LARKANA: Experts at a five-day Unesco-spon­sored workshop, which began at Mohenjo Daro on Monday, suggested nature-based solutions to reduce sudden and slow effects of climate change on the ruins of the ancient civilisation.

Dr Cristina Menegazzi, an expert of culture and heritage at Unesco Pakis­tan, discussed threadbare disaster risk management for heritage sites and said the main risk factors were natural events like earthquakes, tsunami; human activities like looting and armed conflict and agents of deterioration like water, light, pests and contaminants.

She said that natural and manmade events were geological, oceanographic, hydrological, biological, technological and anthropogenic. The inherent weaknesses in cultural heritage and its external exposure to hazards were referred to as vulnerability and vulnerability of a cultural heritage site was its exposure to a hazard at one particular time, she explained.

She showed with the help of photographs and drawings the scale of damage caused to the heritage sites at different times around the world.

She discussed changing paradigm of disasters from techno-centric, which meant seeing disasters as events, to a social perspective of seeing disaster as phenomenon.

Arshad Hyder Kamariyo, divisional forest officer, said the ruins of Mohenjo Daro were very fragile and exposed to climate change effects.

To reduce sudden and slow effects of climate cha­nge, following nature-based solution were suggested, which included massive afforestation of indigenous salt-tolerant tree species in surroundings of the ruins to reduce level of water table naturally and cost efficiently, he said.

He said that shallow-rooted tree species might be preferred, so that roots did not penetrate deep and destroy the ruins. The plantation could help minimise impact of heavy rains, he said, adding that runoff water could be slowed down, hence less erosion and less thermal stress.

Ali Haider Gadhi, senior conservationist, praised Unesco Pakistan for its invaluable support and partnership in making this workshop possible. “Your commitment to preserving our cultural heritage and promoting sustainable development is truly commendable,” he said.

He said: “We are here to address a critical challen­ge that affects us all.” He was confident that participants’ expertise, experience and passion for disaster risk reduction would enrich the discussions and help shape future strategies.

He said that natural disasters had devastating impact on communities, economies and cultural heritage sites like Mohenjo Daro. “Hence, we will engage in productive dialogue, capacity-building sessions, and collaborative exercises,” he said.

Faisal Ahmed, executive engineer in irrigation department, also spoke at the event while the delegates later visited the ancient site.

Published in Dawn, November 19th, 2024