EPA seals 12 brick kilns, six stone crushers

ISLAMABAD:

The Rawalpindi Environmental Protection Department during a crackdown sealed 12 brick kilns, and 6 stone crushing units and impounded 33 vehicles for violating environmental laws.

According to a spokesperson, the operations aimed to combat the rising issue of smog in the region.

Additionally, during the operation, authorities identified numerous dengue larvae breeding sites, leading to the filing of cases against 35 property owners and the sealing of 20 properties.

Environment Protection Department Deputy Director Maria Safeer along with Senior Inspector Romaisa Babar and inspectors Maqbool Hussain, Mohsen Shah, and Inamul Haque carried out the operations.

One of the operations involved the inspection of 350 vehicles, resulting in 124 smoke-emitting cars being issued challans, 33 being impounded, and a total fine of Rs228,800 imposed. A thorough examination of 152 brick kilns revealed that 18 of them were emitting excessive smoke.

Furthermore, cases were filed against seven kiln owners.

In addition to these measures, eight hospitals received notices for contributing to pollution, with two of them being charged accordingly.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 14^th, 2023.