(MENAFN- Pajhwok Afghan News)
KABUL (Pajhwok): Following a surge in the drilling of deep wells that extract underground water on solar panels, expert have warned against the negative consequences of the practice and urged government to introduce a strategy to protect underground water.
The Ministry of Energy and Water (MoEW) said that a strategy had been formed on the bases of which nobody is allowed to dig wells on its own and use the underground water for the industrial purpose and its use for agriculture and industrial purpose was linked with permission from the ministry.
As a result of drought in recent years, farmers and orchard owners started digging deep wells and irrigated their lands through this way.
Syed Naqibullah, a farmer from the Guldara district of Kabul, said with the help of solar energy from dawn to dust 3 inches cubic metre water was supplied to his land.
Jummah Khan, another farmer, while referring to use of solar energy and surge in the agriculture products, said their lands turned green and produced harvest.
This comes that environmental experts have expressed concern over surge in the drilling of deep wells and use of solar energy to irrigate lands.
Environmental and Political Affairs Expert Omaid Afzali said the drilling of deep wells and the unlimited use of underground water could have consequences for the future.
He said the water excavated from the land never go back to the earth, adding if this process continued in the near future all the underground water would disappear and Afghanistan would be faced with a catastrophe.
Afzali asked the government to form a strategy for the use of underground water and solar energy.
Another Expert Abdul Rahman Latif warned if fundamental strategy and work is not done in this regard it is possible that in the future the country would face water shortage.
He expressed his worry about the unlimited use of underground water and asked the government to take immediate action against the drilling of deep wells.
Eng. Azizurrahman Aziz, head of the Water Sources Department, said areas with limited water sources had further deteriorated situation in these areas.
He said a strategy had been formed by the ministry according to which limited use of underground water is allowed in the areas where water sources for agriculture purpose is not threatened.
He said areas where the water sources are already limited should build small dams, collect rain water and use other means to address their water demand.
According to the ministry officials climate change, lack of rainfall, drought, surge in the population, unfair and unlimited use of water led to the decline of underground water resources.
They said on the bases of analysis the underground water level in Kabul declined by an average three metres.
A research showed that 71 percent area of the whole earth is comprised of water in which one percent which underground are for drinking.
Most of the people of Afghanistan, however, use fresh water to irrigate their fields and use this water to wash clothes, cars, household items While environmental experts believe that fresh underground water should be used only for drinking and other demands should be met from stored waters.
Different countries of the world have started to deal with the effects of climate change and have tried to control their water by controlling surface and underground water, publishing messages for public awareness and preparing short-term and long-term policies; Afghanistan, however, has not yet taken effective and practical measures to combat the negative effects of climate change.
Experts have ringed alarm regarding future water crisis at a time when UNOCHA in its report had said that Afghanistan was the 6th country affected by climate change.
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