RAWALPINDI: The first Integrated Waste Management Station was inaugurated at the Pir Mehr Ali Shah Arid Agriculture University on Friday.

The facility is based on the mechanical and biological treatment process of solid waste with a proper segregation and recovery of recyclables.

It was completed in about two months at a cost of Rs0.5 million.

The station was inaugurated by Secretary Agriculture Punjab Mohammad Mahmood while university Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Rai Niaz Ahmad, faculty members, staff and students were also present.

The integrated waste management facility is not only the first one in educational institutes but also in the country.

It was designed and executed by the university vice chancellor and Dr Ghulam Jillani.

The key features of the station are to transform decomposable waste into compost for organic agriculture and bio-gas.

The station also has the arrangement for food waste drying from poultry feed and water heating through the incineration of combustible waste.

The university is also planning to generate electricity through a steam boiler.

Speaking on the occasion, the secretary agriculture, Mohammad Mahmood, said solid waste if handled properly would maintain the natural balance of essential elements and thereby promote more harvest from nature.

He said people should realise that the waste which they dumped on the streets were not actually waste rather the raw material for some other products.

He appreciated the efforts of the university to establish the solid waste management station and recommended that it should be promoted by increasing public awareness and integrating the informal sector to make the current system sustainable and financially viable.

The vice chancellor briefed the participants about the aims and objectives behind the establishment of the station. He said solid waste was collected from the campus and recycled into useful/beneficial products without any sort of pollution.

Meanwhile, the second meeting of the Olive Development Group organised by the Punjab Agriculture Department and the USAID Punjab Enabling Environment Project was also held at the agriculture university to review the implementation status of the olive sector development initiatives.

The secretary agriculture along with 27 members of the group representing public and private sector attended the meeting.

They highlighted the need to identify viable solutions to the problems hindering the sector growth through collective efforts.

Published in Dawn, July 30th, 2016