Healthy living: ‘Efforts afoot to make Faisalabad cleaner’

FAISALABAD:

A plan has been made to make Faisalabad a cleaner city, the Faisalabad Waste Management Company (FWMC) managing director (MD) said on Friday.

“The FWMC has formed a plan for modern waste management functions,” Amjad Awan told The Express Tribune.

He said the plan was not limited to collection, transportation and disposal of solid waste. He said it would also help develop a strategy for the next 10 years to achieve new standards of reducing and recycling the solid waste.

“The FWMC will set new benchmarks for solid waste management operations.”

“Using advanced tools to ensure a transparent and smooth service delivery, the FWMC will regain public confidence,” he said.

He said the FWMC had launched a campaign to educate people about their responsibilities with regard to healthy living. He said the company would engage the private sector in its waste management operations.

“This will help ensure disposal of industrial and hospital waste in a better way,” Awan said.

“A business plan will be developed for the waste characterisation.

This will include composting, recycling, refuse-derived fuel (RDF) and use of some other techniques of producing power from solid waste.”

He said a modern landfill would be set up for the safe disposal of solid waste.

Awan said the FWMC would be made an efficient and sustainable institution. He said the company had introduced waste management reforms, organisation of operational and corporate staff, a complaint redress system and waste transport and launched a public awareness campaign.

He said the FWMC had trained its staff, given them ‘environment-friendly’ uniforms, protective shoes, gloves and caps.

“It is designing and distributing a new range of manual tools to help workers perform their job efficiently. New waste carts will also be provided.”

He said transport services would be outsourced. He said an electronic tracking system would be installed in waste-carrying vehicles to curb theft and fuel pilferage. He said it was imperative that the city be kept clean for its citizens.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 3^rd, 2014.