Environment expert warn of existential threat as trans-boundary pollution, climate risks demand urgent policy shift

ISLAMABAD, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 2nd Jul, 2026) An environmental expert called for an urgent regional response to the pollution flowing from India into Pakistan, advocating for high-level diplomatic engagement, media awareness, and private-sector collaboration to enforce the emergency steps necessary to curb the impact of smog, water scarcity, and urban flooding.

Talking to ptv, environmental expert Dr. Zainab Naeem said that the trans-boundary movement of smog and systemic water mismanagement necessitate aggressive diplomatic channels and the urgent mobilization of public-private partnerships to drive sustainable agricultural innovation, effectively moving past empty rhetoric to confront existential threats.

She highlighted that Pakistan remains uniquely susceptible to climate-induced disasters, with the seasonal practice of crop burning in India significantly worsening the nation's air quality and intensifying its vulnerability to extreme heatwaves.

To combat these challenges, the expert advocated for the implementation of emergency-level environmental policies that prioritize long-term survival over short-term political convenience.

She emphasized that these rigorous interventions must be bolstered by a comprehensive framework of climate awareness, ensuring that both the general public and state officials recognize that environmental security is a collective necessity that transcends traditional geopolitical disputes.

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Dr. Naeem said that the Government of Pakistan, under the leadership of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and CM Maryam Nawaz Sharif, is currently doing its best to navigate these complex hurdles through various mitigation programs and policy reforms.

She noted that the administration is actively seeking to balance economic constraints with the need for environmental protection, though she stressed that domestic efforts alone are insufficient without a synchronized regional approach to address the root causes of trans-boundary degradation.

She called for a fundamental restructuring of South Asian environmental governance, specifically proposing a permanent, climate-specific diplomatic track.

By integrating private-sector collaboration with strict, enforceable regulations, she asserted that the region can successfully mitigate the devastating impacts of pollution, provided that both nations commit to prioritizing ecological stability as the foundation for future prosperity.