02 October 2004	Saturday	16 Shaban 1425

KARACHI, Oct 1: The federal government has accorded approval to the city government's Rs1 billion Solid-waste Management Plan (SWMP), it was reliably learnt on Friday.

The plan pertains to the lifting and disposing of the solid waste, collected from across the city, at five transfer stations and developing landfill sites properly. Besides giving clearance to the plan's conceptual report, the federal government has agreed to provide funds for the project which envisages setting up of the five stations, procurement of covered refuse collection vehicles, relevant heavy machinery and equipment, etc.

The federal government has also appreciated the city government's plan titled, waste-to-energy, under which garbage dumped at landfill sites would be used as raw material to generate energy after segregating invalid elements from it.

The city government has already floated tenders in this regard offering establishment of such a plant on a 'build, operate and transfer' (BOT) basis. The federal government has pledged funding for the plan through the Public Sector Development Plan (PSDP) if a suitable offer was not received in response to the tender notice.

City Nazim Niamatullah Khan had sent the SWMP's conceptual report to the federal authorities about six months back. The Planning Commission, which studied the plan, not only approved it but also offered funding the same, said a spokesman for the city government who highlighted the salient features of the plan.

According to him, the city produces 8,000 tonnes of garbage every day but more than 40 per cent of it remains scattered on roads and in streets. Giving reason, he said it was not possible to collect the entire waste on day to day basis with a limited number of vans at the disposal of the city government.

Moreover, he added, it was all the more difficult for the concerned department to transport 8,000 tonnes of garbage to landfill sites located at far off places. The spokesman said that the SWMP, when implemented, would enable the city government to accomplish this uphill task efficiently and easily.

Under the plan, he pointed out, garbage transfer stations would be established at KDA Scheme-33, Mewa Shah, Surjani and two other sites. Adequate means of transport would be inducted for the lifting and shifting of the 8,000-ton garbage on day to day basis and the solid waste would be disposed of in accordance with the internationally recognized methods to avert environmental degradation of any level.

The city government was confident, he said, that efficient handling of the solid-waste management would bring about a marked improvement in Karachi's environment.

In reply to a question, he said that the federal government would be funding five garbage transfer stations and the city government would establish another one with its own resources. Each of the stations, he said, would cover three towns.

Another salient feature of the plan is the covered landfill sites which would be developed at different places. Segregation process would take place at the sites to extract desirable material for recycling and discard unwanted stuff for disposal.

Most modern technology would be applied to utilize the valid garbage for generating energy, the spokesman said. Asked that how much time the project would take to start functioning, the spokesman said that it would take at least two years.