March 24, 2007	Saturday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 4, 1428

Please Visit our Sponsor (Ads open in separate window).

ISLAMABAD, March 23: The Capital Development Authority (CDA) is yet to start Strategic Environment Impact Assessment (SEIA) of its revised master plan to ensure that the city’s environment is not affected by the new construction rules, a well-placed official told Dawn.

The Planning Commission has approved the revised master plan prepared by a private consultant firm and sent it to the prime minister for final approval. The original plan was initially prepared by a Greek firm in the early 60s.

According to reports, major changes have been incorporated in the plan whereby construction would be allowed in zone III and zone IV.

Under the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) Zoning Regulation 1992, construction was prohibited in zones III and IV.

However, construction has already started in these two zones, and after formal permission, the area is likely to witness a boom in this activity.

In the first week of January this year, during a meeting between the authorities of the CDA and Pakistan Environment Protection Agency (Pepa), the former agreed to conduct Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) of all its future development projects including the SEIA of the revised master plan.

The EIA is done at a limited level while the SEIA is meant for bigger projects to address environment concerns.

When contacted, Pepa Director-General Asif Shuja Khan said the CDA had principally agreed to conduct the SEIA of the new master plan.

“According to recent information conveyed to Pepa, the CDA is busy finalising a company which will be entrusted with the job,” the DG said.

But another official, who requested not to be named, argued that the authority was only buying time, as the revised master plan had already been approved by the ministerial committee and would soon be presented to the federal cabinet for final confirmation.

According to Pakistan Environment Protection Act 1997, the EIA or SEIA is carried out at the planning stage of a certain project to guarantee that the project would not cause any harm to its surrounding, the official said, adding that “for the last one year reports are appearing in media that the CDA is revising its original master plan on the basis of which Pepa has raised the issue but so far nothing has been done”.

Every time the CDA is approached in this regard, the officials concerned say they are looking for a firm to conduct SEIA and that is it, he added.

He also contested that there would be no SEIA, and the revised plan would meet the same fate like many other projects which had been completed by the CDA without conducting environment assessment.