Green initiative: Sialkot Tannery Zone to be completed in three years

LAHORE:

Work continues on the Sialkot Tannery Zone. The project will be completed in three years, Naseemur Rehman Shah, the Environment Protection Department deputy director, said on Saturday.

“The boundary wall has been completed and 4,000 trees have been planted around it to act as a buffer,” he said. He said that a meeting had been held with tannery owners to decide infrastructure design in the zone.

“The road infrastructure in the zone will be complete by the end of February, 2016. Next, the drainage system will be put in place,” he said.

“During our meeting with tannery owners, we also discussed the design of factories and other facilities. They have been directed to keep the design in line with international specifications,” he said.

“Under this project, 243 tanneries currently located in Sialkot will be shifted to an industrial area outside the city built specifically for the purpose,” he said.

The project was first envisaged in 2002 by the Sialkot district government, the EPD, the Sialkot Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Sialkot Tanneries’ Association Guarantee Ltd.

A part of the project cost will be borne by tannery owners. The treatment plants will be completed using funds from donor agencies.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 30^th, 2015.