Industrial units evade emissions testing

Due to the shortage of laboratories, outflow of smoke, water, waste and sound from industrial units continues to remai

LAHORE:

On the one hand where the cities of Punjab including Lahore are facing the worst air pollution and smog, conversely they are also facing a lack of environmental laboratories to monitor the emissions from industrial units.

It is mandatory for factories and industrial units to use environment-friendly technology and ensure that the emissions of smoke, water, waste and sound are monitored. The private sector conducts emission tests of their factories and industrial units through private laboratories and then the reports are submitted to the Punjab Environmental Protection Agency and other concerned agencies.

According to Dawar Hameed Butt, a public policy and environment expert, under the Pakistan Environmental Act 1997, all industrial units are required to do self-monitoring and reporting under smart rules, but only 10 to 20 per cent of industrial units follow these guidelines.

"These industrial establishments conduct gas and liquid emission tests through certified environmental laboratories from the government, but we lack these laboratories. If the government does not have enough resources to check all these industrial units, then the number of environmental laboratories in the private sector should be increased and their monitoring system should also be improved so that private laboratories cannot make fake reports," urged Butt.

Reportedly, there are currently only 14 private environmental laboratories in Punjab, most of which have their licenses expired. However, neither is the Environmental Protection Agency interested in renewing them, nor are the licenses being given to new laboratories.

As per the Urban Unit's Sectorial Emission Inventory of Lahore 2023, the share of emissions from industries in Lahore's air is 9 per cent. Punjab has a total of 17,857 industrial units including 718 chemical and petroleum units, 6,324 engineering, 3,750 food, drinks and tobacco, 1,808 leather, rubber and plastic, 934 paper and 387 non-metals and mineral. Furthermore, while the number of registered industrial units established in Lahore Division is 560, unregistered units including brick kilns and other small units are in thousands.

Sources have revealed that industrial units are bound to submit emission reports to the Environmental Protection Agency as per their categories. Industries are categorized according to liquid and gas emissions, with those in category A required to submit emission reports every month, industries in category B to submit reports every three months and industries included in category C to file reports every six months.

Dr Ziaul Haq, Associate Professor at the National Research Laboratory for Climate Change, University of Punjab, revealed that industrial companies conducted their emission tests through private environmental laboratories and then submitted the reports to the government.

However, most of the reports from private laboratories were unreliable. "Industry owners meet with private laboratories and have customized reports prepared," said Dr Haq, who implored the government to set up its own mobile environmental laboratories to inspect industrial units in different districts.

Commenting on the matter, Muhammad Farooq, Deputy Director of the Department of Laboratories of the Punjab Environmental Protection Agency maintained that recommendations for the establishment of environmental laboratories and their approval for renewal of registration were given by the advisory committee. "On the recommendation of the Advisory Committee, the DG Environmental Protection Agency approves the establishment of a new laboratory and the renewal of registration. The advisory committee has to be constituted by the government and this matter is still under process. However, a sub-committee consisting of 6 officers from the department has been formed, which is looking into the issue of establishment of new laboratories and renewal of registration of old laboratories. A decision will be taken soon," said Farooq.