Pakistan could significantly strengthen its water security by harnessing nearly 83 million acre feet (MAF) of monsoon rainfall through improved rainwater harvesting and expanded water storage infrastructure, experts told Wealth Pakistan.
Monsoon rain offers Pakistan an 83 MAF water storage opportunity
ISLAMABAD, Jul 21 (APP): Pakistan could significantly strengthen its water security by harnessing nearly 83 million acre feet (MAF) of monsoon rainfall through improved rainwater harvesting and expanded water storage infrastructure, experts told Wealth Pakistan.
They said the country’s vast untapped monsoon water potential could help replenish groundwater reserves, support agriculture and reduce flood risks.
Pakistan normally receives around 111 MAF of rainfall annually, of which nearly 83 MAF falls during the monsoon season. However, only about 14 MAF is currently stored in major reservoirs, including Tarbela, Mangla and Chashma, highlighting the urgent need to expand water storage and conservation measures.
Talking to Wealth Pakistan, Director of the Irrigation Research Institute Punjab, Dr Ghulam Zakir Hassan Sial said Pakistan could substantially improve water availability by adopting a combination of centralized and decentralized water storage solutions.
He said recharge basins, recharge ponds, recharge wells, check dams, flood spreading basins and injection wells were among the most effective techniques for conserving monsoon rainwater and replenishing groundwater resources.
While large dams remained vital for long term water storage, he said adding, Pakistan should also prioritize the construction of small and medium sized dams, hill torrent dams and delay action dams to capture rainwater that would otherwise be lost, he added.
Dr. Sial said major urban centres, including Lahore, Islamabad, Faisalabad and Rawalpindi, offer significant opportunities for rooftop rainwater harvesting, underground storage tanks and recharge pits that could help replenish depleted aquifers.
He warned that rapid urbanisation has expanded roads and concrete surfaces, causing rainwater to flow quickly into storm drains instead of naturally recharging groundwater reserves.
Expanding rainwater harvesting infrastructure would not only improve groundwater availability but also help mitigate urban flooding, he added.
Director Water Resources at Word Wide Fund Pakistan, Sohail Ali Naqvi told Wealth Pakistan that Pakistan has tremendous potential to store floodwater in natural floodplains alongside engineered infrastructure such as dams, which provided large scale water storage, flow regulation and hydropower generation.
He said Pakistan extracted more than 55 MAF of groundwater annually for agricultural, domestic and commercial use, creating substantial opportunities to replenish depleted aquifers through managed recharge techniques.
Mr Naqvi said floodwater could be diverted to floodplains, allowing it to infiltrate underground aquifers and strengthen groundwater reserves for future use.
One of the most effective managed aquifer recharge techniques was the use of artificial recharge wells introduced by the Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources and promoted by several institutions, including WWF Pakistan, in cities across Punjab.
He emphasized that maximizing the use of rainwater, surface water and groundwater has become increasingly important amid growing uncertainty over transboundary water resources.
The monsoon season, he said, offering Pakistan an ideal opportunity to augment water supplies for agriculture and other sectors while building long term water resilience.
