FAISALABAD, April 20: The City District Government of Faisalabad (CDGF) lacks facilities and staff to dispose of 550 tonnes of solid waste every day, Dawn has learnt.

CDGF officials, however, claimed they had a Rs600 million project on the table to improve solid waste management in the district.

Faisalabad got the status of city district government before the 2005 local council elections, which holds the district administration responsible for collection and disposal of solid waste.

According to official documents seen by Dawn, residents generate 1,275 tonnes of solid waste every day but the administration disposes of only 600 to 700 tonnes.

The remaining waste is left to litter streets and roads causing health and environmental diseases.

Also no separate system is in place to collect waste from slaughterhouses and hospitals.

Sources said the CDGF had no arrangements for maintenance of refuse-lifting vehicles and 35 to 40 per cent of waste-collecting fleet is off the road. Those being used are also outdated.

The Dawn correspondent observed handcraft was still a basic and mostly-used tool collection of solid waste. Tractor trolleys having no cover are also used to lift garbage which often litter roads and streets with refuse.

Solid Waste Management Department officials also reportedly burn waste in filth depots that also creates problems for residents.

A constable at the Gulberg police station said they had been facing unbearable stench as someone had burnt the dump, few feet from police station. He said a complaint had also been launched with the department, but to no avail.

The city government has not selected a landfill site while recycling of solid waste has not been discussed among the officials, it is learnt.

CDGF sources said the government had planned to improve the solid waste management system at a cost Rs600 million.

Initially, the funds will be available for Jinnah, Lyallpur, Madina and Iqbal towns.

Finance and Planning executive and planning officer Dr Tariq Sardar told Dawn the plan, Integrate solid waste management system for Faisalabad, would help the district government provide effective, efficient and economical means of collection, storage, transportation and dumping of municipal, hospital and slaughterhouses waste.

The district government will also collect industrial waste data for the future planning.

He said the project would help the district government build its operational as well as institutional capacity by buying new equipment.

He said the district government would also introduce a separate disposal system of hospitals and slaughter houses waste in the designated cells at land fill sites.

An awareness campaign would also be launched to educate the people regarding solid waste management.

He said the project would also focus on technical aspects, finance and economics, environmental protection and capacity building and would be completed in two phases. Both phases include allocation of sanitary workers for each town, purchase of vehicles, containers, wheeled handcrafts, mechanical sweepers and water sprinklers. The existing dumping sites would also be developed in the phase, he said.