Rejuvenating Tradition To Help Save Ancient Engineering Marvel—Dhamapur Lake

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Environment

The Vijayanagar rulers constructed an earth-fill dam in 1530 AD to create Dhamapur Lake. There is now a campaign to save it. Credit: Rina Mukherji/IPS

The Vijayanagar rulers constructed an earth-fill dam in 1530 AD to create Dhamapur Lake. There is now a campaign to save it. Credit: Rina Mukherji/IPS

PUNE, India, Oct 2 2024 (IPS) – Dhamapur is a small village in Malvan taluka of west Sindhudurg district, housing the famous Dhamapur Lake. The Vijayanagar kings constructed an earthfill dam in 1530 A.D., creating a man-made lake surrounded by hills on three sides. Canals connect it to the Karli river, irrigating lush paddies and farms that grow the red Sorti and Walay rice varieties typical to the region.

A Bhagwati temple constructed in the typical Konkan style stands on its banks. Small shrines to anthills flank this temple, which is devoted to Goddess Bhagwati. This is because all over the Konkan region, anthills are considered manifestations of the Earth Goddess and worshipped as Goddess Sateri. These are monuments to biodiversity and well-being; white ants or termites that build anthills are known to aerate the soil, help seed dispersal, and improve soil fertility. The worship of anthills is an old Vedic practice that continues to survive in and around the Konkan region of Maharashtra, Goa, and its neighborhood to this day.

The construction of the earthfill dam on Dhamapur Lake too spells of local ingenuity. Made up of porous laterite stone that is locally found here, every layer of stone is alternated with a layer of biomass made of twigs and branches.

This freshwater reservoir, used for irrigation and drinking water purposes, is one of Maharashtra’s oldest engineering marvels. Its waters and the Kalse-Dhamapur forests that flank it nurture a wide variety of unique floral and faunal species, making it a popular tourist destination.

But beauty apart, this man-made lake, which is geographically on higher ground as compared to the surrounding countryside, plays an important role in recharging the groundwater, acting as a sponge during the monsoons.  Apart from serving as an important source of drinking water and irrigation, Dhamapur Lake nurtures an entire ecosystem. Its waters and surrounding forests harbour a wide variety of flora and fauna, some of which are endangered species. Its significance can be gauged from the fact that it was given the Word Heritage Irrigation Structure (WHIS) Award by the International Commission of Irrigation and Drainage (ICID) in 2020.

But in recent times, several encroachments have affected this extensive waterbody. Guest houses, wells, and walkways built in its floodplains to boost tourism have been eating into its extensive area, in scant regard to the flora and fauna that thrive in its pristine waters.

Fighting for Dhamapur Lake

In recent years, though, Dhamapur Lake has found a savior in Sachin Desai and his organisation, Syamantak Trust. Incidentally, Sachin Desai and his wife, Meenal, have an interesting background that illustrates their love for the natural world and India’s time-honored traditions.

Believers in home schooling, the Desais fought out with the authorities to home-school their daughter. Abandoning high-paying corporate jobs, these two professionals set up the University of Life on their ancestral property to familiarize youngsters with traditional bricklaying, carpentry and farming skills in 2007. To stem the migration from the region, they sought to inculcate love and respect for traditional practices, foods, and cuisine among youngsters. This was how the Syamantak Trust came into being.

In the years that followed, learners and youngsters who spent time at the University of Life went to use the knowledge they acquired to specialize in respective fields or venture into entrepreneurship, selling local products to tourists frequenting Dhamapur. Rohit Ajgaonkar, once a student at the University of Life, has become an active volunteer with Syamantak and runs a small eco-café in Dhamapur.  Remarkable in its use of local materials, the eco-café has an array of local delicacies such as kashayam and jackfruit, wood apple, and mango ice creams.

Rohit and his mother, Rupali Ajgaonkar, also run a shop adjoining their eco-café, wherein they sell hand-pounded local masalas, mango and jackfruit toffee, local pickles, cashew butter, kokum syrups and kokum butter.  Prathamesh Kalsekar, another student of the University of Life who is the son of a local farmer, is now doing his B.Sc. (Agriculture) at the Konkan Krishi Vidyapeeth. He has raised a private forest on his family land in Dhamapur, and now grows many local fruit and vegetable trees, bushes, and plants, particularly focusing on nutrient-rich wild varieties. He has also set up a nursery of saplings for distribution among local farmers.

A temple on the outskirts of Dhamapur Lake. Credit: Rina Mukherji/IPS

The Bhagwati temple is on the banks of Dhamapur Lake. The temple is built in the typical Konkan style, wherein the deity is placed at one end in the sanctum sanctorum. The main section of the temple is reserved for the assembly of elders who meet and discuss matters related to the village. The temple is reminiscent of a bygone era when a place of worship also served as a place for the community to assemble and parley. Credit: Rina Mukherji/IPS

The Ongoing Battle to Save Dhamapur

These skills and respect for nature came in handy when Syamantak embarked on its mission to save Dhamapur and other waterbodies in Sindhudurg district through a community-led movement, following the construction of a skywalk undertaken by the authorities in 2014, and the running of diesel-run boats for tourists by the panchayat (village self-governing body). But this was easier said than done, notwithstanding the public zeal.

Desai and his volunteers realized that “Sindhudurg district has several wetlands and waterbodies. However, the authorities haven’t notified or demarcated any of them. This permits encroachments, a lot of them by government bodies.” In the case of Dhamapur Lake, the high flood line was ignored, and private parties encroached upon the peripheral areas of the lake. Even the state government’s Department of Agriculture had built a nursery and sunk a well on the floodplains of the lake.

Making use of the National Wetland Atlas prepared by the Space Applications Centre of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) and the Maharashtra Remote Sensing Applications Centre in 2010, during the tenure of Minister of Environment & Forests Jairam Ramesh, Syamantak Trust approached the Western Zonal bench of the National Green Tribunal. Some residents of Sindhudurg district also filed an Environment Interest Litigation (EIL) to save the lake. At that time, the phytoplankton population had already decreased due to the construction of 35 pillars and the 500-meter-long cement concrete skywalk.

An Interim Order in 2018 by the Tribunal not only halted all further construction but saw every bit of concrete broken down and removed from the precincts of the lake. It also stopped the use of diesel boats on the lake . Furthermore, the state Public Works Department (PWD) was ordered to shell out Rs 1.5 crore for mitigation measures to be undertaken to reverse the damages caused by the construction of the 2.5 km skywalk and the use of diesel boats.

Meanwhile, following the formation of a 32-member Wetland Brief Documentation Committee as per an Order by the District Collector, the Syamantak Trust organized the local citizenry to document the flora and fauna of Dhamapur lake. They were soon joined by students from the local college of architecture, academicians, botanists, zoologists, and geographers from Mumbai and other parts of India, besides Dr Balkrishna Gavade and Dr Yogesh Koli, who lent their expertise for the study.  Mapping Dhamapur helped the volunteers learn about the kind of biodiversity hotspot the Western Ghats region is, especially in the forested tracts around Dhamapur Lake.

Five months spent documenting the various wetland flora and fauna showed 35 species of birds belonging to 18 families to frequent the lake, such as the Eurasian Marsh Harrier, Indian Pond Heron, Lapwing, Kingfisher,  and Small Bee-Eater. The lake was found to be particularly lush with phytoplankton and zooplankton species, which are the building blocks of a wetland ecosystem. The volunteers would also learn about how the Wax Dart butterfly was reported for the first time in Maharashtra, on the banks of Dhamapur lake.

Once Dhamapur was mapped, the volunteers went on to document a total of 57 wetlands and waterbodies in Sindhudurg district, including those as yet unlisted by the authorities. These included Vimleshwar in Devgad, Pat Lake in Kudal, and Jedgyachikond in Chaukul, among others.

The Uphill Struggle to Save Dhamapur Lake

The mapping and summary of violations were to come in handy when fighting to conserve Dhamapur Lake at the NGT.  However, the community’s fight to have Dhamapur Lake recognized as a wetland has not borne fruit so far. “Our case was dismissed by the NGT in 2023 on the grounds that the lake does not qualify to be a wetland in keeping with the Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules 2017, since it was constructed for drinking water and agricultural purposes,” Desai tells IPS.

However, the Trust and its community volunteers have not given up yet. They have now approached the Supreme Court to demand

1) Demarcation of the Lake’s buffer zone and high flood line; and

2) Notification of the Lake by the state government in its gazette.

Once notified, the Lake, they feel, would be protected against further encroachment from public and private bodies alike.

Meanwhile, Syamantak Trust, along with members of the local community, continue to familiarize visiting students and persons from other parts of India with this unique water-body and its flora and fauna through eco-trails. As of this year, Syamantak Trust has begun hosting classical music concerts with the theme “Connect to Nature,” allowing music lovers to explore the vast repertoire of Hindustani classical music and its connection to the seasons and nature’s clock.

Currently, the Desais and their volunteers in the local community sincerely hope that once people in Dhamapur and beyond learn to appreciate and love nature, it will help them connect better with the lake and its entire ecosystem. This can be the best and only bulwark against the destructive march of climate change.

IPS UN Bureau Report

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Tanzania’s Maasai Women Adopt Climate-Smart Solutions To Tame Drought

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Food and Agriculture

Maria Naeku, a Maasaiwoman in Mikese village in Mvomero district tends to her vegetable garden.Credit: Kizito Makoye Shigela/IPS

Maria Naeku, a Maasaiwoman in Mikese village in Mvomero district tends to her vegetable garden.Credit: Kizito Makoye Shigela/IPS

MVOMERO, Tanzania, Sep 24 2024 (IPS) – In the scorching sun of Mikese village in Tanzania’s eastern Mvomero district, 31-year-old Maria Naeku tirelessly tends to her small vegetable patch. Each time she pulls a weed, the red soil stains her hands as she guides the trickle of water from a maze of pipes through an elevated bed to nurture her plants. In a drought-stricken area, Naeku’s small garden is a lifeline for her family, giving them food and income.

“When the drought hit, our cattle died, and we couldn’t get milk for the children,” Naeku says. “I knew I had to find a way to feed my family, so I had to grow vegetables.” 

The drip irrigation technique, where a network of pipes with tiny holes spit water directly to the plant in a split second, was new to her but she tried. “I didn’t  know how if tiny drops of water could nourish the crops,” she says. “But when I saw green leaves sprouting from the soil, I knew I had a brighter future.”

Naeku’s quickly became an expert, her success inspired other women across  the village to follow her lead. The Maasai, traditionally, known for cattle rearing—a symbol of wealth and security are increasingly adopting climate-smart farming to cope with drought as rains have become erratic due to climate change. Women like Naeku, who once depended entirely on these herds, have been forced to adopt innovative farming techniques to survive.

Shattering the Patriarchy

In Maasai culture, men have long held the reins of power, with women relegated to the roles of caregivers and homemakers. Decision-making, particularly in land and livestock matters, has traditionally been the exclusive domain of men. However, the severe droughts have shifted these dynamics. With their cattle dwindling and their families hungry, Maasai women have begun to step into roles once reserved for men, embracing climate-smart agriculture as an alternative means of survival.

“We are no longer just caretakers of our families,” says 34-year-old Nasarian Lengai, a mother of five who has become a local champion for horticulture farming at Mikese. “We are decision-makers who are shaping the future of our community.”

Initially skeptical, Lengai strongly believe in horticulture using organic farming practices. “When I first heard about these methods, I didn’t think they’d work for us,” she says. “But after seeing how much better my crops are now, I’m sure this is the right way to go.”

For centuries, the Maasai have relied on cattle for their food—milk, meat, and even blood. Switching to farming was a big change from their old ways.

“We used to believe that having many cattle was the only way to keep wealth and ensure security,” says Esuvat Joseph, who leads the Tupendane Maasai women’s group at Mikese village. “But now we understand that we need to cope with drought. We’ve learned to keep fewer cattle and focusing more on farming.”

Tupendane group has also embraced water conservation techniques, constructing ground reservoirs to collect rainwater. “This water is very important,” she explains. “We use it for irrigation when the rivers dry up.”

Climate-smart Solutions

The Maasai women’s adoption of climate-smart agriculture is not just a response to immediate needs but a strategy for long-term resilience. Through initiatives supported by the Norwegian Church Aid—an international charity—these women are learning to diversify their income sources, reducing their dependence on livestock and embracing sustainable horticulture practices.

“We’re teaching these women how to make the most of their small plots of land,” explains Oscar John, the program manager with Norwegian Church Aid. “By diversifying their income sources, they’re less dependent on livestock, which is increasingly vulnerable to drought.”

Conservation agriculture, a key component of this initiative, promotes sustainable farming techniques that improve soil health and increase crop yields without depleting natural resources.

For the women of Mvomero, this has been a divine plan. They are learning to grow drought-resistant crops, rotate their fields, and use organic fertilizers, all of which contribute to better crop yields.

As more women embrace climate-smart agriculture, the ripple effects are being felt in neighboring villages, as women once skeptical of these new methods, are now seeing the success in Mvomero and beginning to learn these practices in their own drought-stricken lands.

Empowerment in Action

The shift from livestock to crop farming has had a huge impact on the social dynamics within the Maasai community. Women, who were once sidelined in decision-making processes, are now taking the lead in managing their families’ resources. This newfound empowerment is improving their social and economic status while challenging the patriarchal norms that have long defined their society.

“We’ve always been made to believe that men are the decision-makers,” says Lengai. “But now we’re showing that women can lead too. We can take care of our families and make better decisions.”

This sense of empowerment is evident in the way the women of Mvomero approach their work. They are tending to their crops and building a future where their voices are heard and their contributions are valued. The construction of rainwater harvesting systems, for example, is a task that these women have taken on with pride. “We don’t wait for our husbands to do it; we build these reservoirs ourselves,” says Joseph. “It’s our way of showing that we can take care of ourselves.”

The men in the community are recognizing the shifting gender roles, and some of them are starting to appreciate the benefits of shared decision-making. While resistance remains, the success of these women is slowly changing attitudes. As the benefits of climate-smart agriculture become more apparent, more men are joining their wives in these efforts, working together to secure a better future for their families.

Challenges on the Horizon

The transition from livestock to crop farming is not without its difficulties, particularly for a community that has long measured wealth by the size of its herds. “There are still some who resist change,” admits Joseph. “They see farming as a lesser occupation compared to cattle herding. But as more of us succeed, the mindset is shifting.”

The path to fully accepting these new practices is slow, and the women of Mvomero know their success is just the start. They face many challenges ahead, including the risk of drought and strong cultural norms that shape gender roles in Maasai society.

But the women are strong. They know that their efforts are not just to overcome the on-going crisis but also about creating a better future for their children.

“We are planting the seeds of change,” says Naeku. “Our daughters will grow up knowing that they can be anything they want to be. They will see that women can lead, that we can innovate, and that we can solve any problems.”

A Model for the Future

The success of the Maasai women in Mvomero is beginning to attract attention from other drought-hit areas in Tanzania. Development organizations and government agencies are taking note of the community’s innovative approach and exploring ways to replicate it in other regions facing similar challenges.

“We see this as a model that can be adapted and implemented in other parts of the country,” says John. “The key is to empower communities, particularly women, to take control of their resources and livelihoods. When people are given the tools and knowledge they need, they can achieve incredible things.”

As Maasai women in pastoral communities make progress, they are not only securing their own future but also creating a stronger and fairer society. Their journey shows determination, innovation, and empowerment—a true example of women’s strength in overcoming challenges.

In Tanzania’s Maasai steppe, where the future of pastoral communities is uncertain, these women are showing that with the right support, even the most marginalized can overcome   their problem and lead a better life.

IPS UN Bureau Report

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Small Glacial Lakes’ Mass Destruction in the Himalayan Community

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Climate Change

Before and after the flood: Thame village in the Mt. Everest region (Khumbu region) in Nepal-before the flood. This village is home to world renowned climbers like Kami Rita Sherpa. On August 16 a flash flood caused by the glacial lake outburst swept away the most of Thame village. Credits: Khumbu Pasang Lhamu Rural Municipality

Before and after the flood: Thame village in the Mt. Everest region (Khumbu region) in Nepal-before the flood. This village is home to world renowned climbers like Kami Rita Sherpa. On August 16 a flash flood caused by the glacial lake outburst swept away the most of Thame village. Credits: Khumbu Pasang Lhamu Rural Municipality

KATHMANDU, Sep 10 2024 (IPS) – Small glacial lakes can cause destruction, which may impact the livelihoods of entire communities. Now this is the harsh reality that the community of Thame village in the Mt. Everest region of Nepal now faces as they rebuild after the August 16 disaster.

On that day a devastating flood struck Thame, a Sherpa village in the Khumbu region, damaging houses, local businesses, a school, a health facility, and the community’s means of livelihood. 

“Thame is one of the main villages that is important in terms of trekking attraction, and the flood swept away the entire village. That will definitely impact our livelihood,” said Pashang Sherpa, “Even though I am not from that village, I have been working as a trekking guide for the last 15 years, and villages like Thame are crucial to us.”

An assessment of the damage by the local government-Khumbu Pasang Lhamu Rural Municipality in the Solukhumbu district-reports that at least 18 properties have been destroyed, including seven homes, five hotels, one school, and one health post.

“Given the difficult geographical terrain, reconstruction efforts will be costly, and the local government’s budget will not be enough. That’s why we appeal for help from individuals and institutional sectors,” the rural municipality stated in an appeal for assistance.

What Exactly Happened

A view of glacial lake after the flood. Credit: Khumbu Pasang Lhamu Rural Municipality

A view of glacial lake after the flood. Credit: Khumbu Pasang Lhamu Rural Municipality

Initially, the cause was unclear, but now things are becoming clearer: Thame village was hit by a flash flood caused by a glacial lake outburst. Thyanbo glacial lake, located upstream of Thame, burst, sending floodwaters mixed with sediment down to the village.

“It was the result of more than one event—ice/snow melt or an avalanche caused spills from one glacial lake, which then triggered an outburst flood from the lower Thyanbo glacial lake,” said Dr. Arun Bhakta Shrestha, Senior Climate Change Specialist at ICIMOD. “It’s not that both lakes burst, but rather that the overflow or spill of water from one lake caused the other lake to outburst.”

Leading up to the flood, multiple weather-related factors were at play. Recent rainfall and rising temperatures likely contributed to ice/snow melt, which in turn led to the outburst. According to the Department of Hydrology and Meteorology (DHM), the area received relatively high rainfall in the week leading up to the event, and temperatures were also relatively high.

“That may have caused ice/snow melt or an avalanche at the upper lake, and the spilled water caused erosion, which ultimately triggered the lower lake to burst,” DHM said in a statement.

Experts are saying that this flood is the latest example of the causal impact of climate change and the level of impact that can be seen at the local level. Tenzing Chogyal Sherpa, ICIMOD’s Cryosphere Analyst—who also belongs to the mountain Sherpa community and is from the Khumbu region—views this event as both personal and a stark reminder of the climate crisis.

Tenzing Chogyal Sherpa, ICIMOD’s Cryosphere Analyst, comment on X. Credit: X

ICIMOD’s Cryosphere Analyst, Tenzing Chogyal Sherpa’s comment on X tells of the ‘heartbreaking reality’ of the flood. Credit: X

“Seeing the ancestral homes of Sherpa families in ruins was just numbing,” he wrote on X (formerly Twitter). “Every disaster tests our resilience, but it also strengthens it. We, the mountain community, will emerge united and determined to protect our homes and way of life. Now, more than ever, we must raise our voices to the global community. Our stories and struggles need to be heard.”

Small Glacial Lakes Are Also Dangerous 

According to satellite image assessments, the lake’s size was approximately 0.05 square kilometers just a few hours before the breach. “This lake was not on the list of potentially dangerous lakes that may cause GLOFs, and it wasn’t that big either. There are thousands of lakes like that,” Shrestha says. “This means even small lakes can cause vast destruction, and our river corridors are not safe.”

There are several lakes upstream of Thame, and satellite images show that these lakes’ sizes are constantly growing. However, they are not listed as potentially dangerous glacial lakes (PDGLs) like the nearby Tsho Rolpa. A glacial lake inventory report published in 2020 identified 47 PDGLs within the Koshi, Gandaki, and Karnali river basins of Nepal (21 in Nepal), the Tibet Autonomous Region of China (25 in China), and India (one in India).

This report identified other small lakes in the region, but they were not listed as PDGLs; there are more than 3,624 lakes in total. The report indicates that there are 2,214 lakes smaller than 0.02 square kilometers in size and 759 lakes ranging from 0.02 to 0.05 square kilometers in size.

“Yes, lakes are getting bigger day by day because of snowmelt and glacier retreat. But these small lakes are also dangerous when it comes to the destruction they may cause to downstream communities,” Shrestha said.

He argues that it’s time to integrate potential danger into development plans and disaster risk reduction (DRR) mechanisms so that disasters like the one in Thame can be avoided. The Thame flood occurred in the afternoon, allowing locals to move to safety, which prevented human casualties. But if it had happened at night, the situation could have been much worse.

“We are getting multiple wake-up calls, but we haven’t woken up yet,” Shrestha said. “We need to consider glacial lake-related events from a watershed perspective, not from the viewpoint of individual lakes. A multi-hazard preparedness approach is needed to avoid larger destruction because there are thousands of lakes above the communities.”

IPS UN Bureau Report

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Small Farmers Feeling Climate Change Heat Find Little Support From the State

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Food and Agriculture

The extreme heat adversely affected the milk production of the over 800,000 cattle in Karachi. Credit: Zofeen Ebrahim/IPS

The extreme heat adversely affected the milk production of the over 800,000 cattle in Karachi. Credit: Zofeen Ebrahim/IPS

KARACHI, Pakistan, Aug 9 2024 (IPS) – The over 20 million residents of Pakistan’s port city of Karachi, in Sindh province in particular, have been experiencing brutal heat since May. But they are not the only ones bearing the brunt of high temperatures and humidity.

Up to 15,000 cattle died due to scorching heat mixed with high humidity which Shakir Umar Gujjar, president of the Cattle and Dairy Farmers Association, Pakistan, said was “no joke”.

Mubashir Abbas, owner of 170 heads, lost eight cows and five buffaloes to the “extreme heat” in the last week of June, which translates to a loss of Rs 5.5 million (USD 19,800) for him.

“Three more are running high fever and I will have to sell them to cut my losses,” he told IPS over phone from Bhains Colony, in Karachi’s Landhi district. “I will fetch no more than Rs 40,000 (USD 143) a piece, when the market rate for each healthy one is valued between Rs 1.5 and 2 million (USD 5,300–7,000),” he estimated. Every now and then, in the last 23 years, he would lose a few to disease, but he had never “seen a healthy animal dying from heat.”

Livestock, the largest sub-sector in agriculture, contributed 60.84 percent to agriculture and 14.63 percent to the country’s GDP during 2023-2024, according to the Pakistan Economic Survey. More than eight million rural families are engaged in livestock production, accounting for 35-40 percent of their total income.

About 15,000 cattle died due scorching heat mixed with high humidity in Sindh province, Pakistan. Credit: Zofeen Ebrahim/IPS

About 15,000 cattle died due scorching heat mixed with high humidity in Sindh province, Pakistan. Credit: Zofeen Ebrahim/IPS

“From June 23 to 30, Karachi experienced a heatwave with temperatures ranging between 40 and 42 °C. The ‘feel-like’ temperature went up to 54 °C due to high humidity,” said Dr. Sardar Sarfaraz, chief meteorologist at the Pakistan Meteorological Department.

Dr. Nazeer Hussain Kalhoro, director general at the government’s Sindh Institute of Animal Health in the Livestock and Fisheries Department in Karachi, attributed extreme heat to the death of livestock, especially exotic and crossed breeds.

The temperature was still lower than the deadly 2015 heatwave temperature of 44.8 °C that claimed over 2,000 human lives when the feel-like heat index exceeded 60 °C, said Sarfaraz. “A much bigger number of animals died then, and many young animals had to be slaughtered,” said Gujjar.

The heat had adversely affected the milk production of the over 800,000 cattle in Karachi, said Gujjar. “When an animal is in stress and discomfort, due to extreme heat, its intake of regular amount of fodder decreases, which can result in decrease in milk production,” said Kalhoro.

“I was getting between 1,400 and 1,480 kg in a day; it is not more than 960 kg now. I lose 0.11 million rupees (USD 400) daily,” said Abbas.

Communication Gap

The lack of engagement with the farmer by the government was the reason. Gujjar said the communication gap between the ministry of national food security and research at the federal level and the livestock departments at the provincial departments meant the uneducated farmer was on his own.

“The biggest tragedy is that our farmer is not educated and also unaware of how to prepare or protect the animal from the vagaries of climate,” said Gujjar, adding: “They do their own traditional treatment of their animals, which results in even more avoidable deaths.”

Similar is the plight of small farmers who remain in the eye of the climate storm. “They are continuously in a reactive mode,” said Mahmood Nawaz Shah, president of a farmers’ group, the Sindh Abadgar Board, with “government policies not conducive to them”.

Giving examples, Shah said the minimum price of cotton was fixed and notified at Rs 8,500/kg (UAD 30) but growers received Rs 5,200/kg (USD 18); a 50-kilo bag of urea increased from Rs 1,700 to Rs 4,600 (USD 6 to 16) in just three years; and the artificial shortage for the same last year meant the farmer had to pay Rs 5,500 for the same bag from the black market.

“We had recommended to the government to develop a climate endowment fund and compensate small farmers by involving insurance companies as soon as extreme events lead to crop and livestock losses,” said Shah.

Both the farmers, Gujjar and Shah, have hit the nail on the head on why Pakistan, one of the most vulnerable to climate crises, is unable to manage it effectively. The disconnect and lack of coordination between different federal and their related provincial government bodies is found across the spectrum and is highlighted in the 2024 Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) as a major reason that hampered policy implementation, placing Pakistan on the 30th position among 63 countries and the EU, which collectively account for over 90 percent of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. “Improved cooperation between different levels of government would be a step in the right direction,” it concluded.

Similarly, the 2024 Environmental Performance Index that assesses the progress of effectiveness of 180 countries in mitigating climate change, relying on historical greenhouse gas emissions data, put Pakistan three rungs down at 179th rank this year from the 176th position it held in 2022.

Indifference and Apathy

Both the CCPI and the EPI are a clear giveaway of government’s nonchalance. The latter index has especially pointed to areas like air pollution, wastewater treatment, protected areas management and climate mitigation.

“The country is slipping on most environmental indicators,” agreed former climate change minister, Malik Amin Aslam, pointing to the weak air pollution control measures, non-adherence to the electric vehicles transition and failure to promote renewables.  From being a country championing the global green cause in 2022 to now “ignominiously slipping down the environmental performance ladder” should certainly raise alarm bells for our current green policy makers, warned Aslam.

The 2022 floods, which should have acted as a wake-up call for the government, he said, failed to move the government towards preparedness and improving the health of the environment.

Maha Qasim, CEO of Zero-Point Partners, an environmental management and consulting firm, said: “No significant effort had been made in building climate-resilient infrastructure like roads, drainage systems and flood management facilities like levees or reservoirs.

The EPI has pointed towards Pakistan’s use of coal as a driver.

Putting things in perspective, Qasim said that in 2021, only around 14% of Pakistan’s energy mix was based on coal, while it figured 45 percent and 63 percent in India’s and Estonia’s energy mix. But in the last two years, Pakistan’s overall GHG emissions as well as CO2 have declined, due to “Pakistan’s overall performance capita emissions from fossil fuels and industry have declined due to stagnant economic growth,” she said.

Thus, Pakistan is well within its carbon budget and has met its Nationally Determined Contribution commitments to the UNFCCC.

The updated NDCs of 2021 have pledged to reduce emissions by 50%, shifting to renewable energy by 60 percent and 30 percent to electric vehicles by 2030, and a complete ban on importing coal.

Poor transport fuel regulations, old and inefficient vehicles on the road, mass cutting down of trees to make way for rapid urbanization, burning of agricultural residue and poor solid waste management have also been mentioned for Pakistan’s poor score.

Aslam, however, said the index failed to “register or recognize” Pakistan’s efforts on reforestation—the Billion Tree Tsunami Afforestation Project in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, followed by 10 Billion Tree Tsunami Programme across the country. “The EPI ranking can certainly enhance its acceptability and credibility by improving these areas,” he said.

Weak Governance

Sobia Kapadia, a humanitarian aid practitioner, added factors like “weak governance, turning to fire-fighting and ad-hoc measures” whenever a climate crisis arises, thereby destroying the symbiosis.

“Heat, rain and floods are all connected to the core issue of human-induced development; but blaming heat and humidity on climate change is like blaming the naughtiest child,” said Kapadia, citing resorts being constructed in the mountains by cutting trees.

In yet another recent report that gives insights to investors and helps governments in setting carbon market-friendly policies, Pakistan comes 39th out of 40 countries.

Khalid Waleed, an energy economics expert at the Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI), was quoted by media saying “for the first time in budget history, the government has tagged projects worth Rs53 billion under climate change adaptation and Rs225 billion under climate change mitigation,” referring to the budget presented earlier this month. However, he added that the budget was not climate change project-specific but had been tagged for their climate benefits.

Zia ul Islam finds the budget allocation “rather tricky” to understand as it not only indicates development projects from the Ministry of Planning Development & Special Initiatives, but foreign-funded projects and projects under various ministries and provinces.

Environmental and public policy analyst Dawar Butt, comparing the country’s miniscule environmental spending to India and Bangladesh, said climate did not seem to be a priority. He further added that the climate change allocation has been “cut down by one billion rupees from what finally got approved in this year’s budget.”

Handling Climate Change on Piecemeal Basis

But it is not just how the government is handling climate change. Referring to a climate risk awareness survey conducted by GIZ Pakistan, Qasim highlighted that while many organizations are beginning to acknowledge the impact of climate change on their business models, their approach towards dealing with it was “incomplete and fragmented with a focus on climate mitigation” to meet external requirements of clients or regulators rather than on long-term business sustainability.

Due to the funding fatigue, Zia ul Islam suggested the “begging attitude” may be replaced by capacity building of concerned authorities, bringing in necessary improvements in the legal instruments and effective implementation.”

Good News

If Pakistan can somehow link smooth governance with climate finance and showcase to the world that it can fund its own climate solutions, it will give local and international companies the confidence to invest in the country. This year’s Financing Climate Action  report by Transparency International states Pakistan has a huge potential to “dollarize climate adaptive and mitigative projects” provided climate governance is improved.

Flood insurance initiatives for farmers, for example, said Qasim, at very low markup rates, have the potential to be “scaled up across the country to increase flood resilience.”

IPS UN Bureau Report

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Water Stories: The Well Seven Families and 400 Buffaloes Rely On

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Active Citizens, Asia-Pacific, Civil Society, Development & Aid, Editors’ Choice, Environment, Featured, Gender, Headlines, Health, Human Rights, Inequality, Natural Resources, Population, Sustainable Development Goals, TerraViva United Nations, Water & Sanitation, Women & Economy

Water & Sanitation

Women in Khardariya village in Dang fetching water from a community well. Credit: Tanka Dhakal/IPS

Women in Khardariya village in Dang fetching water from a community well. Credit: Tanka Dhakal/IPS

KATHMANDU, Aug 7 2024 (IPS) – In the rural village of Khardariya in the Dang district of Nepal, access to clean water is a major issue. Villagers depend on one poorly managed well for drinking water, cleaning, and feeding livestock.

Anjana Yadav stood near the well while a neighbor walked toward it to fetch a bucket of water.

“At least seven families and over 400 buffaloes rely on this well; this is the water that sustains the buffaloes, and we drink it too,” she said. “In summer, the water level goes down, and we suffer more,” Anjana told IPS.

According to government data, only 27 percent of the country’s population has access to pure drinking water. However, the government’s aim is to increase the number of people using safe drinking water to at least 90 percent by 2030, in line with Sustainable Development Goals. But villages like Khardariya are still struggling to access enough water, let alone pure water.

“This water is not drinkable, but we don’t have any other option,” Niramala Yadava (Anjana’s daughter) says while showing the logged water around the well, “We know this water is not safe, but we’re forced to drink it, use it for cleaning, and even in the kitchen. We also have to manage for livestock too.”

Khardariya is one example where access to water is a major problem, and there are other areas where people are facing the same situation. The Department of Water Supply and Sewerage Management claims that 80 percent of people have access to drinking water, but it’s not safe as per standards. Most of them still depend on surface water sources like rivers, ponds, and these sources are not necessarily safe to drink. And often time this water led to health consequences to the community where clean drinking water is not available.

Everyday Struggle

According to the World Health Organization’s Global Health Estimates (WHO GHE), one of the largest declines in the number of deaths is from diarrheal diseases, with global deaths falling from 2.6 million in 2000 to 1.5 million in 2019. But in Nepal even though cases are in decreasing trend, water related diseases are still a major concern, GHE data shows from 2000 to 2019 above 140 thousands of diarrheal cases are recorded per year.

Diarrheal diseases are one of the top ten causes of death in Nepal. According to data from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), diarrheal diseases ranked seventh in 2009 and ninth in 2019 in the list of top ten causes of death.

As Anjana Yadav in Dang, Sarita Rana Magar in Solukhumbu is struggling to get drinking water from the spring sourced tap, but it is not certain that the water is clean as per government standards. “We don’t have enough access to drinking water; even to get a couple of buckets of water is hard these days,” Magar says while waiting for her turn to fill water from the community tap in Lausasa village in the Khumbu region, where mountains stand right near her village. “It takes 25-30 minutes to fill one bucket (40-liter bucket) of water, and I need at least three buckets of water every day,” Magar said while keeping her bucket under the running tap.

Problem is Not Prioritizing

Even though the Government of Nepal claims that safe drinking water is a priority issue, the facts do not align with this assertion. In recent years, the budget for safe drinking water has been decreasing while the need is growing.

Madhu Timalsina, Senior Divisional Engineer at the Ministry of Water Supply, says that the government is not keen to expand basic drinking water safety.

“According to the data we have, 73 percent of the population lacks access to safe drinking water. The target is to reach 90 percent of the population with access to safe drinking water by 2030,” Timalsina says. “We don’t have the resources to sustain ongoing programs, and meeting the goal is far from achievable at this point. Water is not a priority for the government. We need resources.”

According to the Ministry, at a time when the demand for safe drinking water is increasing, the budget is shrinking. In the current fiscal year, the Ministry received over 28 billion Nepali rupees (about USD 208 million) as their budget, which was 42 billion (USD 313 million) in the previous fiscal year.

“It seems like in the coming year, it will decrease to 22-23 billion,” Timalsina said, “We have not been able to initiate new programs in recent years due to the lack of budget. Everything is ready, but we lack the resources.”

The Federation of Drinking Water and Sanitation Users Nepal (FDWSUN), which advocates for access to safe and contamination-free water for all, believes that the government is not taking the water issue seriously. “We have been continuously trying to create pressure, but the government is not willing to listen,” said Durga Chapagain, Senior Vice President of the FDWSUN, “The majority of users are still drinking water from open sources, and there is no budget allocated for drinking water projects.”

If the government truly intends to increase access to safe drinking water for up to 90 percent of the population by 2030, the budget should be allocated accordingly, according to Timalsina.

“To meet the target, we need to cover an additional 63 percent of the population within 6 years. The target is set, but we can’t achieve anything without the budget,” he explains. “We lack the resources to meet our needs, which is the primary limitation. Additionally, our springs are drying up, and water scarcity is becoming a major issue. Unfortunately, without resources, it’s not possible to do anything.”

IPS UN Bureau Report

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Chilean Fisherwomen Seek Visibility and Escape from Vulnerability

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Women & Economy

Gatherer Cristina Poblete, from the town of Pichilemu, carries one of the sacks of freshly harvested seaweed. This coastal town in the O'Higgins region of central Chile is known worldwide for its large waves. Credit: Courtesy of Cristina Poblete

Gatherer Cristina Poblete, from the town of Pichilemu, carries one of the sacks of freshly harvested seaweed. This coastal town in the O’Higgins region of central Chile is known worldwide for its large waves. Credit: Courtesy of Cristina Poblete

PAREDONES, Chile, Aug 5 2024 (IPS) – The number of organisations that bring together fisherwomen who seek to be recognised as workers, make their harsh reality visible and escape the vulnerability in which they live is growing in Chile.

These women have always been present in the fishing sector, but have been ignored, classified as assistants, and relegated socially and economically.

There are 103,017 registered artisanal fisherpeople in Chile, and 26,438 of them are women who work as seaweed gatherers on the shore, known as algueras in Spanish, and related tasks.

According to statistics from the government’s National Fisheries Service  (Sernapesca), in 2023 there were 1,850 artisanal fisherpeople’s organisations in Chile, of which 81 were made up of women alone.

The fisheries sector in this long and narrow South American country of 19.5 million people exported 3.4 million tonnes of fish and seafood in 2021, bringing in USD 8.5 billion.

Chile is one of the 12 largest fishing countries in the world, being its industrial fishery the most economically relevant.

Meanwhile, artisanal fishing is carried out in 450 coves or inlets where groups of fisherpeople operate from the far north to the southernmost point of the country, stretching 4,000 kilometres in a straight line.

Seaweed harvesting, which is mainly carried out by women, lasts from December to April. In the remaining seven months, the algueras barely survive on their savings and must reinvent themselves in order to earn an income.

The invisible seawomen

Marcela Loyola, 55, is the vice-president of Agrupación de Mujeres de Mar (Seawomen Group) in the coastal town of Bucalemu, which belongs to the municipality of Paredones. It is 257 kilometres south of Santiago and part of the O’Higgins region, bordering the southern part of the capital’s metropolitan area.

The Agrupación brings together 22 algueras, as well as fish filleters, weavers who sew and place the hooks spaced out in the fishing nets, and shellfish shuckers, who extract their edible meat.

“The main problem is that we fisherwomen are invisible throughout the country. We have always been in the shadow of our husbands. There is a lack of recognition of women also from the authorities, in society and policies,” she told IPS in the Bucalemu cove.

“There are many trade unions, but their projects only reach men, never anything that serves women. And we don’t have health, welfare, nothing”, claims Loyola.

Together with Sernapesca, her group launched an activity to legalise workers in artisanal fishery.

“We held an application day and a lot of people came because they didn’t have a licence.  In Bucalemu alone, 60 people signed up. Some had fishing credentials, but no permit to collect cochayuyo (edible brown seaweed) or in other related activities,” she explained.

Bucalemu also hosted a National Meeting of Women of the Land and Sea on 31 May, attended by more than 100 delegates from different parts of Chile.

Gissela Olguín, 40, coordinator of the national Network of Seawomen in the O’Higgins region, told IPS that the meeting sought to defend seafood sovereignty.

“We are working to learn from seawomen about food sovereignty. From the right to land, water and seeds, we analysed how people of the sea are threatened today because the inequality of the rural model is now being repeated on the coast,” she said.

Marcela Loyola, vice-president of Agrupación de Mujeres de Mar in the coastal town of Bucalemu, at a local tourist lookout point. Credit: Orlando Milesi / IPS

Marcela Loyola, vice-president of Agrupación de Mujeres de Mar in the coastal town of Bucalemu, at a local tourist lookout point. Credit: Orlando Milesi / IPS

Women-only management area

Delfina Mansilla, 60, heads the Women’s Union of Algueras in the municipality of Pichilemu, also in O’Higgins, 206 kilometres south of Santiago. It brings together 25 members and is in charge of the La Puntilla management area, the only one given to women in central Chile.

The leader told IPS by telephone from her town that the management area has cochayuyo (Durvillaea antárctica) and huiro (Macrocystis integrifolia) seaweed, along with the bivalve molluscs called locos (Concholepas concholepas) as its main products.

The cochayuyo is extracted by going into the sea with a diving suit and using a knife to cut the stalk attached to the rocks so that the seaweed can grow back.  In the case of huiro, an iron barrette, called chuzo by the algueras and fishermen, must be used.

“Our main issue is that the men are bothered by our management area and come diving in. Some people don’t respect women and also go into an area that was given to us and that we have taken care of for years,” she said.

These women sell the locos to restaurants in Pichilemu, while the cochayuyo is traded “in green (the estimated extraction, not yet extracted)”, to middlemen in Bucalemu.

According to Olguín, there has been significant growth in women’s organising nationwide thanks to the Gender Equity Law, number 20820, passed in 2020.

“The labour of women have been invisible in the fishing sector, and even more so within the fisheries organisation because, although unions have women, they are in the minority,” she said.

The law, she explained, opened up the possibility for women to train and organise themselves.

In spite of this progress, male chauvinist mentality persists in the fishery.

“They believe women can’t be on the boats or they have smaller spaces for them in the cove. It is a behaviour of men who still think that women only help in the fishing industry, but don’t work in it,” she said.

María Godoy ties and prepares in her home in the coastal town of Bucalemu, in the Chilean municipality of Paredones, the packets of cochayuyo seaweed collected by her husband and daughter. Credit: Courtesy of Gisela Olguín

María Godoy ties and prepares in her home in the coastal town of Bucalemu, in the Chilean municipality of Paredones, the packets of cochayuyo seaweed collected by her husband and daughter. Credit: Courtesy of Gisela Olguín

Critical situation of the algueras

The leader describes the situation of women seaweed gatherers as bad.

“The women who work at sea live and sleep in little shacks with minimal conditions. They don’t have water or electricity and everyone has to make do as best they can.  The same goes for sanitation, they have to make makeshift toilets,” she said.

It is hard work because the timetable is set by the sea, she adds. The first low tides can be at 7:00 am or sometimes at noon in summer, with the sun over their heads.

“Conditions are always a bit extreme. Throwing seaweed out when cutting the cochayuyo is a job requiring much physical strength,” she explained.

Since the working season is short, the women prefer to stay in the shacks, improvised dwellings made of sticks and cloth that are erected on the sand or ground resembling tents.

“Here, women stop going to the sea only when their bodies prevent them from doing so. I know women over 70 who are still working on the shore because that’s how they subsist,” she added.

Another determining factor is the price of seaweed, which is set by buyers and ranges from 200 to 500 pesos per kilo (between 20 and 50 US cents).

The fisherwomen work long hours to extract more product. “It is a very vulnerable sector, with no social security or cultural recognition,” Olguín concluded Olguín.

Hortensia, Sonia, Cristina and Elizabeth, four seaweed workers from the Chilean municipality of Pichilemu, in front of the municipal building where they will meet the deputy mayor, Sergio Mella. The workers are seeking a concession and municipal premises to exhibit and sell their handicrafts, soaps and various products made from seaweed. The sale allows them to subsist during the southern winter, when seaweed extraction is banned. Credit: Orlando Milesi / IPS

Hortensia, Sonia, Cristina and Elizabeth, four seaweed workers from the Chilean municipality of Pichilemu, in front of the municipal building where they will meet the deputy mayor, Sergio Mella. The workers are seeking a concession and municipal premises to exhibit and sell their handicrafts, soaps and various products made from seaweed. The sale allows them to subsist during the southern winter, when seaweed extraction is banned. Credit: Orlando Milesi / IPS

The threat to seaweed

Alejandra González, a doctor in ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of Chile, told IPS that some species of brown and red macroalgae found along Chile’s coasts are raw material for the food, pharmacological and medical industries.

This commercial value and high demand leads to direct extraction, “causing a reduction in natural populations and fragmentation, with a slow recovery rate of only those that survive harvesting”, she explains.

“This scenario makes populations less able to cope with environmental change, leaving them vulnerable to events such as Enos (El Niño), heat waves, increased tidal surges, changes in seawater pH, many of them associated with climate change,” she said.

Among the greatest threats to macroalgae are habitat destruction due to coastal port constructions, pollution caused by urbanization, and invasive species associated with ship movements and migrations.

Other threats are overexploitation related to human population growth, climate change caused by increased carbon dioxide (CO2) and its side effects, such as higher temperatures, storm surges and chemical changes.

According to González, the greatest threat to seaweed is the combination of all these variables.

Chile has developed various strategies for the conservation and management of natural seaweed meadows, but these measures are inadequate, argues the specialist.

“In Chile’s north, the exploitation of brown macroalgae from natural meadows is greater, because drying is free on the beaches themselves, but it is also affected by El Niño current events. While in the south it is necessary to invest in sheds or drying systems, it is more efficient to cultivate them because there are tamer bays,” she said.

González also believes that measures to recover natural seaweed meadows are not efficient “either because of legal loopholes, difficulties in on-site monitoring and/or other additional environmental variables such as those associated with climate change.”

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