Minister vows preventive cleanup at Karachi ports
Federal Minister Junaid Anwar Chaudhry says stormwater treatment plants, not just post-rain drives, are needed to protect marine life and fisheries.
ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Maritime Affairs Junaid Anwar Chaudhry has pledged to shift Karachi’s ports away from recurring post-rain cleanups and toward preventive measures, warning that unchecked pollution is severely damaging marine ecosystems, fisheries and coastal communities.
On his directives, a fresh cleanup drive has been launched to clear waste from berths, jetties and navigational channels at Karachi Port and Port Qasim, but the minister emphasized that such reactive steps are no longer sufficient. He noted that every heavy rain flushes sewage, solid waste, oil residues and untreated industrial effluents through the city’s storm drains into Karachi Harbour and the Arabian Sea, exposing coastal waters to escalating levels of pollution.
Chaudhry stressed that climate change is intensifying the problem, with erratic and severe monsoon showers bringing higher volumes of contaminated runoff. “We must move away from the cycle of post-rain cleanups and focus on preventive measures,” he said, describing pollution control as both an economic and social responsibility.
The minister highlighted the health risks of rising nitrogen dioxide and ground-level ozone concentrations, invisible gases linked to biodiversity loss, respiratory disease and food insecurity. He explained that Karachi’s southwest sea breeze pattern pushes these pollutants inland, compounding public health risks. Floating plastics, oil and chemical residues, he added, contaminate seafood, introduce microplastics and toxins into the food chain, and contribute to long-term risks such as hormonal disruption and neurological disorders from heavy metals like mercury.
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Chaudhry underscored that most of the contamination originates beyond port jurisdictions, with Karachi’s drainage and sewerage systems discharging nearly 450 million gallons of raw sewage and 600 million gallons of industrial effluents into the sea each day. During monsoons, he said, this toxic mix worsens, triggering environmental and health emergencies that extend beyond the maritime sector.
The minister recalled past environmental disasters, including the 2013 die-off of an estimated 100 tonnes of mullet fish (locally called *boi*) in waterways around Karachi Port Trust, Manora Channel and Chinna Creek. That incident, attributed to toxic discharges from stormwater drains, wiped out a fish stock then valued at nearly US\$245,000, equivalent to about PKR 24.9 million. The loss underscored the vulnerability of Pakistan’s seafood exports, which remain a vital foreign exchange earner.
He noted that coastal zones from Keamari to Manora have already been devastated by recurring pollution events, forcing fish stocks farther offshore and reducing the catches of local fishing communities. The economic and social fallout, he said, continues to weigh heavily on Karachi’s millions of fishermen and their families.
Currently, port authorities deploy barges, skimmer boats and marine crafts to collect floating plastics, garbage, oil slicks and chemical residues after rains. But Chaudhry said this model must evolve into preventive interception, with Karachi’s ports gradually introducing stormwater treatment plants to stop contaminated flows before they reach the sea.
International case studies, he pointed out, show that even low-cost measures such as installing litter booms at drain outfalls, using oil-water separators and enforcing systematic water quality monitoring can significantly cut pollution levels. Longer-term resilience, however, will require large-scale projects including stormwater treatment facilities, constructed wetlands and better cooperation with civic agencies such as the Sindh Environmental Protection Agency and Karachi Metropolitan Corporation.
The minister said that separating sewage from storm drains is essential to restoring marine ecosystems and ensuring food safety. “Without preventive action, we risk further loss of biodiversity, greater health risks and deeper economic damage to coastal communities,” he warned.
As Karachi braces for another season of unpredictable monsoon rains, Chaudhry’s announcement signals a policy shift from emergency-driven cleanups to systemic interventions aimed at safeguarding Pakistan’s maritime economy. Whether adequate resources and coordination can be mobilized to implement the preventive agenda remains to be seen, but port officials say the government is committed to phasing in new pollution controls over the coming years.