RWMC begins work on plan to produce energy from waste

Proposals from different companies have been sought

RAWALPINDI: With heaps of garbage on fire creating an environmental hazard on the outskirts of the city, the local government of Rawalpindi has decided to tackle two issues in one go by working on a plan to burn waste to dispose of it in a safe manner and to produce power while doing so.

In this regard, the Rawalpindi Waste Management Company (WMC) has started working on a plan to generate energy by burning waste. The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) has set a tariff of Rs8 per unit for power produced by such means.

Around a thousand tonnes of waste is produced by different areas of the city, including from the 46 union councils. It is dumped at the 600 Kanal, open-air landfill in Lohsar every day.

The RWMC sees this as an opportunity to not only lower the waste burden on the landfill apart from offering a solution to the city’s power crisis.

RWMC Senior Operations Manager Dr Hamid Iqbal said that all available technologies were being reviewed to assess which would be the most suitable to produce energy from waste in a safe manner.

The case would then be sent to the government of Punjab after the completion of the feasibility study.

In this regard, he said that different companies have been asked to submit their feasibility studies for setting up waste disposal and energy generation plants.

He suggested that they were also reviewing investment models, including one where the Punjab government would bear the cost of the proposed plant.

Interestingly, Rawalpindi and Chaklala cantonment boards have yet to devise any strategy to install a waste disposal plant for the safe disposal of waste. Around 1,200 tonnes of waste is produced from areas controlled by these boards every day. They dump their waste at the open-air landfills on rented premises on the outskirts of the city.

Previously, the open-air landfill near the Bhaata Ground in the Rawalpindi Cantonment Board had had an adverse impact on locals, causing a host of diseases and even fatalities in some cases.

Later, the landfill was shifted as a result of an uproar from the public.

Moreover, sources disclosed that both Rawalpindi and Chaklala cantonment boards did not have enough resources to install costly waste disposal plant.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 4^th, 2019.