ISLAMABAD: Four member countries of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) are gearing up to adopt the bioremediation technology developed by Pakistan for waste water treatment.

The technology developed by the National Institute of Bioremediation (NIB) at the National Agricultural Research Centre (Narc) has been selected by the OIC’s Standing Committee on Economic and Commercial Cooperation. The committee has funded the project known as “Pakistan bioremediation model for waste water treatment and capacity building programme among the OIC member countries”.

Explaining the possibility of applying the technology to four member countries of the OIC — Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates — at an international workshop on “Pakistan bioremediation model for waste water treatment”, which concluded here on Thursday, NIB project expert Dr Syed Shakeel Raza said that climatic conditions in these countries were comparable to those found at different places in Pakistan. Narc Director General Dr Mohammad Azeem Khan said the Pakistani model of bioremediation had been acknowledged at the global level, adding that the technology had been replicated at 80 sites of different climatic and soil conditions in Pakistan.

Two projects applying this technology are being executed in Islamabad’s Rose and Jasmine Garden and Fatima Jinnah Park in F-9.

Capital Development Authority Chairman Maroof Afzal said that 15 large and small streams were passing through Islamabad which would be cleaned by using the bioremediation technology. Once treated, he added, the stream waters would be used for greenbelts in order to save clean water for drinking purposes.

NIB Director Dr Yousuf Riaz said the new technology if put to use would reduce strain on fresh water.

“It is cheap and cost-effective as compared to commonly used conventional physical and chemical methods of treatment of domestic and industrial water,” he added.

Published in Dawn, December 12th, 2014