KARACHI, May 18: An eleven-member committee of experts formed by the Sindh Environmental Protection Agency will meet on May 21 for evaluation of environmental impact assessment (EIA) in regard to proposed Karachi Elevated Expressway, said a source in the agency.
Under the provisions of Pakistan Environmental Protection Agency (Review of EIA/IEE) Regulations 2000, the committee of experts performing on a voluntary basis has been tasked to inspect the project site and submit a report on the environment, health, safety and communication impacts on the people of surrounding areas in particular and Karachi in general.
The proposed elevated expressway over M.T. Khan Road, Sharea Faisal from Jinnah Bridge to Quaidabad intersection by the city government through foreign financing has been a source of concern since its ground breaking.
The SEPA had held a public hearing on the EIA of the project on April 3 wherein members of the civil society, representatives of NGOs, professionals, conservationists and other stakeholders had expressed reservations. They had said the BOT enterprise was going to prove an inefficient project, in addition to bringing a host of socio-economic and environmental and vegetation degradation.
As per the project plan, the 25-km-long Karachi Elevated Expressway will have dual carriageway with an elevation for vertical clearance of 5.40 metres minimum for vehicular traffic at surface. The columns of the expressway way will be raised strictly on the existing median, islands or centre of the roads in every section.
The prime objective as maintained by city government officials is to enhance the road capacity of the strategic corridor and facilitate safe, secure and speedy travel from Karachi Port to Airport, Port Qasim, Steel Mills, National Highway and Super Highway.
The city government documents and statements gave to understand that the project was being aimed at facilitating cars and motor-bikes mainly, who in return will be taxed by the foreign investors for undertaking every trip on the elevated way.
An environment concern said that the assessment of environmental impact was a systematic process initiated at the planning stage for predicting all the beneficial and adverse effects that any development activity could cause to environment, and then formulating mitigation measures to reduce altogether or at least minimise the harmful effects of that developmental activity on the environment.
Some of the major functions of EIA unit of an environmental protection agency include review of EIA reports by itself and through sectoral experts, holding public hearing for redressing the grievances/complaints of the general public arising from any developmental activity and approval or rejection of development projects based on benefits and losses.
SEPA Director General Abdul Malik Ghauri, who is also the committee’s convener, said the experts would also guide and help the provincial environmental agency in reviewing the EIA report based on quantities and qualitative assessment of the documents and data furnished by the proponents, comments from the public and government agencies.
The committee members include Shamsul Haq Memon, a former secretary of the provincial environment department and at present a consultant to Sindh Coastal Development Authority, Dr S.M. Makhdoomi of Sir Syed University of Engineering and Technology, Dr Mir Shabbar Ali of NED University of Engineering and Technology, Dr Moazzam Ali Khan of Karachi University, Dr Arif Zubair of Federal Urdu University, Col Najamul Islam of Defence Housing Authority, Tufail A. Shaikh of National Highway Authority, Yousuf Barakzai of Lyari Expressway and Karachi Northern Bypass projects.
