Ravi receives 1,307 tonne toxic waste daily

[Lahore_Real_Estate]

Tuesday, April 20, 2010
By Ali Raza

LAHORE

AS MUCH AS 1,307.08 tonnes hazardous and untreated waste, mostly industrial, is going into the Ravi on a daily basis, making it poisonous, a study carried out by Environmental Protection Department (EPD), Punjab, has revealed.

As per the study, out of the total 1,307.08 tonnes per day pollution, load from district Lahore is 728.75 tonne per day, 496.1 tonne from district Sheikhupura, 78.08 tonne from district Faisalabad and 4.15 tonne from district Sahiwal. The share of district Lahore in polluting the Ravi is 56 percent, Sheikhupura (38 percent), Faisalabad (6 percent) and Sahiwal (0.3 percent).

The study was carried out by a sub-committee, comprising over Prof Dr Waris Ali of the UET, Dr Shagufta Shahjahan (DG EPD), Dr Javed Iqbal (MD Wasa, Lahore), Director Fisheries department, Hammad Naqi Khan (WWF) Shahid Hassan (Director EPD) and Amir Farooq (EPD).

The committeeís task was to review reports and studies already carried out by different organisations and data on environment pollution and problems of the Ravi. The sub-committee was also tasked with preparing a detailed report, containing recommendations and also to prepare an action plan and identification of tentative resources (Technical and Financial requirements along with responsibilities of various departments).

The report has also revealed that there are about 15 drains that have sewage and industrial wastewater of their areas. These drains join together and dispose of the collected sewage and industrial wastewater into the Ravi through various pumping stations. These 15 drains are: Lakhudair Drain (Mehmood Booti Drain), Sukh Nehr, Shadbagh Drain, Ravi Road Drain, Shahdara Village Drain, Farukhsbad Drain, Buddha Ravi Drain, Outfall Drain, Gulshan-e-Ravi Disposal Station, Babu Sabu/Shadman Drain, Hudiara Drain, Jaranwala Drain, Summundri Drain and Gojra Drain.

Other than the 15 drains, five irrigation channels and canals, namely Marala Ravi Link Canal, Upper Chenab Canal, Qadirabad Link Canal, Trimu Sidnai Link Canal and Havily Main Line Canal, are also throwing industrial and municipal wastewater into the Ravi.

The sub-committeeís report has said that untreated municipal wastewater from the areas under the control of Wasa, Lahore, and industrial wastewater from the nearby areas are the major contributors to the pollution of the Ravi.

The committeeís recommendations are that Wasa, Lahore, should select the most appropriate technology that is within its technical and financial resources and matches with the socio-environmental conditions of the area. It has recommended the use of treated wastewater in irrigation as this would provide water for crop irrigation in addition to diverting wastewater from the discharge into Ravi.

The sub-committee has stressed the treatment of industrial wastewater before being discharged into the surface water bodies.

ìThis could be done either by installing individual treatment plants or combined treatment plants,î the study has recommended, adding that properly planned industrial estates with the combined water treatment plants should be established and the existing industrial units installed in cities be shifted to these industrial estates.

The study has also recommended installation of sewage treatment plants on canals, especially in Gujranwala, Sialkot and Sheikhupura. Moreover, industrial establishments along the Sheikhupura-Faisalabad Road and those located in the Sheikhupura City should install in-house treatment facilities to comply with the NEQs and thus reduce pollution load of the Ravi.

ìThe Pakistan Environmental Protection Act (PEPA), 1997, may be enforced with zero tolerance against industrial units discharging their untreated effluents that result into pollution of the Ravi. There should be strict compliance of the NEQS by all industrial units and the EPD should issue EPOs to the most polluting units immediately,î the report has suggested.

The sub-committee further recommended establishment of the Ravi Cleaning and Management Authority with a mandate and powers to develop plans and take necessary action to keep the Ravi free of pollution. The sub-committee also suggested a comprehensive water quality monitoring on a regular basis.

Meanwhile, another study carried out by the EPD in 2009 revealed that oxygen level required for stable aquatic life had alarmingly reduced in the River, endangering native fish species besides posing a grave threat to the aquatic life and underground water level.

According to international standards, the level of Biological Official Demand (BOD) in the river water should be 80 mg/l whereas the level of the BOD in the water of 10 sewage drains and pumping stations ranges was between 129 mg/l to 430 mg/l. Likewise, the BOD in the water of five drains throwing toxic industrial waste in the river ranged between 24 mg/l to 360 mg/l.

The report revealed that in Lahore, the Main Outfall and Shadbagh drains were the most polluted drains throwing municipal waste in the river while the Hudiyara drain was the most polluted drain throwing industrial sewage into the river. About the level of dissolved oxygen in the Ravi, the report said that near the new bridge Lahore, the oxygen level in the river was too low to support the aquatic life and in Sharakpur and Morekhunda, the riverís dissolved oxygen level depleted significantly rendering it unfit to support aquatic life.

Punjab EPD Secretary Sajjad Saleem while talking with The News over the pollution in the Ravi said the department was making all efforts to highlight the issue. He said the EPD had already filed a complaint in the Environmental Protection Tribunal (EPT) against Wasa on account of discharging untreated sewage into the river, causing water pollution. Wasa had submitted an undertaking in the court for establishment of wastewater/sewage treatment plants for which they had acquired land and PC-1 had been forwarded to P&D Department for approval. He said the LDA had also proposed six sewage treatment plants in Lahoreís Master Plan for which funding was being awaited. These treatment plants were identified on Mian Mir Drain (Rs 4,116 million), Hadiyara Drain (Rs 2,058 million), Shadbagh Drain (Rs 2,744 million), Suckh Nahar (Rs 2,766 million), Sattokatla Drain (Rs 1,070 million) and Farukhabad Drain, Shahdara (Rs 1,194 million).