Delhi waste water can make Rajasthan green: Israeli expert

New Delhi - Big cities like New Delhi and Mumbai can effectively treat their wastewater and also
help transform nearby areas into green belts, says a leading Israeli water management expert.

Arnon Soffer, also an expert in water conflict management who helped in recycling Tel Aviv's
wastewater for reclamation of the Negev desert, said: 'Delhi too can do the same for turning the
desert of Rajasthan green.

'The prime need for water is drinking and not irrigation. The amount of water utilised creates an
equal quantity of sewage, which can be processed to a good level for irrigation of agriculture land
and for reclaiming the desert as has been done in Israel,' Soffer told IANS here.

Soffer, professor of geography and head of the Chaikin Chair of Geo-Strategy at the Haifa
University in Israel, likes to describe himself as a geo-politician and geographer besides being a
water expert.

Visiting India after 30 years at the invitation of the UN Development Programme (UNDP) to address
a water conference in Rajasthan, Soffer said wastewater could be used for different purposes
through multiple stages of treatment.

After the first stage of recycling it becomes fit for cultivation of cotton and sugarcane. The second
round of treatment will make wastewater fit for cultivation of tomato and salad vegetables, and with
another round of treatment it can even be used as drinking water, he said.

'In Israel, the sewage water from Tel Aviv is being processed to a good level for irrigation and is
helping to turn the Negev desert area green. Similarly, 100 percent sewage can be collected and
treated to create green belts around cities like New Delhi and Mumbai,' he said.

'Unless something is done now, there is going to be an adverse impact on the environment that will
lead to drastic global climatic changes, which is already being witnessed. As I see it, India is under
tremendous threat not only from climate change but also the pressure of increasing population in its
cities for clean water supplies.'

Soffer, who held discussions with Water Resources Minister Saifuddin Soz and officials of his
ministry, plans to soon present his suggestions on the way ahead for India in managing its declining
clean water resources.

Although acknowledging the role played by NGOs in the development of some areas, Soffer is
strongly against a major role being given to civil society.

'During my interaction with them in Rajasthan, I felt there are too many NGOs working to change
things. The scale and proportion of the water problem cannot be reduced to such small levels. How
can you isolate the poor from the rich in the search of good water?

'I feel the NGOs are shouting a lot without knowing the problems of the country as a whole, which is
how the issue needs to be looked at considering the tremendous pressures of urbanisation.'

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Soffer said he was very upset at the pollution levels of the Ganges in Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh.

He estimated that in about a decade from now, India, with its urban population expected to reach
750 million, would have to make provision for around 20-30 cubic metres of water per person
annually in cities.

Soffer is an adviser t

o several important Israeli ministries including foreign affairs, the prime minister's office and interior.
He has authored around 30 books and about 200 articles on issues relating to Jewish-Arab ties,
demography, education and water conflicts in the Middle East.

Soffer was instrumental in setting up the Israeli disaster management institute in 2004.

( © IANS / India eNews)

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