[Subject: Geography} Topic: UNIT 3: Water Resources

Renewable resources: [Such as water, air, sunlight]

 Unlimited

 Can never finish

 Rechargeable

Non-Renewable resources:[such as fossil fuels(coal,oil,gas) and minerals(metallic and non-metallic)

 limited

 Will be finished

 Run short

Sources of Water (fresh water)

 Rainfall, Rivers, Lakes, Streams, Ground water

 3% fresh water (irrigation) , 97% salty water

Main sources of water supply in Pakistan:

1. Rivers: Indus water system. And Rivers of Baluchistan.

2. Ground water: wells, tube wells, shaduf, charsa, karez.

Rivers:

1-Providing water for drinking, cleaning, domestic use, etc.

2-Providing water for agriculture: to grow crops and to provide water to livestock, irrigation: (canals, dams,
barrages)

3-Providing water to industries: textile industry (washing, bleaching) , food industry(drinks, jam, juices, mineral
water), steel mill industry.

4-Increase scenic beauty 5-Promote tourism 6-Provide inland fishing

Indus River System:

Eastern tributaries: (Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Sutlej)

1-Fast flowing rivers 2-High average monthly discharge 3-Recieve water from glaciers when snow melts in
summer and monsoon rainfall. 4-Flow throughout the year

Rising in the Himalayas and passing through Kashmir, the rivers enter the plain.
 The river Bias joins the river Sutlej before entering into Pakistan.

All the Eastern Tributaries have join together by the time: Sutlej join the Chenab at Panjnad to become the
River Panjnad which then join the Indus at Mithonkot

Western tributaries: {River Kabul-(Afghanistan),River Swat-(KPK), River Kurram- Tochi- Gomal (FATA) }

1-Not fast flowing except River Swat and Kabul. 2-Less average monthly discharge. 3-Recharged by water
in glaciers when they melt in summer with rain. 4-Fast flow in summer but not in winter.

Average Monthly Discharge: This is the average amount of water discharged by river at a certain point. This
actually tells the volume of water present in rivers. Start rising in March and drops in August so it is at its peak
in July. So A.M.D is high in the summer season.

Classification of rivers according to discharge:

1.River Indus 2.River Jhelum 3.River Chenab 4.River Ravi

A) The river Indus at ATTOCK: 92 Million Acre Feet

B) Jehlum at Mangla: 22 Million Acre Feet
C) Chenab at Marala: 26.7 Million Acre Feet
D) Ravi at Balloki: 6.4 Million Acre Feet
E) Sutlej at Sulaimanke: 16.6 Million Acre Feet

Rivers of Baluchistan:

1-River Zhob: Connected with River Gomal which is connected to river Indus. 2-River Khandar

3-River Kalachi: Present on the north side. 4-River Loralai 5-River Chakar: absorbs in Sibi plain

6- River Bolan: driest river as present in the center. 7-River Mula: no source(e.g: glaciers, snow, etc)(only in
summer) 8-River Hub: found at Makran coast. 9-River Hungol: drain into Arabian sea. 10-River
Porali, Mashkel, Dasht, Neihing etc

Ground Water:

Well, Tube wells, Persian Wheel, Charsa, Karez, Shaduf etc

 Water table shows the level of water present under the ground.

 Ground water is recharged by rainfall

 High water table in areas of Punjab

 Useful in areas where canal water and rivers are not present

 Low water table is found in areas of low rainfall

 Water can be saline if it is not near the rivers.

 Ground water can be harmful if not utilized properly: Water logging and Salinity.
Agricultural Uses of Water:

 Irrigation is the artificial provision of water without rain.

Why do we need irrigation?

 Rainfall is scanty

 Pakistan is Agro-based country so more demand of growing crops

 Supply of water is needed throughout the year

 Rainfall is unreliable :sometimes high and sometimes low

 High evaporation

 More arid and semi-arid areas

Methods of Irrigation
Traditional/Old/Conventional Method:

1: Shaduf: Punjab 2: Charsa: Punjab 3:Karez: Baluchistan 4: Persian Wheel: Punjab 5: Tank
irrigation: Baluchistan 6: Inundation Canals: Punjab, KPK, Sindh

New Method:

1: Dams: Highland areas 2: Barrages 3: Perennial Canals: Linked with barrages and dams 4: Tube
wells: uses ground water and mostly found in Punjab 5: Sprinklers: Used in small fruit farms

Lift Irrigation:
 Using ground water for irrigation, Fruit farms, vegetables, and crops are grown.

 Old Method: Shaduf, Charsa, Karez, Persian wheel.

 New Method: tube wells,

KAREZ:

Underground tunnel canal. Old traditional method Used only in Baluchistan, Work on community basis

 How it works?

 Starts from the base of a hill/mountain.

  Horizontal tunnels and vertical shafts are dug.

 Tunnels run to 1 to 2km underground.

 Water is brought out to the surface (command area) by tunnel.

 Vertical shafts are used to clean and repair the tunnel.

 Irrigates the orchards and fields.

 Owned by a group of people.

Areas: Zhob, Loralai, Quetta, Pasni, Makran, Mastung

Main Crops: Dates, Apples, Apricots, Melons, Grapes

Why Karez is only practised in Balochistan?

Traditional method of Baluchistan. To conserve the limited amount of water. Rainfall is less.
To save water from evaporation. To provide constant supply of water (for centuries even)

Advantages: Continuous supply of water. Low in cost. One time investment and long term benefits.
Ground water is saved.

Disadvantages: Beneficial only for a group of farmers. Dry out if underground water is exhausted.
Lack of water for cleanliness. No proper cleanliness. No government support.

Shaduf/Dhenkli:

 Used mostly in Punjab because water table is high and this is lift irrigation and requires more water.

 Consist a bucket, suspended by a rope from one end of a pole.

 A weight is placed on the other end. The pole is suspended on a 'Y' shaped post at a "well" or at a
"river bank".

 The bucket is dipped by the manual power.

 This is now outdated because a lot of man power is used and a small quantity of water is abstained.

 Only one-tenth of a hectare can be irrigated.

 it is used by "small subsistence farmers"

Charsa:

 Draft power is used.

 A bucket is suspended by a rope on a bull extracted near a well.

 It is not very common.

  It is replaced by Persian wheel in many areas.

Persian Wheel:

How it works?

 Many buckets are attached to the wheel that spins vertically, this wheel is half under the ground, to the
water level.

 The vertical wheel is attached through endless chains with a horizontal wheel.

 The water filled buckets are emptied into a trough.

 The water is supplied through the pipes or small channels.

Where is it used in Pakistan? Northern Punjab: Lahore, Sialkot, Rawalpindi etc.

 Why?: Because water table is high because of more rainfall and presence of rivers.

Advantages: Continuous water supply. Less manual power needed. Low in cost (cheap)
can be easily set up locally.

Disadvantages: Slow and time consuming. Limited amount of water is obtained because
animal moves very slow (use draft power). Can only be used by small scale subsistence farmers because of
limited water. Only small areas can be irrigated. Used only in those areas where water table is high such as
Punjab.

New Method

Tube Well
 A kind of electric well.

 Run through motor, by electricity.

 Very important for agriculture of Pakistan.

 Became famous after 1953.

How it works?

 Deep digging is done, then the water is lifted with the help of motor pumps.

 Pumps are operated by electric motors or diesel engines.

 Water is lifted from 300m or deep.

Advantages: Give a controlled flow of water with less wastage. One time investment and water is
obtained for a longer period of time. Control water logging and salinity.

Disadvantages: Heavy burden on electricity. Cost of production is very less. Poor small scale
subsistence farmers can’t afford. Require a lot of repair and maintenance.

 How do tube wells control water logging and salinity?

 Tube wells suck up water from the ground that makes water table go down and no excess of water
comes out on the surface to make it water logged.

 Why Punjab has many tube wells?

 Because Punjab receives more rainfall so that the underground water is frequently recharged.

 Because Punjab is the land of five rivers so the water seeps down under the ground throughout the
year.

 Punjab has agricultural fertile land so more demand of irrigation and tube wells are most suited.

 Punjab has soft landscape that is why digging for wells is easy.

Canal system of Pakistan:

Conventional method: Inundation canals, Diversion canals,

Modern method: Perennial canals, Link canals.

Conventional method:

1. Inundation Canals:
 5-10 meters long.

 Canals taken from rivers.

 Flow only when there is rainfall or flood and water level is high in rivers.

Advantages: Low in cost. Don’t cause water logging and salinity. Beneficial for small
scale farmers and large scale farmers too. Cultivate vast area.

Disadvantages: Cultivate only Kharif crops. Irrigate only flood plains (such as areas near panjnad)
Effective only in flood season.

Why don’t they cause water logging and salinity?

Because they only flow in flood season and that’s why the water does not seep down under the ground and
does not cause water logging or salinity.

2. Diversion Canals:
 Narrow sub-channel of inundation canal

 Provide water only when there is rainy season or flood.

  Also cultivate kharif crops.

 Found only in western highlands (such as Gomal flood plain)

Modern Method:

3.Perennial canals:
Canals taken from rivers and barrages.

Advantages:

 Provide water throughout the year.

 Cultivate both; Kharif and rabi crops.

 Beneficial for both; small and large-scale industries.

 Dug out by government.

Disadvantages:

 Causes water logging and salinity, if they are unlined.{because water flows the whole year so water
seeps down the ground and make the water table to be increased from its normal level and eventually
the land is covered by water causing water logging and salinity} {Once the land becomes saline so
there is o cure for salinity but if it is water logged then it can be cured by tube wells and
pipes}Expensive to build as capital is required to construct the canals from barrages.

Unlined Canals:

 Canals that are not paved by cement or bricks.

 They cause water logging and salinity.

Lined Canals:

Canals properly paved with cement and constructed with bricks.

4. Link Canals:
Canals that are taken from dams and barrages to link two rivers. To supply water from the fast flowing
rivers to the dry rivers like River Ravi.

Dams:
 A kind of wall to control floods.

Major dams of Pakistan:

 Tarbela dam: River Indus (construct after Indus water treaty)

  Mangla dam: River Jhelum (construct after Indus water treaty)

 Warsak dam: River Kabul

Where are dams found?

 Dams are found in north and north-western hilly regions.

 Few small dams are found at southern hilly regions e.g.: hub dam.

 Why are they found in hilly regions?

 Hilly regions are suitable site for dams construction because;

 Steep sided valley and deep slopes make the pressure of water high.

 Impervious hard rocks are essential to hold the strong walls of the dam.

 The cool climate avoids evaporation.

 More rainfall along with melted snow recharges the rivers.

Benefits of dams: Control floods. Store water for irrigation. Provide electricity for Hydel
electric plant (HEP) Provide water to crops throughout the year through perennial canals.
Promote tourism by enhancing scenic beauty. Promote inland fishing by reservoir.

Institutions to build dams: 1: Water and power development authority. 2: Small dam’s organization.

Major Dams:
Tarbela dam:
 Built after Indus water treaty.

 Located near Tarbela, on river Indus, when Indus enters into Potwar Plateau.

 Construction started: 1968, end: 1976.

 !48 meters high above the river bed.

 It has a huge gate; spill gates.

 It is an earth-filled multipurpose dam.

Mangla Dam:
  9th Largest dam of the world.

 Located on river Jehlum.

 Located at Mirpur district; Azad Kashmir.

 Construction started in 1961 and ended at 1967

 Concreted (rock-filled) multipurpose dam.

Single purpose dam: Only used for storage of water.

Multi-purpose dam: Store water, Control flood, Supply water to the reservoir.

Arch dams: Shaped like an arch.

Rock-filled dams: Rock boulders, Rock fragments, more strong by earth.

Types of dams: Small dams and large dams.

Small dams:

 Tanda : irrigates small area.

 Nari Bolan : irrigates small areas.

 Hub, Rawal, Khanpur: irrigates areas, provide water for industrial and domestic use, Provide electricity.

Problems caused by storage of water in a reservior:

 Silting: Deposition of silt, mud and sand on the bed of reservoir, It is carried by rivers from mountains.

 Causes: 1:Deforestation 2:Overgrazing 3:Construction on foot hills. 4: Landslides.

 How it occurs? In the hilly areas, steepness of slopes and landslides added to the eroded material
and thus deposited in the still water of reservoir.

 When there is rainfall in valleys sides, due to the absence of natural vegetation, soil is eroded and it will
be deposited in the reservoir.

Problems:

 Reservoir storage capacity will decrease.

 Water will become muddy.

 Silt water in the foundation of dams.

 HEP machinery gets damage, this results in frequent power break down that greatly affects agriculture
and industries.

 Canals are blocked by silt so less watr is supplied to the farms that affect output of crops.
 Risk of floods will increase.

How to solve silting?

 Through Afforestation.

 Linear plantation along the bank of rivers.

 Cement embankment of rivers.

 Silt traps before entering into the reservoir.

 Height of dam wall will be increased.

Barrages:
 A barrage is a diversion headwork.

 Its main aim is to divert the flow of water.

 It does not have storage reservoir.

 It has adjustable iron gates, installed over loop of it to allow different water surface height at different
times.

 Rising of water level for diversion into the canals is done by the gates.

 Cost for construction is lesser than the dams.

 Can be built in flat land areas.

 The size and capability of barrages depend upon the width of river.

 Small size barrages are called headwork.

Barrages of upper Indus plain:

 On river Indus: Jinnah, Chasma, Taunsa

 On river Jehlum: Rasul barrage, trimmu barrage

 On river chenab: Marala, Khanki

 On river Ravi: Balloki, Sidhnai

 On river Sutlej: Sulaimanki, Islam, Panjnad

Barrages of lower Indus plain:

 On river Indus: Guddu barrage, Sukker barrage, Kotri barrage.
  Benefits of barrages:
 Control floods.

 Acts as a bridge across the river.

 Connecting both river banks through the road.

 Feed link canals to divert water to the dry rivers.

 Provide water to the perennial canals.

Indus Water Treaty:

Reasons:
The headwork of canals of Ravi and Sutlej were in India.

 In 1948,India stopped the water of the canals which flowed in Pakistan {Madhpor of Ravi and Feroz pur
of Sutlej}

 India used so much water so these rivers nearly dried up.

 These canals irrigate the land of Bari Doab and southern Punjab in Pakistan.

How it solved?
 The dispute between India and Pakistan over distribution of water was solved by World Bank in
september-1960 through an agreement between these two countries. India was not allowed to stop
more water then.

Result: According to the treaty, three western rivers, Jehlum and Chenab, Indus were given to
India. Eastern rivers Ravi, Sutlej, Beas were given to India During 1960 -
1973,India agreed to supply the water and the following construction took place:

1: 2 dams-were built Mangla and Tarbela. 2:One gated siphon- Mailsi 3: 5 barrages 4: 8
link canals 5: 17 major canals, 300 minor canals6:14 railway stations. 7: 53 roads
8: bridges.

Conflict over water supply; 1:Conflict between Punjab and KPK over the construction. 2:
KPK complain that; through the link canals at Kalabagh ..Punjab will get more water. 3: Construction
of Kalabagh dam will create problems for Sindh. 4: Farmers of lower Indus plain will get less water.

Reasons; 1: More demand of water. 2: Farmers of upper Indus plain steal water, so that the farmers of
lower Indus plain will get less supply.

Solutions; International problem of water share between Pakistan and India was solved in 1960. Locally,
the problem was solved by signing an agreement by IRSA (Indus river system authority; responsible to look
after proper distribution of water)

Water logging:'
An irrigated area is usually water logged, when sub-soil water rises high and covers the root zone of the crops,
and thus effect its productivity due to the hindrance of the normal circulation of air required for plant growth.

Causes: 1: Perennial canals irrigation system, when canals are unlined. 2:Evaporation is less than
supply. 3: Water table rises to 5m from the surface.

Effects: 1: Supply of oxygen cut off to the crops. 2: Reduction in the fertility of the soil. 3: Land
becomes fallow (land is fertile but of no use) 4: Reclamation (recovery) is very expensive. 5: Agriculture
suffers due to low output and poor quality crops.

Solutions: 1) By installation of tube wells. 2) Unlined canals should be lined. 3) Extra water can be
drained through various pumps. 4) Trees can be replanted along the field. 5) Lower the water the water
level in canal.

Surface Water Pollution:

How underground water is polluted? 1: Leakage of underground sewage lines. 2:Dumping

of waste in industries and domestic waste over the land. 3: Fumes and chemicals in the air are also resolved
under the ground through rain water.

How the surface water is polluted?

 Agriculture: Dumping of remains pesticides and insecticides on the banks of rivers and canals.
Animals dung when washed away by the rain water. Use of chemical fertilizer.

 Industrial: Dumping of untreated water into the seas and rivers. Oil spills from the
ships {ship washing, breaking] Dumping of waste material into rivers and seas.

Effects:

 Human health: Diseases among the humans; e.g.; Cholera, typhoid, Diarrhea etc.

 Fishing: Fish die out, so less catch of fish, affect the fish industry.

 Contaminated water cannot be used for fish canning.

 Fish meat is unhealthy.

 Natural vegetation: Destruction of mangroves. More chances of floods and tsunamis.

{plastic bags choked the canals so over flow of water and more chances of floods}