Impact of reduction in upstream fresh water and sediment discharge in Indus deltaic region
Journal Title: Journal of Biodiversity and Environmental Sciences (JBES) - Year 2017, Vol 10, Issue 4
Abstract
The Indus river basin stretches from the Himalayan Mountains in the north to the dry alluvial plains of Sindh in the south. The area of Indus basin is 944, 574 sq. km.The development of infrastructure in the basin affected the sediment and water discharge downstream of Kotri Barrage. Prior to the construction of major dams and barrages on the Indus River the recorded average of sediment and water discharge downstream Kotri Barrage was 193 million ton/year and 107 billion m3/year respectively. Reduction in sediment and water discharge is causing coastal erosion in the Indus deltaic and coastal areas and resulting in significantly high levels of sea water turbidity rendering the water quality of coastal waters unsuitable for a number of marine organisms. The turbidities of the seawater influence the bottom limit of light penetration in the sea thus controlling the primary productivity in the coastal and creek waters. The anthropogenic impact of upstream water and sediment blockage has resulted in the shrinkage of active delta and stunted growth of mangrove forest. The beleaguered delta has been forced to face severe problem of coastal erosion due to unplanned coastal development in the area.
Authors and Affiliations
Mohsin Muzaffar, Asif Inam, Mahmood Hashmi, Khalid Mehmood, Ibrahim Zia
Keywords
Related Articles
- EP ID EP39114
- DOI -
- Views 193
- Downloads 0
Study of soil macrofauna in relation with some of selected soil physio- chemical properties at sumayar-nagar in district HunzaNagar Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan
Soil is one of the most essential and diverse natural habitat of biodiversity on earth. Soil organisms (biota) carry out a wide range of processes that are important for soil health and fertility in both natural and man...
Influence of earthworms and humic acid on some microbial indices in a Pb contaminated soil
Increasing human population pressure has decreased the availability of arable land and it is no longer feasible to use extended fallow periods to restore soil fertility. The fallow period which would have restored soil...
Some studies on the taxonomic status of the genus Aiolopus Fieber (Acrididae : Acridoidea: Orthoptera) from Pakistan
At the present orthopteran fauna in agricultural fields of Pakistan were investigated. The large numbers of specimens have been collected from different provinces of Pakistan during the year 2011-2012. Three species na...
Effect of humic acid on some morphological traits of Guar (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba) in Karaj region
Humic acid is one of the most organic substances that has been used today due to its advantages, such as improving drainage and soil air, causing the development of microorganisms, increasing plant yield and growth, and...
Relationships among morpho-phenological traits using principal components analysis in safflower
Safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.) is an oilseed crop which is adapted to semi-arid region of the world. The objective of this study was to use statistical method of principal components analysis to evaluate the relati...