the atmosphere as water to

evaporation from the surface water and by
transpiration from plants rising into the atmosphere.
The water vapor cool to form water droplets, and this
system is called condensation. This cycle is called the
hydrological cycle.
 Importance of Rivers to Pakistan
Supply water for irrigation by the canals
leading out from dams and barrages

Add to the scenic beauty of the

area.

Provide water for domestic and

industrial purposes

Help to generate hydro-electricity in

Fishing is practiced in rivers and the mountainous area
lakes

Provide water to those areas where

rainfall is extremely low

Increase fertility of the land by

carrying alluvium and organic matter
 River Systems of Pakistan
There are two River systems in Pakistan:
The Indus System
Rivers of Balochistan

The Indus System

The Indus is the largest river of Pakistan. It is watered by the glaciers of the Karakoram and Hindu Kush
crossing the Himalaya to a very deep Gorges. It turns to the southwest and enter Pakistan.

The Indus enters the southeast of Baltistan from Tibet and Kashmir and flows north west between
Karakoram and Himalayan ranges. After entering the district, it turns southwest between the Hindu Kush
and Himalayan, and then west and southwest still in very deep gorges. After leaving the mountainous region
at Kalabagh, the river enter the plains of Punjab and Sindh. Finally the Indus flows into the Arabian Sea.
Indus basin covers an area of about 1,000,000 km² and more than 150000,000 people live in this basin
defined by 3180 km long basin and its 5 tributaries. The system irrigates about 60% of Pakistan 20 million
hectares of cultivable land.
 River Systems of Pakistan
Eastern Tributaries of Indus
The Sutlej, Ravi, Chenab, and Jhelum are the main eastern tributaries of Indus. Rising in the Himalayas and
passing through Kashmir, the river enters the plains. The river Beas joins the river Sutlej before entering into
Pakistan. All the eastern tributaries have joined together by the time the Sutlej joins Chenab at Panjnad to
become River Panjnad which joins the Indus near Mithankot.

According to the Indus water treaty 1960 India was given authority over the three Eastern rivers of the
Indus system, the Beas, Sutlej, and Ravi. due to this, these rivers are left with less water as the flow into
Pakistan

Panjnad
Mithankot
Western Tributaries of Indus
The Western tributaries of Indus are smaller in length and width, and have less water than the eastern
tributaries.

The Rivers Swat and Kabul carry a significant volume of water but the Tochi, Kurram and Gomal rarely
contain much water. All these rivers contain more water during the summer season because of the melting
of the snows. The volume of water decreases as the temperature falls, and the snow is not melt
 Rivers of Balochistan

Drainage pattern of Balochistan:

Quetta, being a high altitude region has the central position in the
drainage pattern of balochistan.
Rivers like Zhob, Khandar, and the Kalachi drain into River Indus
because they flow eastwards.
The rivers Loralai, Chakar, Bolan, and Mula are absorbed into the
Kachhi Sibi Plain.
The rivers Hab, Porali, Hingol, and Mashkel drain into the Arabian
Sea.
There are many small rivers that flow westward and drain into
shallow depressions called Hamuns.
Rivers of Balochistan are small and than the rivers of the Indus system and they are dry for most of the year
except for Monsoon. They have little value as sources for irrigation.
 Ground Water
In Pakistan groundwater resources are exploited by shallow wells, tubewells, and the Karez System. The water
table has great seasonal and regional fluctuations. It is higher in the rainy season and falls in the dry season. It
is easier to obtain groundwater in the foothills of the mountains, where the runoff is greater and level of the
water is higher ground water is obtain as water is low and the rate of evaporation is much higher.Ground water
can be sweet or saline. It is not saline near the sources of recharge such as reverse and major canals. It
gradually becomes more saline as the distance from the recharge sources increases.

Groundwater is extremely useful in areas where canal irrigation is north possible and rainfall is variable and
scanty like most of Balochistan. In big cities like Karachi, where there is a shortage of water due to a growing
population, the people are making use of groundwater to meet their domestic needs. The water is pumped out
through pipes drilled into the ground. In industrial cities like Karachi groundwater may not be fit for human
consumption due to seepage of toxic chemical, sewage, sea water into the ground
 Uses of Water

Industrial uses of Water

Sanitation Water is required and almost all the

Cooking industries. In some industries, it is a
normal year, but in other industries, it is
Domestic
used for cooling or washing purposes.
uses of
Water

Washing
Drinking
 Water for Irrigation
What is irrigation?
Irrigation is the artificial supply of water to the plants to encourage plant growth. It is very important in arid
regions but it is also used in many humid regions as well to improve yields. In Pakistan about 75% of the
cultivated area is under irrigation. At present around 95% of water in Pakistan is used for irrigation
purposes.

Heavy showers
increase
surface run-off
of water
Low amount of
Few rainy days
rainfall

High rate of Why do we need Irrigation? High variability

in amount,
evapo- timing and
transpiration Ineffectivenss of Rainfall distribution of
rain
 Effectiveness of Canal
Irrigation
southward slope of
rivers makes
construction of
canals easier
because water
naturally flows
soft soil and Huge quantities of
south water from
level land monsoon rain and
makes digging melting of snow can
be stored in
of canals reservoirs during
easier summers

Canal Irrigation
Irregular supply
Cheap labor and of water in the
availability of rivers is then
cement reduces regulated by
the cost of construction of
construction. dams and
Canal system
barrages
irrigates a vast
area. Even the
deserts have
been made
productive
 Conventional
System of Irrigation
Shaduf
In the Shaduf system, water is drawn from a well, river or canal by
a bucket, which is attached to a pole on one side and weight on
the other side. A small area can be irrigated by this method. The
shaduf system is rarely used today.

Charsa
In Charsa, animal power is used to pull water from the well. The
chair system is not used by many farmers now.
 Conventional
System of Irrigation

Persian Wheel
It is a system of continuous supply of water and irrigates a
comparatively larger area. A persian wheel of more or less
traditional design, which is powered by a blindfolded bullock.
It turns a horizontal wooden wheel at the distant end of the
shaft. This carries the vertical metal wheel in the foreground
to which is attached a chain of earthenware pots. The pots
raise water from the well and spill their contents into the
channel that leads to the field.
 Conventional
System of Irrigation
Karez
Karez is a horizontal underground canal in the foothills that
brings underground water to the surface. The underground
canal may be several kilometers long. It is dug by a group of
people who then shared the water for irrigating their crops.
Vertical shaft are also dug down to the canal so that it can be
cleared and repaired to prevent any blockage in the flow of
water. This is an old system practiced only in Balochistan
where water is scarce and the evaporation rate is high. By
building the canal underground, evaporation losses are
minimized
 Conventional
System of Irrigation
Inundation Canals
Long canal taken off from large rivers are inundation canals.
Water when the river is high enough, especially when it is the
flood season.

A diversion channel is a narrow version of an inundation

cannal. They are common in Highland areas, especially in the
northern mountain, where they divert water from the rivers in
narrow channels, often high up on the valley sides, to small,
terraced fields.
 Conventional
System of Irrigation
Tank Irrigation
Tank Irrigation is practiced by constructing mud banks across
small streams to make a small reservoir which collect
excessive water during the rain season.

Effectiveness of Conventional Methods

Conventional methods of irrigation have been used for centuries. On small scale subsistence farms the
Charsa and Persian Wheels are still used. On large farms, there has been a shift from conventional to modern
methods. Conventional methods have some disadvantages:
Irrigate limited areas of land, as only small amount of water can be obtained
Require manual labor or animal power and are more time consuming
Are difficult to build, maintain and use (like Karez)

Inundation canals only flow during rainy periods or when water from melting snow and ice enters the rivers
 Modern Systems of
Irrigation
Perennial Canals
There are linked to dams and barrages to provide water
throughout the year and they irrigate a vast area.

Tubewells
Tubewells have diesel or electrically operated pumps that can
raise water from the depth of 92 metres (300 feet) or more to
irrigate farms of more than 1000 hectares. Tubewells also help
to lower the water-table thereby protecting the land from
waterlogging and salinity.
 Modern Systems of
Irrigation
Sprinker
Sprinklers are connected to public water supply pipes. They
are then centrally placed in fields to water the plants. They are
used mainly in orchards and market gardening. Agricultural
crops are rarely irrigated with this method because it is far
more expensive for the farmer, due to its capital cost, than
canal irrigation and tubewells. However, it does use water
much more efficiently with less wastage.

Tankers
Tankers collect water from the ponds and lakes and provide it to
households and fields in case of emergency. This method is
very expensive and is rarely used for irrigation.
 Indus Water Treaty
In 1947 with the creation of Pakistan, the province of Punjab was also divided into East and West Punjab.
The headwork of the canals of the Sutlej and Ravi remained in India as the share of India whilst their
drained areas became part of Pakistan. In 1948 India threatened to stop the water supply from these
headworks. That would have endangered the prosperity of the Indus Plains. The water is fetch resolved
for the mediation of the word bank. In September 1960, an agreement was signed that is known as the
Indus Water Treaty. Under this treaty Pakistan received exclusive rights to the water of the three western
rivers (Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab) and India to that of the Eastern rivers (Sutlej, Beas, Ravi).

During the transitional period till 1973 India agreed to supply water to Pakistan during the transitional
period Pakistan was expected to construct two storage dams five barrages, one gated syphon and eight
link canals. The construction cost was to be met by Australia, Canada, USA, West Germany and New
Zealand. India was also expected to pay some of the cost. The remaining expenditure was to be met by
Pakistan. WAPDA (Water and Power Development Authority) was entrusted to supervise the projects.
 Dams and Barrages
Dams constructed till now: Barrages constructed till now:

Mangla Dam Chashma Barrage

Tarbela Dam Rasul Barrage
Marala Barrage
Link Canals constructed till now: Qadirabad Barrage

Marala- Ravi
Bombanwala-Ravi-Badian Diapaipur
Rasul-Qadirabad
Balloki-Sulaimanki 1
Balloki-Sulaimanki 2
Chashma-Jhelum
Trimmu Sidhnai
Taunsa Panjnad
Sidhnai-Mailsi Bahawal
 Mangla Dam
Dams
The Mangla Dam is located on the river Jhelum. It is one of the longest (3100 metres at the crest) earth-
filled dams in the world. It is a multipurpose project designed to control and conserve the flood waters of
the Jhelum for irrigation and to generate hydroelectric power. The Mangla lake, besides serving as a
reservoir of the dam, has also been developed as the fishing center and a tourist resort.
Tarbela Dam
Dams
The Tarbela damn is built on the Indus at Bara near the village of Tarbela. It is about 30 km from the town
of Attock. When the Indus leaves the Himalayan foothills and enters the Potwar Plateau the water is stored
in the reservoir of the dam. It is 143 m high and it has a reservoir area of 243 km² and a storage capacity of
119 billion m³ of water. Moreover, it has nine huge gates to control the outflow of water. The Tarbela dam
is the world largest earth filled dam and the second project was constructed under the Indus water treaty.
Near the Tarbela Dam, there are two big spillways from the reservoir which are impressive features. As
with many dams, Siltation in the reservoir is emerging as a major problem.
Dams
Dams
 Siltation in Reservoirs
When the rivers leave the foothills of the Himalayas they carry a large quantity of silt as a result of deep erosion in the
mountain region. This is deposited in the plains of Punjab and Sindh. siltations that can destroy the purpose of dams
and barrages i.e irrigation and generation of hyrdoelectric power. There is a need to control the deposition of silt through
various engineering techniques. At Tarbela Dam the inflow of 0.5 million tons of silt has created a 132 foot mound which
is just 8km away from the power house. The water storage capacity is decreasing at both these dams due to siltation.
The storage capacity of reservoir of Chashma Barrage has also come down to 42% of its capacity.
 Barrages
Barrages in Pakistan are very long structures used for irrigation and flood control. The cost of construction of a barrage
significantly less than that of a dam. Unlike dams, which require mountainous terrain pages can be made even in flat
areas. Apart from providing water for agriculture, barrages also encourage human settlements and commercial and
industrial activities
 Waterlogging and
Salinity
Although there are a lot of benefits of canal irrigation they have caused waterline and salinity. Normally a
balance maintained between the precipitation and evapotranspiration that kept the water table low. With
the introduction of perennail canals water was available throughout a year if resulting in a high water table.
in the soil came to the surface with the water table being high. Water on the surface is evaporated and the
source are deposited on the surface of the soil when doing the land useless for farming. The rise of the
water table to the surface level is called waterlogging and appearance of salty patches on land is called
salinity
 Preventing Waterlogging
and Salinity
Lining of canals to control seepage of water
Canal closure on temporary basis so that the water when it creates through only when needed for
irrigation purposes
Installing tubewells to lower the water table
Planting eucalyptus trees because the roots go deep in the ground and absorb water from the water
table
Surface drain to divert surface water to nearby river or lake
 Water as a Resource for
Economic Development
Agriculture, there is the main income generating that depends on what either in the form of rainfall or
irrigation. Agriculture crops, such as wheat, cotton rice, barley, pulses, fruits, and vegetables contribute to
around 25% to the GDP. Around 2/5 of the labor force is employed in agriculture and ag based industries,
such as cotton, textile, food, processing, leather, etc. use agricultural products as rsw materials. They also
exported and earned foreign exchange for Pakistan increasing its GNP (gross national product) generating
income for the country

Water is also used in many processing and manufacturing industries such as steel, thermal power stations,
HEP generation, cotton, textile, leather, pharmaceutical companies and many others. Searching industries
are vital for the economic development of a country as the provide employment to the industrial labor,
force, and meet the local demand for industrial goods. They also provide electricity to domestic and
commercial users. Export industrial goods are in foreign exchange for the country and contributes to the
GDP and GNP.

Domestic supplies of clean water are essential for the survival of the population. Healthy people are more
productive at their workplace and contribute more to economic development. Keeping in view, the
importance of water is vital to efficient management of water resources to keep water economy going.
 Water Supply Issues
Leading to Conflicts

International

Impact of Indus water Treaty 1960 Provincial

Violation of Indus water Treaty 1960

Punjab and KPK Users

Sindh and Punjab

Agriculture
Industry
Domestic Users and Others
 Internation Conflicts
Impact of Indus water Treaty 1960
Due to the Treaty Pakistan lost control of three Eastern tributaries. This has reduce the water supply to the
eastern part of upper Indus plain. Effort was made to solve the problem by constructing the Tarbela and
Mangla Dam reservoirs and a system of Link Canals to divert water from western tribute of the in the
system to eastern Punjab. However, due to increasing demand from farming, other uses, there is a shortage
of water in the upper Indus plain. less water in the eastern tribute in Pakistan has remained a source of
tension between India and Pakistan since the treaty was signed

Violation of Indus water Treaty 1960

India violated the treaty by constructing several dams on the Indus and other rivers of Pakistan. Pakistan
opposed to these dams such as Kishanganga project, Baghliar Dam, Neelum-Jhelum power project on the
western tribute of the Indus river. These projects not only release less water to Pakistan but they reduce the
generation of hydroelectric power since generation of electricity requires high volume of water in the rivers
 Provincial Conflicts
Punjab and KPK
A major source of conflict between Punjab and KPK is the construction of the proposed Kalabagh dam on the river
Indus. KPK has voiced its concerns over the construction.

KPK fears most of the water stored in the dam diverted to Punjab through Link canals. However, Punjab agreed
not to construct any canals from the reservoir.

Moreover, and electricity generated from the dam will be used in much of Pakistan through national grid system
according to the requirements of the areas. That means KP will not get any extra electricity from the dam.

The project will result in large Klee evacuations of the areas included in KP. It is estimated that about 30,000
people will be displaced. It is feared that the affected people will not receive compensation and rehabilitation.

Concerns have been raised at large areas of Nowshera district would be submerged by the reservoir and even
wider areas which suffer from water logging and salinity as has occurred as a result of the Tarbela dam. However,
some engineers would expertise on construction repeatedly denied that Nowshera city could be submerged by
the dam reservoir
 Provincial Conflicts
Punjab and Sindh
Due to its location in the lower Indus plain, Sindh has its fears about the distribution of Indus water between Sindh
and Punjab. Even after the establishment of IRSA in 1991 ( Indus river system authority) conflict between the two
provinces could not be resolved. Sindh has always complained or receiving a smaller share of water from Punjab

The water availability for Sindh would be further reduce after the construction of kalabagh dam water stored in its
reservoir might be used to irate farmland in Punjab and KP.

The coastal regions of Sind require constant flow of water down the Indus into the Arabian sea, so that the
flowing water can keep the sea from intruding inland. Water intrusion would literally turn vast areas of Sindh’s
coast into an arid saline desert and destroy coastal mangroves and would reduce fish production

The construction of the dam would reduce the flow of river Indus downstream at Kotri Barrage near Hyderabad
causing more water shortages in canal irrigated areas of lower Sindh.

Silt deposited in the proposed Kalabagh reservoir would eventually reduce the storage capacity of the reservoir.
This would further reduce the water supply to Manchar lake and Haleji Lakes in Lower Sindh