Originating at Verna and meandering for at least 40km within Salcete before finally emptying out into the Arabian Sea at Mobor, the River Sal was once considered to be the South Goa taluka’s lifeline. It was a hub for trade during the Portuguese rule and after that ended, it provided sustenance to local communities through salt harvesting and fishing activities, while also indirectly supporting the myriad businesses that sprung up along its fertile banks over the years.
But as is Goa’s wont, it wasn’t long before the river – which once held pride of place as one of the state’s major water bodies – gradually became more like a sewer. The Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB), which follows an exercise of monitoring water quality in all rivers through the year, stated in one of its reports that the River Sal was the state’s most polluted river stretch and the only one to fall under the Priority III category.
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According to the Central Pollution Control Board, a river that falls under this head is considered to be moderately polluted and has a biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) content of 10-20mg per litre. BOD is a measure of the amount of oxygen that microorganisms require to break down organic matter in a river. A high BOD content indicates that a river is seriously polluted and that its water does not have adequate oxygen levels to efficiently sustain aquatic life.
During its monitoring exercise, the GSPCB also found that water in certain locations in the river were not fit for bathing and was teeming with faecal coliform due to untreated sewage being discharged into the river. The situation is compounded by the fact that the River Sal is a non-perennial river and is largely sluggish for most of the year except during high flow periods that arise during the monsoon season.
The pollution board found that one of the main culprits of the deterioration of the River Sal’s water quality is the leaking 30-plus year old sewerage system that runs through Margao and areas along the river. A physical survey that the board conducted some years ago revealed that untreated sewage was discharged through nullahs and tributaries into the River Sal at Khareband, Navelim and Sirlim.
Release of untreated sewage by tourism establishments, especially those located on the Sal’s banks at Mobor, is also a cause for concern. Then there is the issue of open defecation and dumping of domestic waste into the river from slums at Khareband, industrial waste from the industrial estate upstream at Verna, and huge volumes of fish waste from the Margao fish market, which further send the river’s water quality plummeting.
An obvious sign that the River Sal is teetering on life support is the proliferation of water hyacinth along several stretches of the river. An invasive plant species, the uncontrolled growth of water hyacinth is considered to be a sign of severe water pollution as the plant thrives on dissolved heavy metals from the water. In spots where more water hyacinth can be seen instead of water, it is clear that the river is spluttering, choking and might eventually die.
While the state government has made many efforts to stem pollution of the River Sal, these have often been piecemeal and without far-reaching consequences. But if the river is to be saved, the government needs to get its act together and use its might to crack down on transgressors to hit home the message that it means business.
The most recent intervention of the GSPCB to finally shut down a scrapyard that was operating illegally on the banks of the river at Benaulim, though belated, has brought some relief. The board found that the scrapyard had two high-capacity baling machines, raising concerns about the scale of the operations at the site.
One thing is certain… the River Sal needs to be saved before its water, and time, trickles out.
