Pakistan

Government plans to use Attabad Lake as a hatchery

Lake has expanded to 23km, submerging several villages upstream in Gojal.

Shabbir Mir May 10, 2011

GILGIT:

Authorities in Gilgit-Baltistan are considering converting the Attabad lake into a hatchery for breeding a variety of fish, sources in the directorate of fisheries told The Express Tribune on Saturday.

“It is an option but let us see if the result of the feasibility study being conducted there are encouraging or not,” the official said.

The lake was formed on January 4, 2010 after a massive landslide blocked the Hunza River. the lake expanded up to 23 kilometres upstream, submerging four villages in Gojal Tehsil of Hunza-Nagar District.

Despite repeated attempts, engineers of the Frontier Works Organisation (FWO) have failed to drain the lake since the debris blocking the flow of water is too massive to be cleared.

The government is planning turning the calamity into an opportunity instead of letting things be, said the official.

“The idea is to breed a variety of fish in the lake, including trout which is a premium breed,” he said.

If implemented, the hatchery will not only benefit the people of Hunza and Gojal but also the entire region.

A team has been deputed to conduct a survey of the lake and submit recommendations regarding its feasibility, the official added.

“Gilgit-Baltistan Legislative Assembly Speaker Wazir Baig, himself a resident of Hunza, recently chaired a meeting with relevant departments in this connection,” the official said, adding that the directorate of fisheries will have the responsibility of supervising and running the project.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 10^th, 2011.

COMMENTS (1)

George | 13 years ago | Reply It will take until July for the snowmelt to peak. Hopefully the blockage will wash away if there are no more large slabs at the top of the spillway that the water can not move. It seems that since January there has been a blackout on substantive information on the work that has been done at the spillway; so, the public is left to guess as to what was actually accomplished. The major question is whether any large slabs remain and I really do hope that they have either been removed or fragmented in place by blasting. If any are left then most probably the lake will recede to the top of any remaining large slabs, and next year they should be drilled and blasted -- something that could and should have been done beginning January 2010 had competent engineering resources been engaged.

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