Human Activities and Health of Rivers: Case Study of a River Basin in the Peninsular India
Human activities in a river basin are seen mirrored in the character of the river. All developmental activities to ensure better quality of life and well being of the society such as, development of water resources to cater to the competing water demands, changes in the land use pattern primarily to ensure livelihood and food security, industrial and concomitant urban and infrastructural development etc., invariably result in quantitative and qualitative degradation of the river characteristics. These factors gradually debase sanctity of the riverine ecosystems, causing adverse social and environmental impacts, unless appropriate corrective measures are taken in time. Disforestation to bring additional land under cultivation causes soil erosion, increases silt load in rivers & lakes, accentuates intensity of floods to rivers and reduces fair-weather base flows in rivers. Water resource development designed to increase area under irrigated agriculture causes non-point source pollution of rivers due to use of insecticides, pesticides & weedicides. Residues of chemical fertilizers increase nutrients in the regenerated water. Untreated or partially treated industrial waste water containing toxic chemicals and heavy metals becomes a potential threat to the health of human society living on the banks of rivers. Pathogens in the sewage from city effluent can cause outbreak of epidemics, whereas nitrates and phosphates would promote algal growth to accelerate eutrophication of lakes in to which the rivers drain. To ensure healthy rivers, it is essential to take preventive and corrective measures at the planning stage itself. Measures to control & reduce pollution from irrigated agriculture and treatment of industrial and urban waste water have to be initiated along with development and management of water resource. Same might be planned in some cases, but rarely are they implemented due to skewed priorities of financial allocations. Even if enabling Acts are passed to monitor and control pollution, they are not implemented faithfully because of vested interests, political expediencies & lack of political will. Besides the short term effects of human activities on the health of rivers, long term effects such as siltation of reservoirs, drying of rivers for substantial part of the year, eutrophication of lakes beyond the point of return to normalcy and effects of carcinogens in the toxic chemicals and heavy metals, are rarely well understood even by the planners, engineers and the administrators. It is beyond comprehension of common man and even the media to understand its gravity and seriousness. Formation of pressure groups of water-literate & enlightened stakeholders, duly supported by an active media, to force the Govt. to take appropriate actions to implement the Acts, could be a workable solution in the long run, to improve health of the rivers.
Human activities Health of rivers the Peninsular India the Bhima River
Vidyanand Ranade
Upper Bhima Water Partnership (GWP - SASTAC), India
国际会议
郑州
英文
1104-1108
2009-10-20（万方平台首次上网日期，不代表论文的发表时间）