This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

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