International Journal of Environment and Geoinformatics

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DOI :10.30897/ijegeo.1487205   IUP :10.30897/ijegeo.1487205    Full Text (PDF)

Evaluation of Water Quality and Scarcity Issues for Sustainable Water Management Strategy in Twin Cities of Rawalpindi/ Islamabad, Pakistan

Hafiz Muhammad Nadir

Today's water world is pebbledashed with two main trepidations of water security/ scarcity, which need in-depth elaboration. Developing countries are particularly facing the impacts of water contamination and scarcity but lack the required impetus and technical infrastructure, thus necessitating swift actions to evaluate the effects of water security/ scarcity on the environment and water resources. In this study, an effort has been made to assess the water security/ scarcity situation in the twin cities of Rawalpindi/ Islamabad, elucidating the water quality/ quantity parameters in the Rawal Lake reservoir in Pakistan by analysing the contamination. The samples were collected/ tested during spring/ monsoon seasons to analyse temporal/fluvial impacts on water discharge. The results were compared with Pakistan's and WHO's drinking water standards before and after the water treatment. Almost all the testing parameters of the raw water samples from the Rawal Lake reservoir feeding streams exceeded the standard limits or fell close to the upper threshold limits, suggesting that this water was unsuitable for drinking without extensive treatment and an efficient distribution system. The contamination, untreated sewage disposal, non-regulated water utilisation, drawdown and supply/ demand gaps are the grave factors causing the water security/ scarcity in the capital/ twin cities of Islamabad/ Rawalpindi. Pakistan has already entered the water scarcity threshold of 1014 m3 / person/ annum in 2018, reduced from water availability of 5260 m3/ person/ annum in 1950 and will likely reach a drought level by 2050 due to increased population and reduced water resources. The study proposes an organisational implementation model for catchment-level river management to ensure good quality of water, construction of 5-10 small dams, and the provision of water from Terbella Dam suggested as the long-term strategy to prevent water scarcity. 

Keywords: Water quality, water scarcity, Rawal Lake, water testing contamination, supply/ demand gap, sustainable Water Management

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APA

Nadir, H. (2024). Evaluation of Water Quality and Scarcity Issues for Sustainable Water Management Strategy in Twin Cities of Rawalpindi/ Islamabad, Pakistan. International Journal of Environment and Geoinformatics, 11(3), 76-89. https://doi.org/10.30897/ijegeo.1487205


AMA

Nadir H. Evaluation of Water Quality and Scarcity Issues for Sustainable Water Management Strategy in Twin Cities of Rawalpindi/ Islamabad, Pakistan. International Journal of Environment and Geoinformatics. 2024;11(3):76-89. https://doi.org/10.30897/ijegeo.1487205


ABNT

Nadir, H. Evaluation of Water Quality and Scarcity Issues for Sustainable Water Management Strategy in Twin Cities of Rawalpindi/ Islamabad, Pakistan. International Journal of Environment and Geoinformatics, [Publisher Location], v. 11, n. 3, p. 76-89, 2024.


Chicago: Author-Date Style

Nadir, Hafiz Muhammad,. 2024. “Evaluation of Water Quality and Scarcity Issues for Sustainable Water Management Strategy in Twin Cities of Rawalpindi/ Islamabad, Pakistan.” International Journal of Environment and Geoinformatics 11, no. 3: 76-89. https://doi.org/10.30897/ijegeo.1487205


Chicago: Humanities Style

Nadir, Hafiz Muhammad,. “Evaluation of Water Quality and Scarcity Issues for Sustainable Water Management Strategy in Twin Cities of Rawalpindi/ Islamabad, Pakistan.” International Journal of Environment and Geoinformatics 11, no. 3 (Dec. 2024): 76-89. https://doi.org/10.30897/ijegeo.1487205


Harvard: Australian Style

Nadir, H 2024, 'Evaluation of Water Quality and Scarcity Issues for Sustainable Water Management Strategy in Twin Cities of Rawalpindi/ Islamabad, Pakistan', International Journal of Environment and Geoinformatics, vol. 11, no. 3, pp. 76-89, viewed 23 Dec. 2024, https://doi.org/10.30897/ijegeo.1487205


Harvard: Author-Date Style

Nadir, H. (2024) ‘Evaluation of Water Quality and Scarcity Issues for Sustainable Water Management Strategy in Twin Cities of Rawalpindi/ Islamabad, Pakistan’, International Journal of Environment and Geoinformatics, 11(3), pp. 76-89. https://doi.org/10.30897/ijegeo.1487205 (23 Dec. 2024).


MLA

Nadir, Hafiz Muhammad,. “Evaluation of Water Quality and Scarcity Issues for Sustainable Water Management Strategy in Twin Cities of Rawalpindi/ Islamabad, Pakistan.” International Journal of Environment and Geoinformatics, vol. 11, no. 3, 2024, pp. 76-89. [Database Container], https://doi.org/10.30897/ijegeo.1487205


Vancouver

Nadir H. Evaluation of Water Quality and Scarcity Issues for Sustainable Water Management Strategy in Twin Cities of Rawalpindi/ Islamabad, Pakistan. International Journal of Environment and Geoinformatics [Internet]. 23 Dec. 2024 [cited 23 Dec. 2024];11(3):76-89. Available from: https://doi.org/10.30897/ijegeo.1487205 doi: 10.30897/ijegeo.1487205


ISNAD

Nadir, Hafiz Muhammad. “Evaluation of Water Quality and Scarcity Issues for Sustainable Water Management Strategy in Twin Cities of Rawalpindi/ Islamabad, Pakistan”. International Journal of Environment and Geoinformatics 11/3 (Dec. 2024): 76-89. https://doi.org/10.30897/ijegeo.1487205



TIMELINE


Submitted20.05.2024
Accepted07.09.2024
Published Online28.09.2024

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