Water & Waste Management of Leh

Water Systems:

Access to water in Leh is a scarce and prized commodity. With the local annual rainfall totaling in only two inches, the city must rely on other sources for water; snowmelt and fresh stream water. The city has been able to employ a functioning water system. This system starts with an aquifer being pumped from a depth of 90ft. This water is then channeled through a complex system of pipes and irrigation canals. The piped water leads either to private water tanks, or to municipal faucets. The waste water filters back into the ground and eventually finds its way to the Indus River.

While this system appears to be functioning it contains many faults. One of the most apparent concerns can be seen within the city’s canal system. While many of the residents use a personal water tank system to distribute water throughout their buildings, there are still a great percentage of homes and businesses that do not have any personal water access. Instead of waiting behind 20 other locals at the municipal water faucet, many find their way to one of the open air irrigation canals. These canals are completely unprotected and so the water is extremely contaminated. A dog can be seen urinating in a canal 15 feet upstream from a man cleaning his pots and pans. This type of water contamination happens much too often as residents find themselves without a means of accessing clean water.
Waste Management:

The city of Leh has a very loosely tied waste management system. Every morning around 6 am, vendors can be seen sweeping their stoops and street into larger piles of trash. This trash is then collected either by a man-powered wheelbarrow or garbage truck and then transported to a local dump. This dump consists of a walled courtyard which is home to two large garbage piles. Due to the city’s lack of a more innovative or ecologically friendly waste management system, locals have resorted to various detrimental means of dealing with their waste. This sometimes consists of leaving their trash in heaps on the side of the street, or in an empty courtyard. Sometimes residents even resort to burning their waste, and with no recycling system available, this waste contains synthetics such as plastics or rubbers which when burned generate harmful fumes.