Water wastage

KARACHI: With growing water shortages, the government has urged people to conserve water. But first, people need to recognise the reasons for water wastage in households. Many people use hose pipes to wash their cars, driveways, or water plants. Instead, they should use watering cans or buckets or a pressure washer to reduce wastage. Also, people should be more mindful of their water usage in daily chores. They must avoid leaving the taps running when washing clothes or kitchen utensils and cutlery, etc.

Much of Pakistan’s water wastage stems from poor agricultural and irrigation practices. 60% of irrigation water is lost during the conveyance and application in the field. Due to the absence of knowledge on irrigation scheduling, farmers either under or over-irrigate their fields. This results in a loss of yield and inefficient use of water and fertilisers.

Farmers should be encouraged to adopt drip or sprinkler irrigation systems as they are relatively more efficient. Also, the agricultural department must research and choose an irrigation system, which prevents water evaporation and does not leach nutrients from the soil. Besides initiating a widespread campaign to encourage people to conserve water, the government should inform people of water-friendly items to use such as pressure washers. Pressure washers can be provided to customers on fixed monthly instalments.