Nowhere to go: Capital without a permanent landfill site
Private housing societies too lack facilities to dump solid waste.
ISLAMABAD:
The capital’s civic agency along with most private housing societies do not have appropriate facilities to dispose of solid waste in an environmentally-friendly manner.
The capital lacks a facility for disposing of solid waste due to absence of a proper dumping site.
A survey conducted by The Express Tribune reveals that no existing or upcoming housing society has a proper design or plan to construct a separate landfill site or incineration plant to dispose of solid waste produced on daily.
In the beginning of the current year, the Supreme Court (SC) had taken a suo motu notice against CDA regarding the dumping of solid waste in the foothills of the Margallas in Sector D-12. The SC directed the civic agency to formulate a long-term strategy for proper disposal of solid waste.
CDA informed the court that its planning wing was in the process of selecting a feasible site for the purpose. City managers had proposed Nilore---in the outskirts of the capital---as a site for construction of a permanent landfill site. Another site was proposed in Sector I-17, which was originally planned for the establishment of industrial units.
Nilore was considered by CDA officials as the most suitable site due to its topography which consists of ditches and ravines. However, a CDA official said there were several construction restrictions in the area.
In 2010, there was a proposal to establish a landfill site near Kuri village, but after strong opposition from land developers, the idea was dropped in 2012, the official informed. According to CDA estimates, the volume of waste generated in the capital is around 600 metric tonnes per day. About 91 per cent of the waste generated in the capital comprises household and green waste, while the rest includes plastic, glass and construction material.
Sectors I-11 and G-6 collectively generate 168.6 metric tons of garbage per day, while sectors E-8 and G-5 generate 2.5 tons.
The CDA has outsourced waste collection in six residential sectors, G-6, G-7, G-8, G-9, G-10 and I-10.
In the late 1980s, the authority started dumping garbage in Sector H-12 and continued the practice till 2006 after which it was shifted to Sector H-11. Following a Islamabad High Court order, Sector I-14 was selected as the new site in 2010 which too was later shifted to I-12 in 2011 and in 2013 to Sector D-12. After the Supreme Court took notice of lack of proper disposal, CDA shifted its dumping site to Sector I-12 again.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 8th, 2014.
The capital’s civic agency along with most private housing societies do not have appropriate facilities to dispose of solid waste in an environmentally-friendly manner.
The capital lacks a facility for disposing of solid waste due to absence of a proper dumping site.
A survey conducted by The Express Tribune reveals that no existing or upcoming housing society has a proper design or plan to construct a separate landfill site or incineration plant to dispose of solid waste produced on daily.
In the beginning of the current year, the Supreme Court (SC) had taken a suo motu notice against CDA regarding the dumping of solid waste in the foothills of the Margallas in Sector D-12. The SC directed the civic agency to formulate a long-term strategy for proper disposal of solid waste.
CDA informed the court that its planning wing was in the process of selecting a feasible site for the purpose. City managers had proposed Nilore---in the outskirts of the capital---as a site for construction of a permanent landfill site. Another site was proposed in Sector I-17, which was originally planned for the establishment of industrial units.
Nilore was considered by CDA officials as the most suitable site due to its topography which consists of ditches and ravines. However, a CDA official said there were several construction restrictions in the area.
In 2010, there was a proposal to establish a landfill site near Kuri village, but after strong opposition from land developers, the idea was dropped in 2012, the official informed. According to CDA estimates, the volume of waste generated in the capital is around 600 metric tonnes per day. About 91 per cent of the waste generated in the capital comprises household and green waste, while the rest includes plastic, glass and construction material.
Sectors I-11 and G-6 collectively generate 168.6 metric tons of garbage per day, while sectors E-8 and G-5 generate 2.5 tons.
The CDA has outsourced waste collection in six residential sectors, G-6, G-7, G-8, G-9, G-10 and I-10.
In the late 1980s, the authority started dumping garbage in Sector H-12 and continued the practice till 2006 after which it was shifted to Sector H-11. Following a Islamabad High Court order, Sector I-14 was selected as the new site in 2010 which too was later shifted to I-12 in 2011 and in 2013 to Sector D-12. After the Supreme Court took notice of lack of proper disposal, CDA shifted its dumping site to Sector I-12 again.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 8th, 2014.