Land Pollution

Land Pollution: As Pakistan is not a rich country, it doesn’t have enough money to spend on waste disposal systems. As a result most of the home waste and other kinds of wastage is usually thrown away on empty plots next to the houses and is then burned which may be harmful to the people living in the area. Only less than 5% of the waste is recycled and most of it is disposed directly on the ground. There are only a few garbage cans along the roads so people living far away have to dispose off their waste somewhere else. This attracts flies which then spread diseases. Apart from this, the rubbish thrown would disintegrate in a 1000 years from now. Hence an increase in land pollution may in turn slowly destroy our natural environment which is already at risk.

Water Pollution

Water Pollution: this is a major problem in Pakistan. There are many sources of water pollution in Pakistan. Most of them are found in Karachi as it is an area of industries. Although it is a government policy to filter the industrial water and then release it into the sea many industries here are dumping contaminated water in seas thereby increasing the threat of

extinction of marine life as well as polluting the water. Almost the whole of city’s sewerage is dumped into rivers and the sea. As a result of this Karachi is facing many problems in the access of clean water and most parts of the city are still without water. Even in my home we get 2 small tankers weekly as there is no water in the supply. The oil spill incident has increased the amount of pollution in the sea as well as has caused most of the beaches to be polluted. It is said that the oil spill disaster from Tasman Spirit has killed hundreds and thousands of fishes as well as destroyed much of the marine life. It has also caused eye infections and respiratory problems to those living near the sea. Further leakages in pipelines have polluted the clean water which we have so little of

AIR POLLUTION

 
1. Air Pollution: in Pakistan the most common source of air pollution is mainly vehicles whose exhaust fumes pollute the air. Unlike other developed countries where there are catalyc converters and efficient vehicles which may cause less pollution, the situation in Pakistan is totally opposite. As most of the people are poor they don’t have enough money to repair or spend money on their vehicles so that they can become environment friendly. Even the car manufacturers don’t make their cars much environment friendly and the people are forced to buy these cars. More fuel is burned as most roads of Pakistan are broken and there are a lot of traffic jams which increases the journey time. Many industries in big cities such as Karachi and Lahore give out harmful pollutants such as sulphur dioxide and carbon monoxide. The government and the authorities take little concern about these industries. As a result of this the sky of Lahore and Karachi are covered with thick smog .This may lead to many respiratory diseases and may also be harmful to the animals living in such places. Even in Islamabad, the cleanest city in Pakistan I could see thick smog over the city from the Margalla hills and while traveling to Murree there was so much of exhaust fumes from vehicles that we had to keep our car windows closed.

AYOUBIA PARK ABBOT ABAD

Ayubia National Park is a protected area of 3312 hectors located in Abbottabad, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Northern Pakistan. It was declared a national park in 1984. Ayubia was named after the late Muhammad Ayub khan (1958 to 1969), Second President of Pakistan. The area sports temperate coniferous forest and temperate broad leaf and mixed forest. Ecoregean habitats, with an average elevation of 8000 feet above the sea level.



Ayubia National Park is representative of Himalayan moist temperate forest.Problems related to conservation at Ayubia National Park are similar to those found elsewhere in the Himalayan. Mountains degradation due to overgrazing by livestock , uncontrolled tourism , collection of Non-Timber forest produce encroachment for human habitation, cultivation and human wild life conflicts. In addition poaching also threatens many mountain, ungulates inside protected areas at Ayubia National Park. The collection of fodder is seen by conservation agencies and the forest department as heaving a negative impact on biodiversity consequently there is a need for understanding the variety of modes of management of fodder with in agricultural and wasteland areas as well as in rangelands  in order to reduce the impact of fodder collection on biodiversity .
Women in Ayubia National Park are responsible for fodder collection and understanding in their knowledge and practice related to fodder or management is important for the development of sustainable management models. Leopards have been in the news recently, and it is time that the public is made aware of the importance of protecting one of the most beautiful animals of the world .Due to reckless hunting there are only a few leopards left in Ayubia National Park. Common leopards have survived in very small numbers in Ayubia National Park. Starving and hungry they strange into villages, and towns in search of food during winter month. The sight of leopards creates un explained terror.
Leopard is called lion in Ayubia National Park, because of the dread and the urge to kill, the common leopard has become a threatened species in Ayubia National Park. The leopard is a solitary animal of the bush and forest and is nocturnal in habit. It is an agile climber and frequently stores the remains of its kills in tree branches. Leopard spotting viewing by binocular photo graphing and feeding would be interesting and a good sport. Killing and gunning down this animal is criminal act. Leopard in Ayubia National Park deserve attraction, because their survival is threatened. The provincial government is requested to enact legislation to save the leopard. The black bear and the Monkey’s, fines and Jail terms are suggested for trappers and killers.
A civilized country guarantees security of life and honor of its citizen, preserve its flora, fauna and conserves its birds and animals by proper lows, education and public awareness. In our criminalized society no one is safe anymore. Human beings are routinely gunned down without remorse. Birds especially partridges, bustards and quails and shoot and netted indiscriminately out of reasons. And forest mafias have destroyed forest so recklessly that thick Jungles have been turned into deserts. When the Law and the Order degrades both humans and animals suffer. While thousands of  men, women and children have been gunned down by terrorists and sectarian killers who have yet to be dealt with properly country’s world life i.e both birds and wild animals has been  destroyed with a vengeance. VIP,S hunt and kill precious and endangered leopards, black bears, monkeys , markhors , foxes , Jackals, Chakors , Ramchakors and Partridges with bloody relish. The colorful boards warning peoples not to kill leopards, monkeys, pheasants, chakors and partridges at Ayubia National Park.
No One cares that the endangered leopard, black bears and monkeys are being killed.
The Pakistan society and culture is to be blamed for the contempt in which animals are held. Educating the public to love animals and birds and protect the threatened and near extinct wild life should be the priority of every citizen of Pakistan.Staff of K.P.K forest department entered Ayubia National Park on 20^th Sep, 2012 on the directions of the secretary environment Govt of K.P.K and illegally chopped of trees over arching the famous pipe line trail between donga gali and ayubia. These trees had fallen down under heavy snow several years back a made over head bridges on the trail. The trees were not removed by the wild life department because they did not pose any threat to visitors and did not hamper their movement. It was exactly in accordance with the provisions of the K.P.K wild life low which says that no plants whether dead or alive should be removed from a National Park. The fallen trees are a component of park ecology as they provide food to the cavity nesting birds and also add to the soil organic matter as decomposition.
In addition termites and other insects which breed in these fallen trees become a feed for the birds and thus the cycle of biodiversity.
Removal of fallen trees is also a temptation for the timber hungry mafias to destroy the forest in the pretext of wind falls. Ayubia National Park is being managed by the wild life department since 1984 it has been saved for axe and saw of the timber mafia supported by the forest department from almost three decades and now gives a look of a green island surrounded by desolate rock mountain.
The wild life department resisted the order of the secretary environment to cut and remove the trees to the utmost with the consequence that the forest department was order to carry out its traditional and well known function of chopping and removal of wind falls.The trees in the national park are likely to fall in winds and snow in future too. And if the policy of their removal by the forest department continues, the national park will meet the same fate as many other forests have met in the guise of wind falls.
Ayubia National Park is internationally known for its naturalness and pristinely and is the most protected piece of moist temperate conifer forest.Declaration as National Park is the only legal tool to save our valuable forest.However today tyrannical and illegal move by the so called custodians is has rendered even this tool ineffective.The civil society and the comity of nature conservationist condemn this illegal action in the national park. And request the Chief Justice of Peshawar high court to take suo-moto notice of this illegal action and save the Ayubia National Park

QURAN PAK The Book of Scientific Riddles

 
Whenever we buy an appliance or a product, the manufacturer hands us manual carrying essential instructions about ‘how to handle it & operate it?”. If we do not follow instructions given, we’d never succeed in operating the gadget. God is the creator, Quran is the scripture and we are the users. If we wish to unveil the hidden mysteries of Universe we must have to follow the manual “Quran”.

UNIVERSE CAME INTO EXISTENCE
The origin of universe is explained in theQur’an as follows: “He is the Originator of the heavens and the earth.”(TheQur’an, 6:101)
Astrophysics today says that the entire universe came into existence as a result of a great explosion of a single point “The Big Bang” that occurred in no time proved that the universe was created from nothingness.   This discovery served as evidence for the Big Bang, which is the scientific explanation of the fact that the universe was created from nothingness. Thus proves the Creation of universe by Qur’an 1,400 years ago.

The Expanding Universe:
 Qur’an revealed the expansion of the universe & wasdescribed like this: “And it is We who have constructed the heaven withmight, and verily, it is We who are steadily expanding it.”(Al Qur’an, 51:47)
The word “Heaven “refers to space & universe, in the Qur’an it is revealed that the universe “Expands”. Till 19th century it was believed that universe has a constant nature and it has existed since infinite time. In the beginning of 20th century researchers Alexander Friedmann & Georges Lemaitre theoretically calculated that the universe is in constant motion and that it is expanding.
Orbits:
Quran emphasizes that sun & moon move in a definite orbit:
 ”It is He Who created the night and the day, and the sun and the moon. They swim along, each in an orbit.”(Al Quran- 21:33)
Another verse proves its motion:
 ”And the sun runs to its resting place. That is the decree of the Almighty, the All-Knowing.”(Al Quran- 37:38)
These facts have been proven by astronomical studies today telling us that Sun is traveling at Speed of 720,000 km/h in the direction of star Vega in a specific orbit called the Solar Apex. It means that sun travels roughly 17,280,000 km/day.Along with the Sun & all planets & satellites within its gravitational system also travel the fixed paths % orbits as Quran says: “By the sky full of paths and orbits”. There are about 200 billion galaxies in the universe, having nearly 200 billion stars each. These entire heavenly bodies move in précised orbits, each moving in its own orbit in perfect harmony & order with all the other orbits.
Night & Day:
 ”He has created the Heavens and the Earth for Truth. He wraps the night up in the day, and wraps the day up in the night.”(Al Quran-39:5) .Arabic word “Takwir” is translated as “To wrap” .This verse gives information about the day & the night wrapping each other up, including accurate information about the shape of the earth is round. Before it was thought that the world was a flat plane.
Atmospheric Layers:
 ”Then He turned to heaven when it was smoke. In two days He determined them as seven heavens and revealed, in every heaven, its own mandate.”(Al Quran- 41:12)
The word “Heavens”, appearing in many verses refer to sky, as well as the entire universe. Given this meaning, it is seen that Earth’s sky, or atmosphere, is made up of 7 layers;

1. Troposphere
2.  Stratosphere
3.  Ozonosphere
4.  Mesosphere
5. Thermosphere
6. Ionosphere
7.  Exosphere

Protecting Roof:
“We made the sky a preserved and protected roof yet still they turn away from Our Signs.”(Al Quran- 21:32)
Earth’s atmosphere only lets rays required for life reach the Earth. It destroys meteors reaching Earth, prevents them from falling to earth.This shield not only protects the earth from the freezing cold of the space,which is about minus 270° C, but also from very harsh sun energy bursts,keeping Earth an perfect intermediate.
The Returning Sky
“By Heaven with its cyclical systems”.(Al  Quran- 86:11)
This word “Cyclical” here means “Sending back” or “Returning”.As Earth’s atmosphere consists oflayers .i.e. The troposphere condenses the water vapors and turns them back as rain, Ozone layer, reflects UV radiation back to space.Ionosphere, reflects radio waves broadcast from the Earth back down todifferent parts of the world, thus makes wireless communication, radio, andtelevision broadcasting possible over long distances.The magnetosphere layer turns the harmful radioactive particles emitted bythe Sun and other stars back into space before they reach the Earth.
The Iron Miracle:
In Surah Hadid, meaning Iron, we are informed:
“…And We sent down iron in which there lies great force and which has many uses for mankind….”(AL Quran- 57:25)
The word “Sent down,” is proved by modern astronomical findings that the iron found in our world has come from outer space.When bigger stars than the Sun having hundred million degrees oftemperatureexceeds the amounts of iron in it, it explodes in form of “Nova” or “Supernova”,resulting in scattering of iron containing meteorsaroundthe universe & they move until are attracted by the gravitational force of a heavenly body.
Creation in the pairs:
“Glory be to Him Who created all the pairs: from what the earth produces and from themselves and from things unknown to them.”(AL Quran- 37:36)
A British scientist Paul Dirac, proposed that matter is paired with its opposite (anti-matter).It carries the opposite properties to the matter.i.e. the electron of anti-matter is +ly charged &its protons are -ly charged.
Relativity of the Time:
Albert Einstein, showed that time is dependent on mass and velocity. Quran told us about time’s being relativein 610.i.e.
“He directs the whole affair from heaven to earth. Then it will again ascend to Him on a Day whose length is a thousand years by the way you measure.”(AL Quran- 32:5)
“He will say, ‘How many years did you tarry on the earth?’ They will say, ‘We tarried there for a day or part of a day. Ask those able to count!’ He will say, ‘You only tarried there for a little while if you did but know!”(AL Quran- 23:12)
Amount of Rain:
“It is He who sends down water in due measure from the sky by which We bring a dead land back to life. That is how you too will be raised (from the dead).”(AL Quran- 43:11)
Modern research has recently discovered measured quantity. It is estimated that 16 million tons Water/second evaporates from the Earth; it means 513 trillion tons of water/year. Hence it’s exactly the same quantity just as told in the Qur’an.
Rain Formation:
After the invention of weather radar it possible to discover the stages of rain formation that takes place in 3 stages.1^st vapors rise up into the air with the wind. Later, clouds are formed & finally raindrops fall.
“It is God Who sends the winds which stir up clouds which He spreads about the sky however He wills. He forms them into dark clumps and you see the rain come pouring out from the middle of them. When He makes it fall on those of His slaves He wills, they rejoice”(AL Quran- 30:48)
Seas not mixing with one Another:
“He has let loose the two seas, converging together, with a barrier between them they do not break through.”(Qur’an, 55:19-20)
Oceanographers recently discovered that, because of the “surface tension” caused by the difference in the density, the waters of neighboring seas do not mix, just as if a thin wall were between them.
Area controlling our Movements:
“No indeed! If he does not stop, We will grab him by the forelock, a lying, sinful forelock.”(AL Quran- 96:15-16)
“the lying, sinful forelock” in the above verse the “cerebrum” that’s responsible for the management of particular functions of the brain, lies in the frontal part of the skull. While Qur’an pointed it out 1,400 years ago.
Three Stages of the Baby in the Womb:
“… He creates you stage by stage in your mothers’ wombs in 3 fold darkness. That is God, your Lord. Sovereignty is His. There is no god but Him. So what has made you deviate?”(Qur’an, 39:6)
Indeed, modern biology has revealed that the baby’s embryological development takes place in three distinct regions in the mother’s womb.(1)Pre zygotic stage(2)Embryonic stage(3)Foetal stage
The Fingerprint:
“Yes, We are able to put together in perfect order the very tips of his fingers.”(AL Quran- 75:3-4)
Emphasis on fingerprints has very special meaning, because everyone’s fingerprint is unique to him/herself. Anyone who is alive or who has ever lived has his own unique fingerprints. Allah points to fingertips 1400 years ago.

POPULATION GROWTH

The idea of Earth’s carrying capacity goes something like this Humans need certain resources to survive at subsistence level most commonly air, food, water and usually some kind of shelter. A sustainable habitat is one in which supply of and demand for these resources are balanced.
Different peoples are using different resources on this planet earth scientists believed that human poputaion is increasing in higher amount while the resources on this planets are going to be limited in a certain period of time.
While the envirocivil team was taking an interview of the pakistani young boy and a student of environmental sciences “IKRAM UL HAQ” about the population expansions he added that ” Earth’s population has become 7 Billion and if earth is continuously stricken with upsurge of population it will be hard to sustain the food for human beings. Virtually human population growth rate is at root becoming the world’s biggest environmental problem. Although the growth rate of world’s population has slowed slightly since the 1999.
The world’s population is increasing about 77 million human beings per year. The Population Division of the United Nations (UN) predicts that the world’s population will increase from 6.23 billion people in 2000 to 9.3 billion people in 2050. The UN estimates that the population
will increase more than 11 billion in 2200. Other experts foresee that population will continue to rise into the foreseeable future, to as many as 19 billion people by the year 2200. Dreadful situation it will be.
Although the growth rate of population is now much slower in the developed countries than in the developing countries. In developing countries the most important factors necessary to decrease the population are democracy and social justice. And these factors are lacking other than that we need to aware the people from this foresee dreadful situation and the educated persons can play vital role in this for that we need to create a colony of environmentalist in every country for awareness about environment and That can be possible if every government set a modern environmental movement in their country like US rooted New England Philosophical movement called as transcendentalism in 19th century.

ENVIRONMENT ISSUES IN PAKISTAN

We should definitely like to see Pakistan without any environmental issue but currently there are lots of challenges. As in fact we are growing at the rate of more than 8 percent in GDP and creating lots of economic opportunities, this is also growing stress and implications on environment. The constant growth in population is another massive challenge. As we grow economically, we have to decide at this point in time that we ensure better quality of life. At the end of the day, when we have more money but our quality of life suffers and we can’t breathe and drink pure water; then it is not worth it.

Now the Government must show scores of commitment to guarantee that as we grow, we also ensure that the quality of life of our citizens is made better and we, as a country, might be called an environment friendly country. The government should announce the ‘National Environment Policy’ with considerably increase in the budget for environment.

Let us have a look at some of our burning environmental issues.

1. Need for tree plantations in urban centres – There is no doubt that planting trees help in maintaining good environment. Trees in urban centres help clean environment and reduce pollution. Islamabad, for instance, is one of most protected cities of the world with lot of vegetation and clean healthy environment. So there is need to plant trees in other cities like Islamabad.

We do plant lots of trees every year but the problem is the nurturing of the plants. Trees must be considered as an essential item of environmental service. Even in our religion, trees have been given enormous importance.

2. Cutting of forests – A lot number of forest trees are being cut in northern areas for timber as well as fuel wood. People must not cut trees and use wood as fuel. There are various biodiversities, climate change and other environmental issues which are linked with forestry.

In 1992 Government announced a policy against forest cutting and the cutting of forest was banned but that policy doesn’t seem to have been successful. It is suggested that the government should pass legislation for a sustainable harvesting of forest so that there’s a controlled management plan through which forestry can be saved. Local community also has to understand the value of forests.

We must also develop the strategy for carbon financing at policy level. It is a very innovative instrument across the world where you can do is that we provide value to the trees because trees absorb carbon dioxide from the air. Through this mechanism the developed countries of the world are going to provide financial aid in this regard. The government should announce the strategy to make sure that investment comes in and trees are treated as the environmental commodity not just as the item of fuel.

3. Pollution from factories – We need a cooperative compliance from the factories. The Federation of Pakistan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) should take a lead in this regard. It is the time to be strict with the industries that are not compliant. Now there’s a lot of pressure on factories from law of the land and from buyer because buyers are not buying from the parties who are not meeting environmental criteria. After the implementation of WTO, we have to meet the environmental standards and unless we do that we cannot export our goods abroad.

Environment is going to be a non-tariff barrier for all our exports and sooner the industries realize this the better it would be for them. There is also pressure from the lenders; almost all the banks of the world say that the industries that don’t meet the environmental criteria will not be given money. We must try to enforce the law of land and for that we have to start a voluntary self-monitoring program because it is not possible to send inspectors to every industry in the country. The industry owners should take the responsibility and provide data in this regard to relevant government agencies.

4. Greenhouse effect & Pakistan – The planet has been affected in current times with the greenhouse gasses which is detrimental to maintaining life and sustainable environment on earth. Pakistan is a very small contributor in greenhouse effect; Pakistan contributes only 0.2 % greenhouse gases of the whole world.

Pakistan is very much aware about it and has taken lead on this issue at the international level. Pakistan is party to the “Kyoto Protocol”, The Kyoto Protocol is a document signed by about 180 countries at Kyoto, Japan, in December 1997. The protocol commits 38 industrialized countries to cut their emissions of greenhouse gases between 2008 to 2012 to levels that are 5.2 per cent below 1990 levels. Pakistan needs to develop a strategy and attract investment to come to Pakistan on this issue. The industries in Pakistan should also be involved; if one actually invests in projects and get carbon credit that is going to be credited on commodity exchange. It is the first environmental commodity of the world and the predictions of the World Bank are that this market is going to be somewhere in the range of 5 to 10 billion dollars a year on exchange on this carbon emission.

5. Carbon monoxide emissions in Megacities – Carbon monoxide emission levels in Karachi and Lahore have considerably exceeded WHO’s recommended levels. It however happens only during crowded hours not 24 hours a day. We should be concerned about it and a Clean Air Program must be initiated to ensure safe level carbon monoxide emissions especially in megacities.

6. High Pollution in Karachi – One can see so much pollution (noise pollution – air pollution) in the city. The main difference is of population; Karachi is a very crowded city housing people from all parts of the country. Besides other dilemmas, we have the problems of transport and industrial pollution because we are economically growing very fast and all these issues arise from that. Karachi’s main issue is air and noise pollution which again is linked with the increase in transport on the roads. Getting a car has become so easy with the emergence of bank-leasing options. It is though a good sign as far as growing economy is concerned but on the other side, due to lack of infrastructure, pollution issue has increased which is quite alarming. To tackle the situation we need to develop a ‘Clean Air Program’. Major part of this program should include converting public transport on to CNG and removing 2 strokes engines like rickshaws & converting them to 4 strokes engines etc.

7. Running of old vehicles on road – It is also one of the causes of air pollution as these cars are not discarded and thus add their share in increasing the pollution. The “Clean Air Program” should also include old vehicle retiring program. In developed countries the older the car gets the more tax they have to pay. This incentive urges them not to keep old vehicles on road. In Pakistan, low income groups keep old vehicles that have no accurate standard of pollution controlling. We also need to strengthen the motor vehicle testing program in which private sector should be invited to setup testing stations and it should be made mandatory for cars to get fitness certificate every year without which they should not be allowed to come on roads.

8. Exploiting IT technology for Environment Protection – Government is hardly using IT technology in this regard. There must be software programs developed for registering industrial data on environment. This program should be linked to every industry with the Internet and it may be given access to a centralized database in Islamabad. Other than that, the government can also be advised that all the ministries should start adopting similar IT programs and train their staff for e-governance. In this way, the IT technology can be exploited productively.

9. Demand for Environmental Managers – There is a lot of demand for environmental managers especially from the lenders i.e. World Bank and ADB. All these multilateral banks want to lend to Pakistan as well as want to ensure that the projects are also environmentally capable but we have very little proper professional capacity. NGOs have very good work and capacity with regards to advocacy and raising awareness but they are not qualified researchers as such. We need to opt for environmental studies in our universities.

Youngsters, both male/female, should do Masters in environmental studies as this field has a great future in Pakistan. The government is increasing environment budget and they would need lots of people who are qualified in environmental studies. It is a new field and is going to grow without any doubt. As the world is also growing, it will create so many environmental challenges and lots of environmental managers would be in great demand in coming years. Universities in Pakistan, i.e. Karachi University, Punjab University, Quaid-e-Azam University and few other private sector universities are offering programs in environmental studies. So it is highly recommended that youngsters, both male/female, should go for environmental studies.

10. Message for the youth – This environmental movement is your movement and we can fight environment degradation through a movement because of the young people of Pakistan. If we want to make a better Pakistan for upcoming generation, youngsters, both male/female, should take part actively and learn about the environmental issues and try to tackle the problems. One of the best solutions to the environment is to change our bad habits of wastage of water, electricity and dispersal of garbage etc.

Let’s think global but act local.
Author: Tahir Hasnain is a veteran researcher, writer and development practitioner serving the non-government development sector since two decades. Currently he works for Shirkat Gah as Programme Manager, Environment & Livelihood. He can be contacted at – tahir@khi.sgah.org.pk