Daily Times

KARACHI: Around 90 percent of water out of total 420 million gallons being supplied to Karachiites per day is untreated, Pakistan Standard and Quality Control Authority (PSQCA) scientists and Karachi Water and Sewerage Board (KWSB) officials have revealed.

“The dismal situation is the outcome of poor performance of water engineers of the KWSB at seven filtration plants and lethargic attitude of its high-ups for not making functional four closed plants for the last ten years,” officials of these entities have maintained.

The existing working filtration capacity is 50 million gallons per day (MGD) from Pipri Filter Plant, 100 MGD from North East Karachi (NEK) K-II Filter Plant and 80 MGD from Hub Filter Plant, they asserted.

Four filter plants – Gharo, Hills, Pipri old and NEK Old – with a total filtration capacity of 210 MGD are non-functional due to lack of maintenance facilities, KWSB officials added.

“The potable water being supplied to Karachi lacks quality as per the World Health Organisation (WHO) standards.”

“One of the major reasons behind this cumbersome situation can be attributed to the economical life of these plants, which were built two decades ago.

Furthermore, the lack of maintenance had also resulted in the deplorable condition of these plants,” Hashim Raza Zaidi, KWSB managing director asserted.

Sindh Water Commission Chairman Iqbal Khero over this situation had also expressed his displeasure.

All water samples collected by the commission were found highly contaminated and without any sufficient chlorine treatment process as well.

The commission has also submitted two reports on the matter to the Supreme Court during hearing of petition pertaining to water situation in Sindh.

The next hearing is likely in early December 2017.

On directives of the Sindh government, the KWSB had formed a task force that visited all filter plants, including laboratories to assess the present condition.

The task force submitted its report to the Water Commission on which the commission showed its dissatisfaction. This report would be placed before the Supreme Court in the next hearing.

Meanwhile, the KWSB had submitted a proposal to the Water Commission for rehabilitation of existing filtration plants and construction of new filter plants to enhance filtration capacity to 650 MGD.

There is dire need for training of staff and provision of equipment to assess quality of raw and filtered water. General observation is that filter media needs replacement and cleaning of clarifiers, filter beds, back wash system act including piping and electrical works.

There are proposals for building seven new filter plants, besides rehabilitation of four plants with a financial implication involve in implementing the project of Rs 3,500 million.

The new filter plants are planned at Gharo with a capacity of 10 MGD, Pipri 30 MGD, Dumlottee interconnection 15 MGD, NEK K-2 new 10 MGD, NEK K-3 old 75 MGD, COD 50 MGD and Hub filter plant with a capacity of 20 MGD.

There are 32 National Environmental Quality Standards (NEQS) parameters for drinking water while regulations are yet to be formulated to take punitive actions. However, six EPA laboratories were testing drinking water for 20 parameters.

The NEQS parameters are mandatory to be monitored and analysed under provisions of Pakistan Environmental Protection Act, 1997.

Published in Daily Times, November 25^th 2017.