Federal Minister for Climate Change, Senator Mushahidullah Khan, has pledged to work with his Chinese counterpart to cope with the adverse ecological effects of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor to make the ambitious project environmentally and economically sustainable and climate-resilient.
“We do know that some quarters concerned are raising voices about the potential environmental impacts of the CPEC, which will connect Pakistan’s port city of Gwadar with three Chinese provinces (Beijing, Shanghai and Xian) through Kashgar. But we are committed to address them at all costs with the help of Chinese government,” the federal minister stressed during his meeting with International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) President, Xinsheng Zhang, on Sunday in the ministry.
The Present Pakistani government views China’s promise of $46bn investment as a gift, and with a focus on building a China-Pakistan Economic Corridor it will be a potential game changer. It deems the convergence of the country’s interests with those of China a big boon for ordinary and corporate citizens of the country, China and the region, he highlighted.
Mushahidullah vowed to work with Chinese counterpart to bring together environment and climate change scientists to study in detail the potential hazardous impacts of the 3,000 km-long CPEC, particularly on glaciers, rivers and mountain communities and their livelihoods.
“We will seriously look at the findings into the potential negative impacts of the CPEC and proposed measures in this regard and to cope with the negative impacts with the help of Chinese government to avoid potential irreparable damages to fragile ecosystems, particularly in the country’s north, which is home to nearly 5,000 glaciers and dozens of turquoise river that feed the mighty Indus river – a lifeline of country’s agro-based economy,” he said during the meeting.
