Posted on 23 December 2020

Lahore, 2 October 2020 - WWF-Pakistan organized a field visit with key project stakeholders to the pilot sites of Manak village, located near Sundar Industrial Estate, Lahore; under its Groundwater Replenishment Initiative funded by PepsiCo. The initiative, which includes Rainwater Harvesting Systems (RHS), groundwater recharge after natural treatment through Floating Treatment Wetlands (FTWs), and recycling of water for horticulture purposes demonstrates the need for water conservation in urban and peri-urban centres of Lahore and other metropolitan cities that are losing groundwater due to rapid urbanization.
 
Key stakeholders who participated in this visit, included officials from PepsiCo., Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA), Pakistan Council for Research in Water Resources (PCRWR) and members of scientific research communities. The highlight of the visit included a tour of the village ponds, where Floating Treatment Wetlands (FTWs) have been installed with the capability of treating 1.4 million litres of water per annum. Floating Treatment Wetlands (FTWs) are nature-based solutions (NBS) aimed to provide low-cost wastewater treatment options for communities. The purpose of the FTW intervention in Manak village was to improve water quality of the ponds, which otherwise causes untreated wastewater to infiltrate into the underground aquifer.
 
According to Hammad Naqi Khan, Director General, WWF-Pakistan, “Community water stewardship is an essential modern-day concept, which involves community led initiatives towards conserving local water resources. WWF-Pakistan is making efforts to promote such initiatives in order to find localized solutions to our water issues, and to empower communities with decision-making abilities. Floating Treatment Wetlands (FTWs) are an example of such community led initiatives, which provide low-cost solutions to issues of water pollution in peri-urban locations. One of WWF-Pakistan’s pilot FTW in Manak village in Lahore is an example of the initiative."
 
Present at the occasion, senior representatives of PCRWR and WASA appreciated WWF-Pakistan and PepsiCo’s. efforts in promoting water conservation and replenishment in Lahore.
 
During an interactive session with the village community, Arshad Khan, caretaker of a dairy farm said that during power outages he benefits from the Rainwater Harvesting Systems (RHS) installed at one of his sites under this initiative, which has also helped him reduce his energy cost.