We need to conserve and restore our indigenous water sources such as ponds and stone water taps to minimize problem of water scarcity

(Ramdeep Sah is the president of Smart WASH Solution, a non-profit organization and convenor of Rain Water Alliance. Sah in an encounter to The Nepal Weekly highlights importance of harvesting rain water for Nepal to provide an alternative source of water both for household purposes and irrigation.  Here are excerpts from the encounter.)

The Nepal Weekly: Will you please shed light on the activities being carried out by Smart WASH Solutions?

Ramdeep Sah: Smart WASH Solution is a non-profit company formed under Company Act five years ago. We are mainly carrying out promotional activities relating to drinking water, sanitation and hygiene. We are involved in knowledge dissemination in these areas through organizing workshops, seminars and conferences and bringing together various stakeholders under a single platform.

TNW: Please highlight about the Regional Conference on Rain Water Harvesting and Management which is taking place in Kathmandu in March next year?

The scarcity of water has become a worldwide phenomena these days. In this context we can collect and store natural water or rain water and utilize it in our daily life. We can utilize the rain water for drinking purposes, for irrigation and also for recharging the dry land. The rain water may be used mainly for non-domestic purposes such as gardening, washing clothes, cleaning houses etc. In this way we can address the problem related to water scarcity. We have already organized two national conferences on Rain Water Harvesting and Management, first in 2017and second in 2019. On the bases of experiences gained from these two conferences now we are preparing to host a regional conference in Kathmandu in March next year. On the basis of the past declaration on Rain Water Harvesting we have also formed a Rain Water Alliance in Nepal comprising various organizations involved in rain water harvesting. Now based on the declarations made during the national conferences, we are planning to organize an international or regional conference in which we will bring together experts from various countries, share their knowledge and also collect research findings at regional level so as to get benefit while framing national policies relating to rain water harvesting and management. We will also discuss ways to transfer technology during the regional conference. Every year we observe March 22 as the World Water Day and the regional conference will be organized coinciding with that event. We are also organizing various programmes on the occasions of World Toilet Day and World Environment Day so as to generate awareness about the importance of water among the general public. Our organization has taken initiative in launching such kinds of activities in collaboration with various other stakeholders for the past five years. We are also collaborating with Nepal government and other non-governmental organizations for organizing such events. We are organizing a week long programme on the occasion of World Water Day in 2024 and the three day regional conference is being organized coinciding with that occasion.

TNW: How many countries of the region are taking part in the regional conference?

So far as I know, besides Nepal, experts and government officials from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Maldves, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, China and South Korea will attend the regional conference.

What are the main agenda or theme of the regional conference?

The main objective of the regional conference is to share regional experiences, knowledge, best practices, and innovations regarding rainwater harvesting and management within the region and to suggest appropriate solutions, policy interventions, models, technologies to address issues related with water scarcity and to support national efforts in sustainable water management. The conference is also expected to stimulate research in RWH and its importance, institutional development and contribute to accelerate improvement in water service level throughout the country. We also aim to build networking among various experts involved in rain water harvesting and disseminate knowledge. The conclusions of the conference will be adopted as resolutions, which will be documented and handedover to the planners and policy makers. THis will help address the issues relating to water security and water scarcity.

TNW: What are the possibilities of rainwater harvesting in Nepal?

We have good possibilities of rain water harvesting in the country. The maximum rainwater in Nepal is recorded at 2700 – 2800 millimeter and the average water fall comes around 1500 to 1600 mm. There is less potential for rain water harvesting in Western Nepal as the region gets less rain fall as compared to other parts of the country. In all other regions we receive good rain water. Therefore, Nepal has good possibility of rain water harvesting. Most of our rivers are dry for eight months as they get adequate rain only for four months. Therefore, we need to develop mechanism to retain the rainwater so that it can be stored and utilized during dry season. In some western countries sponge city concept has been developed, under which rain water collected during rainy season will be released in dry season so as to supply adequate amount of water throughout the year. This kind of technology will also help to control flooding.

Would you throw light on the impacts of climate change on availability of water?

The temperature of our planet is increasing due to the impact of climate change. Scientists have forecast that 1.5 to 2 degree Celsius temperature will rise due to the climate change. In the past we have witnessed rain fall for longer duration during rainy season, which has now changed and we are now experiencing heavy rainfall for short duration, which is causing various kinds of disasters such as flood and inundation of land. Climate change is also causing deterioration in the water quality. The other visible impacts are loss of water sources such as springs are being dried up, which needs to be restored. The impacts of climate has also been seen in agriculture sector as we are losing soil fertility and lack of water for irrigation.

TNW: What is your opinion regarding restoration of traditional water sources such as stone water tap and ponds?

We need to conserve and restore our indigenous water sources such as ponds, well and stone water taps. Our indigenous technology of harnessing water has been damaged due to our unplanned development activities. The water being supplied to the traditional stone taps are obstructed due to unplanned construction activities. We need to restore and rehabilitate these traditional technologies for the benefit of common people. We can see some woks being carried out in Lalitpur Metropolitan City to restore traditional ponds and water taps which is worth appreciation.