RIO DE JANEIRO: While Pakistan and New Zealand have included nature protection in stimulus packages offered during the coronavirus pandemic, at least 22 countries have enacted or proposed changes in this period that weaken environmental regulation, endangering protected areas around the globe, according to a research paper published on Thursday.
Brazil, India and the United States are the hotspots of COVID-era rollbacks, said the paper, part of a wider report published by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) on how protected areas were affected by the pandemic.
“During a time when all eyes were obviously on COVID ... you had governments reducing budgets or weakening environmental protection,” said Mariana Napolitano Ferreira, head of science at WWF Brazil and one of 150 researchers who wrote the report.
The report showed that the pandemic significantly impacted protected areas around the globe beyond just rollbacks, with the crisis leading to job losses among protected area rangers, reduced anti-poaching patrols, and deaths among indigenous communities living in those lands.
Ferreira said it was expected that President Joe Biden’s administration would stop rollbacks enacted by the previous administration during the pandemic, but in Brazil and India the situation was not as clear.
The paper cited a proposal sent by Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro to Congress that would allow mining and oil and gas extraction within indigenous reserves.
In a video made public last May, Brazilian Environment Minister Ricardo Salles argued for deregulation of environmental protection while Brazilians were distracted by the pandemic.
Regarding India, the paper cited at least 31 proposals to open up national parks and sanctuaries for infrastructure, extraction and development projects, including coal mining.
A survey of more than 60 countries found that more than one in four rangers saw their salary reduced or delayed, while 20% reported losing jobs due to budget cuts related to the pandemic.
Rangers in Central America and the Caribbean, South America, Africa and Asia were the most badly affected, said the report.
Eight countries in the European Union have earmarked funding to expand or strengthen protected areas in the past year, the report said.
Seventeen countries have maintained or increased their support to protected areas despite the crisis.
Researchers argued that to diminish the risk of a new pandemic, countries should create new protected areas and make existing ones economically sustainable as new diseases can arise when forests and other wild areas are converted for human use.
“In this moment of economic and humanitarian crisis, we have an unique opportunity to stop and think on how to rebuild,” said Ferreira.
Pakistan pushes nature protection during pandemic as over 20 countries found weakening environment
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Pakistan pushes nature protection during pandemic as over 20 countries found weakening environment
- At least 22 countries enacted or proposed changes during coronavirus that weaken environmental regulation, endangering protected areas around the globe
- Brazil, India and the United States are hotspots of COVID-era rollbacks, a report by International Union for Conservation of Nature says
EU, Pakistan sign €60 million loan agreement for clean drinking water in Karachi
- Project will finance rehabilitation, construction of water treatment facilities in Karachi city, says European Investment Bank
- As per a report in 2023, 90 percent of water samples collected from various places in city was deemed unfit for drinking
ISLAMABAD: The European Investment Bank (EIB) and Pakistan’s government on Wednesday signed a €60 million loan agreement, the first between the two sides in a decade, to support the delivery of clean drinking water in Karachi, the EU said in a statement.
The Karachi Water Infrastructure Framework, approved in August this year by the EIB, will finance the rehabilitation and construction of water treatment facilities in Pakistan’s most populous city of Karachi to increase safe water supply and improve water security.
The agreement was signed between the two sides at the sidelines of the 15th Pak-EU Joint Commission in Brussels, state broadcaster Radio Pakistan reported.
“Today, the @EIB signed its first loan agreement with Pakistan in a decade: a €60 million loan supporting the delivery of clean drinking water for #Karachi,” the EU said on social media platform X.
Radio Pakistan said the agreement reflects Pakistan’s commitment to modernize essential urban services and promote climate-resilient infrastructure.
“The declaration demonstrates the continued momentum in Pakistan-EU cooperation and highlights shared priorities in sustainable development, public service delivery, and climate and environmental resilience,” it said.
Karachi has a chronic clean drinking water problem. As per a Karachi Water and Sewerage Corporation (KWSC) study conducted in 2023, 90 percent of water from samples collected from various places in the city was deemed unsafe for drinking purposes, contaminated with E. coli, coliform bacteria, and other harmful pathogens.
The problem has forced most residents of the city to get their water through drilled motor-operated wells (known as ‘bores’), even as groundwater in the coastal city tends to be salty and unfit for human consumption.
Other options for residents include either buying unfiltered water from private water tanker operators, who fill up at a network of legal and illegal water hydrants across the city, or buying it from reverse osmosis plants that they visit to fill up bottles or have delivered to their homes.
The EU provides Pakistan about €100 million annually in grants for development and cooperation. This includes efforts to achieve green inclusive growth, increase education and employment skills, promote good governance, human rights, rule of law and ensure sustainable management of natural resources.
