Karachi is the largest and most thickly populated city of Pakistan. It houses 60% of country’s Industry therefore known as major trade and commercial hub. The two ports of Karachi, Bin Qasim and Karachi port handle almost 99 percent of the country’s imports and exports. Apart from infrastructure of national and commercial importance related to maritime trade, economy, fishing and shipbuilding sectors, Karachi Harbour also houses high value coastal installations, operational and maintenance infrastructure of Pakistan Navy and Pakistan Maritime Security Agency (PMSA). This infrastructure is related to operational availability and readiness of PN and PMSA vessels/warships for undertaking various peace and wartime tasks. The importance of Karachi Harbour is bound to further increase due to number of ongoing and future projects worth billions of dollars. These include; Pakistan Deep Water Container Port (PDWCP), Harbour Crossing Bridge, Cargo Village and Industrial Park, and various energy related projects. However, this important infrastructure will be soon degraded, if Karachi coast continue to receive heavy load of pollution from various land & sea based sources.
Along the coast of 990km, Karachi Harbour is the only dangerously polluted coastal site of Pakistan. Commonly reported figure of around 472 million gallons per day of industrial and municipal waste discharge in to Karachi Harbour is based on 13 years old study of the WWF. One can imagine gravity of situation due to population growth and industrial development over the past 13 years. About 87 % of this sewage and waste water remains untreated. This effluent contains highly toxic chemicals, heavy metals, oil, grease etc. which alter sea water chemistry. Consequently, absorption of carbon dioxide in seawater increases which lowers its pH value, converting it into a weak acid. Due to improper collection and disposal system, a considerable portion of the solid waste mixes up with wastewater and also ends up in Karachi Harbour. The lumps of un-dissolve waste can be seen along the ships, jetties, inlets etc. In addition, port operations such as dredging, development and maintenance activities also contribute towards marine pollution.
The polluted seawater and solid waste causes erosion, degradation of coastal installation and depletion of marine ecosystem. The hull of Ships and Submarines deteriorate faster due to change in pH value of water. It is estimated that ships life span is reduced to about 33 % due to polluted seawater. A study conducted by PN Dockyard Laboratory on the rate of corrosion of mild steel used on most of PN Ships revealed that standard weight loss of steel in the open seawater is 5.48 gm/m2 per day as compared to 9.20 gm/m2 per day in the Karachi Harbour water. Although, corrosion can be reduced by using modern preservation techniques, but 100% preservation of mild steel is not possible. The coastal installations including sheet piles of jetties, berths, docks, port terminals, hydrographic equipment, beacons, anchors, floats and other harbour ancillaries are equally affected and need frequent maintenance. Marine pollution also reduces life of ship’s engines as seawater is circulated through these engines for cooling. It corrodes the water circulation channel and solid pollutants may cause choking of machinery that often results into failures/ defects in onboard equipment. As a matter of fact, the performance, efficiency and operational life of valuable assets of PN, PMSA, PNSC, KPT, PQA, fishing boats and other port users are adversely affected due to marine pollution and results in huge financial losses. While it is extremely difficult to quantify these losses, it is estimated that marine pollution causes damage to naval equipment including ships and submarines is about 1 billion US dollars over their life span.
In order to improve seaworthiness and operational availability of vessels, and prevent huge losses to national exchequer, Pakistan Navy has always kept marine pollution control very high on its agenda. In 1994 a Marine Pollution Control Board (MPCB) was established under the Chairmanship of Chief of Naval Staff. Although, it has undergone a number of transformational steps and therefore couldn’t perform exponentially. But Board took some important decisions to address the marine pollution. In 1996, the Directorate of Maritime Affairs and Environmental Control (DMA&EC) was established at Naval Headquarters to look after environmental management aspects mainly in the areas of naval installation and to enhance coordination with Government, semi- Government and non-governmental organisations.
Realizing the threat of oil spill incidents, Pakistan Navy formulated a National Marine Disaster Contingency Plan in 2007. To improve expertise and efficiency, PN regularly conducts oil spill response exercises ‘Barracuda’ and beach cleaning activities with all stakeholders. To supplement other pollution control measures, indigenous construction of mechanized debris collection boats and multipurpose Barge for collection of compensating water containing oily contents from Submarines, are some significant PN initiatives. PN particularly focuses on environmental protection and preservation by its ships, establishments and personnel. Apart from training sessions for personnel, regular monitoring of naval bases and berths is being done to ensure that no solid waste or oil / bilges are thrown into the sea by ships, boats or workshops.
Pakistan Navy, being member of National Coordinating Body (NCB) of Mangroves for the Future (MFF) is playing an active role in strengthening Integrated Coastal Management in Pakistan and provides active support and technical expertise to NCB. In this regard, regeneration of mangroves forest projects are currently proceeding in the district Thatta, Gwadar and Ormara. The installation of a UN recommended natural Reed Bed Sewage treatment plant at Manora Island is also in progress. Navy also provided valuable support to KPT for materializing the pilot project of installation of gratings on three drains falling at Harbour. PN and KPT are also pursuing City District Government Karachi (CDCK) to control solid waste from entering Karachi harbour through S-III project.
PN has been making strenuous efforts to persuade all stakeholders to initiate effective measures to control the marine pollution. The precedence set by the PN is a beacon for other organisations. They should play a pro active role, as exampled by PN, for the protection of marine environment. By adopting environment friendly habits and collaborative actions we can create a difference and ensure healthy oceans for future generations.
