Waste Management: Dumping site irks residents

ISLAMABAD: Improper disposal of waste has the residents of Taxila at their wits’ ends. Seeking a viable solution, they filed a petition in Islamabad High Court (IHC) against Cantonment Board Wah Cantt for setting up garbage dumping sites in the residential area. The issue, if not addressed in time, can cause health hazards in the area, they said.

Muhammad Ayub a resident of Bhudo Village, Tehsil Taxila, filed the petition on the behalf of residents, terming Ministry of Environment, Director General Pakistan Environment Protection Agency (Pak-EPA) and Executive Officer Cantonment Board Tehsil Taxila as respondents.

The counsel for the petitioner, Muhammad Afzal Janjua, said the sanitation department of the Cantonment Board had established a dumping site in the residential area located in Budho village.

He told the court that the sanitary workers dumped all the waste material after collecting it from the city, creating problems for the residents.He rendered the practice very dangerous for the residents, posing a serious threat to their health.

He informed the court that the residents of the area wrote several applications to the Executive Officer Cantonment Board for removal of the dumping site from the residential area, but they paid no heed.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 23^rd, 2011.