Islamabad: The Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) is expected to increase the country’s water storage capacity to 24 million acre-feet (MAF) after the development of ten projects currently under progress, according to news sources. The country’s current gross water storage capacity is 13 MAF.
According to a WAPDA spokesperson, the authority is working on ten major water storage projects the include five dams, three hydropower projects, one canal and one water supply scheme. The said projects include Diamer Bhasha Dam, Mohmand Dam, Dasu Hydropower Project, Nai Gaj Dam, the Kachhi Canal Extension, Sindh Barrage, and the K-IV Project. These initiatives will help strengthen the irrigation system by supplying water to an additional 1.6 million acres of cultivated land. According to the official, this would increase the yearly river water conservation capacity and help alleviate the problem of water shortage. The report also mentioned the country’s diminishing water supply problem since 1951, when it had 5,650 cubic meters/per capita water supply instead of today’s 908 cubic meters/per capita.
The official also stated that the present dam development project would boost the country’s energy security by adding 9,000 megawatts of clean hydroelectric electricity to the grid. This will bring the total hydroelectric power capacity to 18,000 megawatts. These megaprojects not only generate electricity and store water, but they also provide 35,000 employment.
Pakistan is one of the world’s most water-stressed countries, with the situation set to worsen as the population grows and water-management programmes deteriorate. As a result, the government has initiated public awareness campaigns to increase water conservation for future generations.
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