NATIONAL CONSERVATION STRATEGY

General
National Conservation Strategy (NCS), the Pakistan land mark environmental strategy and initial policy document was finalized in early nineties y adopting a multi stakeholders and comprehensive consultative process with the technical and financial assistance of Canadian !nternational "evelopment #gency (C!"#)$ NCS was prepared y a team of e%perts over a three&year period through a partnership etween the 'overnment of Pakistan and the (orld Conservation )nion (!)CN)$ !t involved more than *,+++ people through workshops and direct and indirect consultations$ NCS was approved y the ,ederal Ca inet of Pakistan on - .arch -//0$

Objectives
Conservation of Natural 1esources Sustaina le "evelopment !mproved 2fficiency in the use and .anagement of 1esources

Overarching principles
#chieving greater Pu lic Partnership in "evelopment and 2nvironmental .anagement .erging 2nvironment and 2conomics in decision&making ,ocusing on "ura le !mprovements in the 3uality of life in Pakistan

Priority areas
4he NCS has focused on the following fourteen priority areas for implementation .aintaining soils in croplands, !ncreasing irrigation efficiency, Protecting watersheds, Supporting forestry and plantations, 1estoring rangelands, !mproving livestock, Protecting wetlands, Conserving iodiversity, !ncreasing energy efficiency, "eveloping 5 deploying renewa le, .anaging ur an wastes, Supporting institutions, !ntegrating population 5 environment and Preserving cultural heritage

NCS donors
(orld 6ank C!"# 2)

Importance
Pakistan &presented &NCS at 1io in -//0 and pioneered among the developing countries in developing National Conservation Strategy$ NCS was replicated y many developing countries during nineties$

Priority areas

4he NCS e%plicitly defines three priority areas within the a ove groups7 maintaining soils in croplands a preventing and a ating pollution and increasing energy efficiency Pakistan receives etween 80 to 8* illion of foreign assistance per year and is dependent upon the (orld 6ank and !., support for access to international credit markets$ C!"# is a relatively small ilateral player, contri uting some 09 of the total foreign a s s i s t a n c e $ # conference, organized y !)CN, on the NCS and the :udiciary helps increase :udicial interest in environmental matters$ Sessions are chaired y ;ustice Nasim <assan Shah, ;ustice Saleem #khtar, and ;ustice (1etd) "ora Patel in addition to #nwar Saifullah =han, .inister for 2nvironment$
Pakistan>s National 1eport to )nited Nations Conference on 2nvironment and "evelopment is prepared y a team of e%perts led y 4ari3 6anuri under the supervision of an inter&ministerial government committee$ 4he NCS also plays an important role in prevailing (current, e%isting) upon Pakistan>s agenda at the )NC2"$ 4he NCS is viewed as Pakistan>s domestic agenda on the environment while the National 1eport e%presses the international agenda and draws heavily upon the philosophy and recommendations of the NCS$
4he federal Ca inet approves the NCS on .arch -, -//0$ y 4he Prime .inister esta lishes an NCS Ca inet&level !mplementation Committee, headed #nwar Saifullah =han, to coordinate the implementation of the NCS$

4he local delegation to the #id to Pakistan Consortium (group), Paris, led y Sarta: #ziz ,inance .inister, announces that it will hold a special session for the donors of the NCS at a conference in !slama ad in early -//*$

4he NCS is formally launched in .ay$ 4he occasion is marked y the screening of the NCS documentary Greening Our Future, on the P4? network and S4N stations$ 4he NCS )nit is created in 2)#" (2nvironment 5 )r an #ffair "ivision) to coordinate and monitor the NCS implementation process$ 4he )nit>s primary role is to support agencies and institutions, oth within and outside the government, that are directly involved in implementing various aspects of the Strategy$ 4he NCS )nit would, amongst other activities, e responsi le for managing an N'@ ,und worth 1s$ *+ million, created to provide financial assistance to N'@s in developing and implementing environment related pro:ects$

 4he first )rdu version of the NCS Bulletin, the NCS Jareeda, is pu lished !n colla oration with Sungi "evelopment ,oundation and the Pakistan !nstitute of Aa or, 2ducation and 1esearch, !)CN initiates dialogue etween industry, la or and government on issues relating to usiness and environment$ 1ound 4a le meetings are held in Sindh, N(,P and the Pun:a $ !an Smillie completes a report on the feasi ility of the NCS recommendations with respect to N'@s$ 4he first meeting of the NCS Ca inet&level !mplementation Committee$ !t is decided that a portfolio (collection 5 Selection) of NCS&related pro:ects should e prepared for presentation and funding at a donors> conference$

4he NCS !mplementation Committee approves the road components and framework of the Plan of #ction$
-$ "eputy Chairman, Chairman Planning Commission$ 0$ Secretary, "eputy Chairman .inistry of <ousing and (orks, 2nvironment 5 )r an #ffairs "ivision$ *$ Secretary, .em er .inistry of ,ood, #griculture and Co&operatives$ B$ Secretary, .em er #griculture 1esearch "ivision$ C$ Secretary, .em er .inistry of (ater and Power$ D$ Secretary, .em er .inistry of Petroleum and Natural 1esources$ E$ Secretary, .em er .inistry of !ndustries$ F$ Secretary, .em er 2conomic #ffairs "ivision$ /$ Secretary, .em er (omen>s "ivision$

-+$ Syed 6a ar #li, .em erG1esource Person .anaging "irector, Packages !ndustries$ --$ .r$ =hursheed .arker, .em erG1esource Person Chairman, P!C!C$ -0$ .r$ Shoai Sultan =han, .em erG1esource Person 'eneral .anager, #ga =han 1ural Support Programme$ -*$ .r$ ;aved ;a ar, .em erG1esource Person Chairman, .N; Communications$ -B$ .r$ <ameed <aroon, .em erG1esource Person "eputy Chief 2%ecutive, Pakistan <erald Pu lications Atd$ -C$ .r$ #listair "$ Crerar Secretary Co&ordinator NCS, - /FF&F/$ -D$ Syed #yu Hutu , Secretary Co&ordinator NCS, -/FF&/-

Conservation of Natural 1esources Sustaina le "evelopment

!mproved 2fficiency in the )se and .anagement of 1esources

AGRICULTURE POLICIES AND MEASURES

Policies I <alt over&use of prime soilGand resources$ I CheckGreserve soilGland degradation processes$ I .anage water run&offGshortage to prevent soil erosion$ I 1estore and improve fertilityGstructure of degraded soils$ Measures

I "evelop soil and water conservation plans for each su catchments area$ I Protect, under permanent vegetation cover, high&risk erosion areas$ I )se integrated engineering, cultural, and iological soilGwater conservation solutions$ I #dopt ecologically compati le cropping systems$ I 2ncourage adoption of effective soil and water conservation practices$

,@1 P1@42C4!N', 12'2N21#4!N', C@NS21?!N', #N" .#N#'!N' S@!AG(#421 12S@)1C2S !N !11!'&#42" #12#S Polices I <altGcontrol salinityGsodality, water logging, and soil structure deterioration pro lems$ I PreventGcontrol soil degradation processes$ Measures I !dentify and demarcate (separate) areas re3uiring high priority regeneration$ I Su sidize (finance) gypsum supplies to farmers for reclaiming salt affected soils$ I "evelop fish ponds in appropriate low&lying areas$ I Strengthen e%isting arid zone research institutes$ I Promote land leveling to increase water&use efficiencies$

FORESTRY MANAGEMENT POLICIES AND MEASURES

Policies I 'ive top priority to recognizing the vital ecological services provided y watershed, raverine, and mangrove forests, and to their maintenance$ I )se forest resources sustaina le, in most cases close to ma%imum sustaina le yields, thus promoting vigorous growth of younger stock, in order to meet conservation criteria as well as national and local demands$ I Preserve and manage on a representative asis some old forests to maintain the ank of iodiversity$

Measures I )se satellite imagery in con:unction with ground trotting oth to assess and monitor earth degradation process in critical ecosystems and to identify priority areas for new planting$ Prepare strategic action plans in the light of physical and socio&economic findings and availa le resources$ I Strengthen the forest departments to achieve pu lic o :ectives in the +$C million hectares of state hill forests I #ccelerate watershed management programmes in all other hill forest areas y shifting towards an integrated and facilitative role for departments$ I Promote the private sector to take the lead role in irrigated plantations and farm forestry$

RANGELAND REHABILITATION POLICIES AND MEASURES

reha (inha Policies I "evelop systems for effective periodic closure of rangelands, to ilitate them and ensure sustaina le livelihoods to range dwellers itants)$

 I ,acilitate on a selected asis private investment in rangeland development for commercially oriented livestock e%port$

Measures I !n tri al areas, develop and undertake community& ased revenue settlement for rangelands, involving the negotiation, recognition, and formalization of user rights and concessions, and issue rangeland management licenses to the community as a whole$ I 2ncourage the formation of Aivestock #ssociations under the um rella of e%isting law (e$g$, Pun:a Aivestock #ssociations @rdinance, -/E/)$ I )pgrade departmental and multi&sectoral e%tension services, ut keep programmes cost&effective y focusing on education I Provide technical and related advice on community& ased management systems$

LIVESTOCK MANAGEMENT
Policies I !mprove oth the productivity per animal and the 3uality of produce$ !mprove farming practices y introducing high&yield variety of fodders and good&3uality roughage so that the 3uantity and 3uality of fodder production are increased$ 1e3uire high technology reeding agencies to e more careful a out the proportions in which e%otic and indigenous reeding stocks are crossed, to conserve endangered domestic species

Measures I Aaunch a programme promoting high&yield variety fodders, with potential to increase yields three&to fourfold, releasing some of the -C9 of the land under fodder for green manuringGcereal rotation$ !mprove facilities for chilling and transporting milk from rural to ur an areas and for converting milk into powdered form$

ATER MANAGEMENT
Policies I 'ive priority to increasing irrigation efficiencies$ !ncrease water charges for all farmers, at least to meet full operating and maintenance costs y -//D Promote iological approach as well as engineering solutions to salinityGsodality and waterlogging pro lems, accelerate research in iological solutions$

 Measures "emonstrate and provide incentives for technical improvements leading to water conservation on farms$ #ccelerate research and e%tension of iological solutions to water logging and salinity management y farmers$

COASTAL AND MARINE RESOURCES

"evelop policies on the provision of alternative sources of employment for coastal communities$ Co&ordinate all environmental studies with socio&economic studies Measures I ,ill the ma:or gaps in information on coastal resource use and sustaina ility, on the environmental impacts of different forms of resource use$ Conduct research and environmental impact assessments of the traditional practices of resource use, which were always sustaina le$

FISHERIES
Policies Protect and restore shrimp fishing ha itats, with harvesting restricted to the level of annual sustaina le yields$ Measures I )se the full potential of inland fisheries to develop a3uaculture$ I <arvest fisheries on a sustaina le yield asis$

ILDLIFE AND HABITAT

Policies I "raw up a national (ildlife )tilization and Conservation Policy that will achieve the desired protection and conservation o :ectives !ncrease the num ers of national parks and game reserves

Measures !ntroduce incentives to safeguard conservation areas and divert pressures from threatened wildlife ha itats and species$ Provide incentives to encourage the higher productivity of food and other goods in areas immediately outside e%isting or proposed national parks and protected areas where human settlements are located$

ENERGY
Policies I 2%pand the use of coal to meet short&term, electricity demand re3uirements, ased on the least polluting technology and current emission standards$ "evelop alternative source to meet additional energy re3uirements$

Measures #ssign clear roles for the pu lic and private sectors in supplying energy 1enew efforts to promote iogas plants with uilt&in local maintenance provisions and community support$

POLLUTION CONTROL
#dopt domestic wastewater treatment technologies that provide for recovery and reuse of water, nutrients, and organic matter in ways that are safe and profita le to the operator$ Support the recovery and use of heavy metals form industrial effluents$ 'ive priority to areas where there is risk of groundwater contamination$

Measures I "evelop systems for safe sewage irrigation$ 2ncourage source reduction, through recovery y industrial units of heavy metals efore discharge$ install catalytic converters in cars, =eep the price of fuel (e%cept diesel) relatively high$

S@A!" (#S42S
Polices I Promote reuse and recycling y privatization of collection$ I 2ncourage making assistance for effective use of scavenging systems$

Measures

 I "evelop effective municipal gar age purchase mechanism at intermediate delivery points$ I Promote energy from waste and composing plants y the private sector$ I 2nsure proper sanitary landfill practices$ I 2sta lish incentive and control systems to support these measures$

.id 4erm 1eview (.41) of NCS

# .id&4erm 1eview (.41) of the NCS was completed in late 0+++ y an independent review team, comprising local and foreign e%perts$ 4he review revealed that the NCS was highly instrumental in creating awareness in environment and conservation, initiating a consultative process for achieving its goals at various levels, advocating priorities and putting in place the environmental institutional framework, however, great deal of efforts are still re3uired to e done$ 4he review emphasized on&improvement in implementation capacity and the need to reinvigorate these efforts with greater emphasis on poverty reduction and sustaina le development

1eview of NCS
#chievements under the NCS have een primarily awareness raising and institution uilding rather than actual improvements in the 3uality of life and natural resources$ 4he NCS was not designed and is not ade3uately focused as a national sustaina le development strategy$ 4he NCS process has strengthened civil society institutions and their influence, and enhanced the capacity of pu lic institutions$ NCS implementation capacity re3uires much improvement$

NCS continues to have a ma:or catalytic role in furthering PakistanJs sustaina le development agenda$ <owever, it needs refocusing and closer link to achieva le development outcomesK this should constitute the agenda of the ne%t phase of NCS, (NCS&0)

NCS&.41 12C@..2N"#4!@NS
Prepare NCS& 0 to serve as PakistanJs sustaina le development strategy for 0++0&0+-0, with a grater emphasis on poverty reduction and economic development in addition to environmental sustaina ility$ 2%pand the range and scale of financial mechanisms for meeting NCS o :ectives