PAKISTAN - EARTHQUAKE: USAID/DART WATER AND

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 ISLAMABAD 019471

SIPDIS

STATE ALSO PASS TO USAID
USAID/W FOR A/AID ANDREW NATSIOS, JBRAUSE
DCHA/OFDA GGOTTLIEB, MMARX, RTHAYER, BDEEMER
AID/W FOR DCHA/OFDA
SOUTH ASIA RESPONSE MANAGEMENT TEAM
SOUTH ASIA EARTHQUAKE TASK FORCE
DCHA/FFP FOR JONATHAN DWORKEN
ANE DEPUTY ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR MARK WARD
BANGKOK FOR OFDA SENIOR REGIONAL ADVISOR TOM DOLAN
KATHMANDU FOR OFDA REGIONAL ADVISOR WILLIAM BERGER
ROME PASS FODAG
GENEVA FOR RMA AND NKYLOH
NSC FOR JMELINE
EUCOM FOR POLA/J3/J4/J5
BRUSSELS FOR USAID PLERNER
NEW YORK FOR TMALY
SECDEF FOR SOLIC/PKHA, USDP/J3
JOINT STAFF WASH DC FOR J3/J4/J5
HQ USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE FOR J3/J5

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EAID AEMR ASEC MASS ECON KMDR KPAO OIIP OPRC PGOV PREL PK PKEAID
SUBJECT: PAKISTAN - EARTHQUAKE: USAID/DART WATER AND
SANITATION UPDATE: ADDRESSING PROBLEMS IN NWFP

REF: Islamabad 16881

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Summary
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1. The USAID Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) water
and sanitation officer (WSO) in Mansehra is addressing
critical sanitation and water supply issues in Mehra and
other camps, and providing technical assistance to agencies
working in earthquake-affected areas of Northwest Frontier
Province (NWFP). In December 2005, the WSO accompanied
Government of Pakistan (GOP) engineers on assessments in 35
destroyed and severely damaged communities. To provide
surge capacity and additional oversight of water and
sanitation activities, USAID has funded two staff positions
through an NGO partner. A USAID/DART update of the water
and sanitation situation in Azad Jammu Kashmir (AJK) is
reported septel. End Summary.

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Addressing Water and Sanitation Problems in NWFP
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2. USAID/DART WSOs are currently based at the US Embassy's
Forward Operating Bases in Mansehra, NWFP, and Muzaffarabad,
AJK, to monitor water and sanitation conditions in the
earthquake zone and ensure adequate water and sanitation to
prevent environmental health risks. A USAID/DART WSO has
been conducting assessments and providing technical guidance
to agencies implementing emergency water and sanitation
programs. WSO recommendations have emphasized correcting
critical gaps in community water and sanitation systems, and
supporting field coordination.


3. As reported reftel, the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) is
coordinating water and sanitation issues in the affected
areas of NWFP, with priority on interventions in camps.
Mehra tent camp, located one hour north of Batagram on the
Indus River, is currently the largest planned camp in the
earthquake zone, with an estimated population of 16,000.
The GOP has planned for Mehra to accommodate up to 30,000
people. According to the USAID/DART, the camp growth rate
is declining, but may increase if weather conditions worsen
in the higher elevations of the Allai Valley.


4. The USAID/DART WSO reports that UNICEF's coordination of
water and sanitation activities in Mehra has generally been
good. However, initial camp latrines built by contractors
collapsed due to poor construction. Following an assessment
of Mehra, the USAID/DART WSO worked with the GOP military
and UNICEF to upgrade the latrine design, supervise repairs
of collapsed latrines, and oversee the construction of new
ones. In addition, the WSO established a construction
tracking system to assure an adequate number of latrines
were built to stay ahead of population increases at Mehra
and other camps. UNICEF is working with a new contractor,
Solidarites, to construct latrines and maintain existing
ones.


5. Another concern in Mehra Camp was the reduced supply of
drinking water due to technical problems with the camp's
well. In response, the WSO provided guidance on proper well
operation and arranged for US military electricians to
rewire the control box. Currently, the well is operating at
full capacity. To assure that water supplies remained
adequate, the WSO advised the camp management to construct a
second well. This process is underway as of December 24.
The WSO also worked directly in planning and implementation
of backup water delivery to other camps.

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Providing Technical Support
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6. Since arriving in Mansehra, the USAID/DART WSO has
actively engaged with UN agencies, NGOs, and local GOP
officials on water and sanitation issues, especially in the
interagency cluster meetings in Balakot and Batagram. One
important intervention by the WSO was focusing the cluster
to support local authorities in conducting assessments and
identifying priorities for reconstruction. During December,
the WSO accompanied GOP engineers on assessments in 35
destroyed and severely damaged communities. USAID partners
International Medical Corps (IMC) and ACTED have arranged
for transport of materials to targeted communities. The WSO
has also coordinated with UNICEF, IMC, and ACTED for
interventions in Paras, where people are reportedly drinking
water from the river.


7. According to the USAID/DART, UNICEF field staff have
demonstrated strong technical skills in the water and
sanitation sector, but are overstretched and unable to
monitor closely projects in such a large coverage area. To
augment UNICEF efforts, USAID funded two additional staff
positions through NGO partner IMC to provide surge capacity
and additional oversight of water and sanitation activities.
One staff member is already on the ground and working on
UNICEF water and sanitation activities.


8. To support sanitation activities and improve health
surveillance, the USAID/DART WSO has been collaborating with
partner agencies on disease reporting to monitor conditions,
particularly in more densely populated camps. The WSO has
arranged for waterborne hygiene disease reporting to support
the water and sanitation clusters. Maintaining disease
reports allow agencies to remain current on trends and
provide advanced indication of potential outbreaks. The WSO
has collaborated with the UN World Health Organization (WHO)
to provide "early warning" information to field cluster
meetings.


9. Sanitation and hygiene promotion are critical activities
for curbing the spread of disease in urban and densely
populated camps. Managing the use of latrines, as well as
providing facilities with warm water for washing during the
winter months are current priorities, especially in
unorganized camps. To support improved hygiene and bathing,
the WSO met with partner NGO Action Contre La Faim (ACF) and
the UN Development Program (UNDP) to review a plan for
heating water and setting aside a bathing area in camps.
The WSO has provided recommendations to modify the program
that ACF plans to initiate in Balakot.

CROCKER