KARACHI:
Climate change is endangering human life, wildlife, and natural ecosystems. Excessive deforestation proliferates the rate of nocuous gases in the environment such as carbon, nitrogen, and sulphur oxides that lead to air pollution. This has increased the likelihood of lethal diseases as well as respiratory diseases. Nearly 2.3 billion people live in water-stressed countries, which also includes Pakistan. Environmentalists and climate experts have estimated that 3.6 billion people had inadequate access to water in 2018. By 2050, this is expected to rise to more than 5 billion. Pakistan itself does not have sufficient dams and reservoirs to store water for the future.
In addition, changes in climate and global warming have increased unusual rainfall in different parts of the world. In the past year, Pakistan faced urban flooding because of torrential rains that caused displacement and deaths. Whereas other parts i.e., Balochistan have experienced a drought that has killed many people.
The lesson for South Asia is as clear as it can be; considering the intertwined nature of the river systems of Pakistan and India, solutions must be found cooperatively. There is a need to sign mutual agreements to sort points of contention such as upper and lower riparian rights, the method to harvest water sources including rainfall and glacier-melt and avoid ‘water wars’ that could prove mutually ruinous. The United Nations has already warned that time is not on our side. To tackle global warming, nothing less than the complete reorganisation of the world’s economy is required. An internationally coordinated plan is needed, involving the complete restructuring of the world’s industrial, agricultural, and economic sectors.
Sayed Arsalan Shah
Gambat
Published in The Express Tribune, November 10th, 2021.
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