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Email to ADB Management regarding Environmental and Social Problems in Badin District, Pakistan by Left Bank Outfall Drainage Project (National Drainage Program). 30January 2004.
 

Dear Mr. Roche,

I come to know from the following email of Mr. Mushtaq Gadi to you in respect of chashma environmental management plan that Asian Development Bank is also involved in financing the environmental management plan of LBOD. I would like to know the details and current status of ADB financed LBOD environmental Maagement Plan mentioned in NDP loan covenants (paragraph 22) foot note . Since Left Bank Outfall Drainage Project has caused serious environmental and social problems in Badin district of Pakistan since its operation.

Several structures constructed were washed away in 1999 cyclone including choleri weir and tidal link and 54 breahes were recorded in Spinal Drain and Kadhan Pateji Outfall Drain inundating several villages and thousand acres of crops. Government of Sindh appointed high level committee to determine the causes of failure of drainage system and concluded that entire fally system of LBOD drains is technical flawed. Several independent experts, local people, media and civil society organization also done separate studies and found serious technical mistakes committed by all the parties including financiers, consultants and implementing agencies. The world bank fact finding mission after 1999 cyclone concluded that tidal link and choleri weir are dead phonomenon.

Since no efforts were taken by responsible institutions to fix the problems of tidal link, choleri weir and fall of LBOD drains the entire freshwater lakes of coastal area of Badin become salty due to sea water intrusion and compelled thousands of local fisherman to migrate for livelihood. The entire business of the area ruined due to declined fish catch and damage to agriculture. The poor of the area has not yet recovered from this project induced shock, they were jolted with another shock of heavy rains of 2003 and devastaion caused by breaches and overflowing of Kadhan Pateji Outfall drain and other surface drains of kotri barrage system.

This shock of 2003 were so severe that 32 people in the area of were died due to direct flooding of Kadhan Pateji Outfall Drain (KPOD) in five village near to KPOD, thousands were stranded in relief camps for the month of August 2003. Hundreds of acres of crops destroyed and thousdands of houses damaged. We hired an indepent consultant to determine the causes of havoc. The study directly pointed out the faulty desing of LBOD. Now these drains are permanent threat ot the ecology, environment and livelihood of thousands of coastal people of Pakistan. The study report is available on website of actionaid pakistan, www.actionaidpakistan.org

In nutshell the environmental consequence of LBOD are so severe that people of the area have lost all of their livelihood sources and now their lives are at risk. Since the start of project local communities have been protesting against this ill-concieved project but thier voices have not been heard. Despite these facts, the financier including world bank and Asian development bank have not only failed to address these issues but are financing National Drainage program under which more saline effluent will be transported through these drains. I think bringing more effluent will be death warrant for ecology, environment and people of the coastal area. I am wondering to know whether the concerns of people have been incorporated in the environmental management plan of LBOD/NDP? What the experts are cooking and how they are planning to drain out extra effluent through existing system which no more works

I will appreciate if you can address my concerns and direct the local bank authorities to providing the environmental management plan of LBOD/NDP financed by ADB.

Mustafa Talpur
Senior Program Officer
Action Aid Pakistan

 
 
 
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