{"id":20112881,"date":"2023-03-20T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-03-20T02:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thethirdpole.net\/?p=112881"},"modified":"2023-03-20T14:41:44","modified_gmt":"2023-03-20T09:11:44","slug":"confronting-climate-change-and-the-taliban-in-afghanistan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/en\/climate\/confronting-climate-change-and-the-taliban-in-afghanistan\/","title":{"rendered":"Confronting climate change \u2013 and the Taliban \u2013 in Afghanistan"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Editor\u2019s note:<\/strong> This article gives a rare insight into rising water scarcity in Afghanistan and the state of the current water regime on the ground. As the impacts of climate change exacerbate water loss from ageing infrastructure, experts told Undark\u2019s reporter<\/a> that the Taliban should be investing in small-scale local projects. This seems to be at odds with recent headlines about the Qosh Tepa Canal, a huge project to divert water from the Amu Darya River. Engineers\u00a0have said<\/a>\u00a0the way it is being constructed means large quantities of scarce water could be lost, while analysts are worried about it inflaming regional tensions \u2013 an issue The Third Pole will be examining in the coming months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This past December, a fleet of colorful swan-shaped boats lined the muddy banks of Qargha Lake, a reservoir on the outskirts of Kabul, Afghanistan. The boats\u2019 owner, 50-year-old Shah Maqsoud Habibi, said his business has vanished, along with much of the lake, a once-popular weekend destination for war-weary Afghans. Over the past few years, a series of droughts have gripped the country, causing reservoirs and other water bodies to dry up. \u201cIf there is no water, there is no business for me, and without work, I cannot feed my family,\u201d said Habibi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Local residents share similar concerns. \u201cI have lived here for 16 years, and this is the first time I am seeing the lake empty,\u201d said 21-year-old Rashid Samim. For two years, he hasn\u2019t been able to properly water his apple and cherry orchards or his modest potato farm, leading to smaller yields.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The droughts have disrupted life in other ways, too. \u201cOn most days, we don\u2019t have enough water for daily chores and drinking,\u201d said Samim. Many Afghan homes receive water from private wells, and people have been forced to dig deeper in search of groundwater. While some residents have turned to private water companies, the cost is out of reach for the average household, and anyway, there simply isn\u2019t enough supply to go around, Samim said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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According to Afghan scientists, the recent droughts are illustrative of the broader impact of climate change on a country already ravaged by decades of conflict<\/a> and poor water management. The situation was exacerbated in 2021, when the Taliban seized control of the country. The regime abolished<\/a> the National Water Affairs Regulation Authority, the government agency responsible for water management. Many of the previous government\u2019s technical experts fled Afghanistan, fearing for their safety.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Additionally, many aid agencies suspended<\/a> their work in the region. Afghanistan<\/a> now faces a deepening humanitarian crisis that impacts 28.3 million people<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSome key positions in climate sectors are filled by Mullahs\u201d \u2013 or religious scholars \u2013 \u201cwho have zero understanding about climate issues,\u201d said Najibullah Sadid, a water resource expert who has lived in and conducted research in Afghanistan, and is based at the University of Stuttgart in Germany.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Given this, Afghan climate scientists and water resource experts told Undark, the world must find ways to engage with Afghanistan and its leaders on issues of climate. While international aid organisations have legitimate concerns about partnering with a notoriously brutal regime, these experts say, neither Afghanistan nor the world can afford to ignore the country\u2019s ageing water infrastructure and disappearing lakes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A<\/div>
A fleet of swan-shaped boats sits on Qargha Lake, a once-popular weekend destination for war-weary Afghans. Shah Maqsoud Habibi said his business renting out the boats has vanished, along with much of the lake. (Image: Undark)<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Afghanistan\u2019s mean temperature has increased by 1.8 degrees Celsius since 1950, more than twice the global average. The rising temperatures have affected average precipitation leading to floods and landslides, as well as fluctuations in groundwater levels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe consequences of higher temperatures are serious,\u201d wrote Assem Mayar, a water resource management expert and former lecturer at Kabul Polytechnic University in a 2022 post<\/a> published by Afghanistan Analysts Network, a non-profit policy research organisation. Global warming, he wrote, \u201caffects the water cycle, intensifies extreme events such as floods, droughts, glacier melt, and storms, and is leading to a rise in sea levels. The earth only has one atmosphere and global warming harm transcends political boundaries.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some key positions in climate sectors are filled by Mullahs who have zero understanding about climate issues<\/blockquote>Najibullah Sadid, water resource expert <\/cite><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe rapid shrinking of Qargha Lake is alarming,\u201d Sadid told Undark. In the past three years, its surface area has shrunk by nearly two-thirds. While the lake was always of modest size \u2013 roughly a third of a square mile \u2013 it supplied groundwater for much of Kabul. Any further drying could have \u201cdisastrous consequences\u201d for the nation\u2019s capital, Sadid said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Afghanistan has few natural water resources to begin with, but the problem is compounded by poor infrastructure for water storage and distribution. \u201cPoor water management has led to reservoir sedimentation across Afghanistan,\u201d Sadid said. While reservoirs are constructed to hold water, they also trap sediments such as clay, silt, sand and gravel transported from upstream. The gradual accumulation<\/a> of sediment can damage a reservoir\u2019s equipment and reduce its water-storage capacity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cQargha has lost about 50% of its original storage capacity due to sedimentation,\u201d Sadid said, and it has blocked two of the dam\u2019s bottom gates, creating operational and technical problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Taliban government originally allotted six million Afghanis<\/a> (about USD 67,000) for monitoring and maintaining the Qargha dam, but, Sadid said, \u201cinstead of tackling the sedimentation issues of Qargha reservoir, the money is spent on rehabilitation of roads connecting to Qargha.\u201d He noted that the regime lacks foresight when it comes to climate issues. The Taliban, Sadid said, had \u201cinvested in image making, such as making some squares in Kabul more eye-catching,\u201d while ignoring \u201cclimate-related projects such as improving green belt of Kabul\u201d and addressing water management issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Qargha is only one of the many reservoirs that are drying up around the country, Mayar told Undark. At the same time, Afghanistan has experienced a number of flash floods \u2013 with more potentially on the way this spring. \u201cNature, it sometimes feels, is acting against the people of Afghanistan,\u201d Mayar said. \u201cWorst affected are the rural areas that depend on agriculture.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"A<\/div>
Many who run small businesses, like horse rides, depend on Qargha Lake (Image: Undark)<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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An amusement park near Qargha Lake, once bustling with customers, now sits empty (Image: Undark)<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"a<\/div>
Near the heart of Qargha Lake, a concrete tower measures the water\u2019s depth. On the lake\u2019s best days, the tower would mark a depth of 88 feet. In December, the number was half that. (Image: Undark)<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Before the Taliban\u2019s takeover, international governments and non-governmental organisations had undertaken projects to develop Afghanistan\u2019s water management capacities and improve the country\u2019s ability to adapt to climate change. These projects included building and maintaining dams, enhancing irrigation, developing<\/a> renewable energy infrastructure, and strengthening resilience to food insecurity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But now, concerned about working with the Taliban, the international community is withholding funds for nearly all development projects, including 32 environmental protection projects<\/a> worth USD 805 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe international community working in Afghanistan right now faces a true dilemma,\u201d said Orzala Nemat, an expert in international development and past director of the Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit, an independent research institute based in Kabul. The question, she said, is \u201cwhether to accept the Taliban as legitimate rulers of Afghanistan or approach them as hostage takers\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cThese aren\u2019t just questions of principles but also practicality,\u201d she added. For example, the Taliban recently banned<\/a> women from working at NGOs. \u201cHow can an organisation implement humanitarian projects in a culturally conservative place like Afghanistan without the help of women?\u201d she asked. As a deeply conservative country, many spaces in Afghan society are gender segregated. Without women on staff, it will be difficult for NGOs to function in women\u2019s spaces or engage with women-led households.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Traditionally aid has been categorised<\/a> as either humanitarian or developmental. Humanitarian projects focus on crisis response and life-saving efforts while development projects are longer term and geared toward helping a population avoid future crises. Some donor agencies \u2013 and in particular those that provide humanitarian aid \u2013 have resumed their work in Afghanistan, and are focused on \u201cproviding life-saving services only,\u201d said Nemat. These include the United Nations\u2019 Food and Agriculture Organization and the World Bank.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Climate projects are usually considered developmental, Nemat said, even though such projects could help alleviate the country\u2019s humanitarian crisis. The situation in Afghanistan \u201ccannot be solved by simply providing food packages,\u201d said Nemat. \u201cA can of oil and bag of flour cannot reverse the damage that is being inflicted on the country and region for generations to come.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A<\/div>
At the amusement park near Qargha Lake, the entrance of one ride has separate lines for men and women. A sign in the middle, from the Ministry for Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, the Taliban\u2019s moral police, asks women to wear the Islamic hijab. (Image: Undark)<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Mayar expressed a similar view. International agencies have helped ease the humanitarian crises, he said, \u201cbut if we ignore climate change, it will only further the crises in the country and need for humanitarian support. It isn\u2019t sustainable.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While working in Afghanistan may require some conversations with the Taliban, there are ways to minimise the regime\u2019s role. For example, the United Nations transports cash<\/a> into the country and places it into a private UN bank, a system that prevents the Taliban from accessing the international money. The extent of such engagement by outside agencies is currently unclear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pyotr Kurzin, a consultant at the World Bank, noted that his organisation often wrestles with questions about how much to engage the Taliban \u201cand therefore risk legitimising them\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As of December, a small stream of water could be spotted flowing alongside the Qargha Reservoir\u2019s ageing dam, a wasteful \u2013 and unintentional \u2013 release emanating from the lake. Abdul Wase, the Taliban-appointee who operates the dam, attributed the problem to ageing infrastructure. He said that he and a small team of employees have made some repairs, including patching some of the dam\u2019s openings, but he did not clearly explain what work still needed to be done.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf God wants the water to flow to Qargha,\u201d he maintained, \u201cwe are well prepared for containing it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the absence of international aid, Mayar said, the Taliban should invest in small-scale and local projects to help communities adapt to climate change. For instance, Mayar recommended construction of karezs<\/a>, or \u201cancient irrigation systems with long horizontal tunnels and vertical wells that tap into the water-table in hillsides\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis approach,\u201d he added, \u201cis good for both water storage and reducing flood risk.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For now, the situation remains precarious. Near the heart of Qargha Lake, a concrete tower rises out of the water with numbers on its side for measuring the water\u2019s depth. On the lake\u2019s best days, the tower would mark a depth of 88 feet. In December, the number was half that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wase said he and other employees have already cut off the water to the nearby military camp, fish farms, and golf club. But, he said, even this might not be enough to protect Kabul\u2019s water supply: \u201cExperts have told us that if not replenished this season, the reservoir could be completely dry by June.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Additional on-the-ground reporting was provided by an Afghan journalist who wishes to remain anonymous for safety reasons.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This article was originally published on Undark<\/a>. Read the original article<\/a>.<\/p><\/i>\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Amid a severe drought, Afghan scientists are asking the international community to engage with the brutal regime<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1072,"featured_media":20112988,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[761],"tags":[519,13887,607],"hashtags":[],"country":[20000115],"class_list":["post-20112881","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-climate","tag-climate-impacts","tag-conflict","tag-water-scarcity","country-afghanistan"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nConfronting climate change and the Taliban in Afghanistan | Dialogue Earth<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Amid a severe drought, scientists in Afghanistan are asking the international community to engage with the brutal regime\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" 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