There was a time when people living in Hajamro Creek used to rely on farming and other marginal enterprises including poultry farming, betel leaf, bananas, and coconuts orchards and grow melons in the area. They used to earn good money by exporting bananas and red rice to other countries. It was a port city in the British era and freshwater was available almost everywhere. However, with the passage of time, construction of barrages and dams lead to reduced freshwater availability in the area causing water logging and salinity which affected agricultural output. Communities had no other option but to switch to fishing as their main source of livelihood.
It must be noted that Hajamro Creek is one of the major creeks of Keti Bunder other than Chann, Khobar and Kangri creeks. Keti Bunder is one of the major towns along the Pakistani coastline situated at about 200 km south-east of Karachi. Stretching over an area of 60,969 ha, it was also given the status of municipal committee in 1932, which was later amended by the British Government as the majority of its population migrated to other areas due to reduction of freshwater following construction of Sukkur Barrage. Construction of Ghulam Mohammad Barrage further reduced freshwater supply to the town and its creeks, which forced communities to move to other localities for livelihood and safety.
With the reduction in freshwater, the sea crept in, affecting the entire ecosystem and agriculture. Keti Bunder had 42 dehs (settlements) of which 28 have been engulfed by the intruding sea. Millions of hectares of land are lost due to this phenomenon and has forced communities to shift their homes after every five to ten years. With agriculture being impracticable due to poor crop yield, communities began to rely on fishing to earn income. However, this did not solve the problem as fish catch reduced considerably, which further spread poverty in the region.
German Watch Institute in its Global Climate Risk Index 2014 ranked Pakistan at number three after Haiti and the Philippines on its list of countries most affected by climate change, which shows the extent to which climate change is causing extreme weather events in Pakistan. It is also affecting the coastal areas of the country and vulnerable ecosystems.
Today, the frequency of natural calamities has increased as cyclonic activity and floods during high tide are causing havoc for surrounding communities. Thatched huts made by fishermen of Hajamro Creek cannot withstand storms and strong winds, which often carry roofs away. The 2007 cyclone (Yemyin No. 03B) devastated the lives of communities in Hajamro Creek, as a majority of huts were completely destroyed or partially damaged. A similar situation was observed when cyclone Phet hit Keti Bunder hit, affecting five thousand families and destroying their homes and property.
The 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013 floods are the result of climate change which has caused Pakistan billions of dollars in losses in the form of damage to infrastructure, public property and lives. The 2012 floods alone caused a loss of 6 billion dollars, which lead to widespread poverty and economic crises all across the country.
World Wide Fund for Nature-Pakistan (WWF-Pakistan), a global conservation organization through its project Building Capacity on Climate Change Adaptation in Coastal Areas of Pakistan (CCAP) is working to make coastal communities and creeks resilient to climate change. With the implementation of interventions related to adaptation, mitigation and capacity building, the project will support climate resilient ecosystems to support the livelihoods of local communities.
“Communities living in Hajamro Creek are living on the edge and are uncertain about their future as their lives are completely dependent upon environmental factors” said Tahir Abbasi, Site Coordinator, Keti Bunder, WWF-Pakistan while briefing journalists during a recent media exposure visit to Siddique Dablo village in Hajamro Creek, Keti Bunder.
According to Rab Nawaz, Director Sindh, WWF-Pakistan, “We’re losing land due to climate change because of sea levels rising. Damage by floods is the main problem, creating an immense problem for nearby communities. The cost of flooding is 12 billion dollars, equivalent to the cost of building the Bhasha Dam.”
Mangroves are known as a defense shield against storms and cyclones and prevent coastal erosion. Hence, in order to mitigate climate change, forest cover of mangroves should be increased so that villages such as Siddique Dablo are protected from harsh climatic impacts. WWF-Pakistan in order to build the resilience of coastal communities planted 7500 ha of mangroves through the Indus for All Programme (IFAP) and another 550 ha as part of the current CCAP project. Other interventions of the CCAP project include elevated homes, solar panels to charge mobile phones, legal fishing nets, crab fattening ponds to increase the weight of juvenile crabs and ice boxes to keep the daily fish catch fresh. All these interventions are meant to empower these communities so that they can have a decent standard of living and conserve natural resources.
According to Ismail Dablo, General Secretary, Village Organization, Siddique Dablo Village, “We are greatly affected by climate change impacts, as storms and cyclones damage our homes and property, however mangrove plantations carried out by WWF-Pakistan have helped in reducing the impacts of natural calamities”.
All these efforts have borne fruit as communities are now sensitized on building resilience to climate change. However, increased government support is required. Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) guidelines are available at all levels and should be implemented so that people can be evacuated in times of natural disasters. Mitigating climate change is an uphill task, it cannot be done overnight but continued efforts are required so that people living on the edge are protected from its deadliest impacts and saved from further loss.

 The writer is a Communications Officer  at World Wide Fund for Nature-Pakistan (WWF-Pakistan) based in Lahore and  a freelance contributor to various publications.

smabubakar@wwf.org.pk

@SyedMAbubakar