Stone-crushing plants told to ‘halt blasting’

ISLAMABAD:

The Supreme Court on Monday directed the stone crushing plants in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa to stop their operations within two months, citing increase in environmental pollution in the province.

A three-member bench, headed by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial and comprising Justice Ijazul Ahsan and Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, heard the petition regarding K-P stone crushers rules filed by a resident Aamir Ishaq.

During the course of proceedings, the court ordered formation of a commission for protection of environmental pollution that affected nearby communities from power crushers. “The parties including the K-P government should appoint the members of the commission and inform the court in this regard.”

The court stated that the commission should suggest how nearby communities could be protected from pollution and problems spread by power crushers.

Advocate Imran Hussain, counsel for the petitioner, said the K-P government amended rules to allow power crushers to be set up at 500 metres instead of 1,000 metres.

Justice Ijaz said according to reports, power crushing was spreading cancer and respiratory diseases in nearby residential areas. “Why no precautionary measures have been taken for power crushing?”

The counsel maintained that the waste release of stone crushers was the main reason behind the spreading of diseases. “Stone crushers cause rocks to fly with noise, which could lead to deaths,” he added.

Advocate Aitzaz Ahsan, counsel for the stone-crushing plants, said if the population was growing closer to the site, what was the stone crushers’ fault?

Justice Mansoor remarked that the stone crushers were affecting human health which was the main issue in this case.

Justice Ijaz added that the Environmental Protection Agency had installed filters which were monitored in the Islamabad Power Crushers case. He asked why stone crushers did not install filters at their plants in K-P.

During the hearing, Waqar Zakariya, an environmental expert, said lower stone-crusher companies could set up their own monitoring units.

The CJ remarked that even if the population’s distance from stone crushers was increased to 1,000 metres, how could it be ensured that there would be no more residential constructions?

He added that the court was hearing the case of only three stone crushers while there were 950 crushers in the entire K-P. “The K-P government’s resources for environmental protection were very weak.”

The top judge said that if a stone-crusher company did not have the resources to protect the environment, the K-P government should shut it down immediately.

Towards the end of the hearing, he observed that blasting was more harmful to health than stone crushing.

Hearing of the case was adjourned for two months.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, April 26^th, 2022.