ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered the Pakistan Environment Protection Agency (Pak-EPA) to seal all steel furnace and fabrication units in the federal capital which do not conform to the environmental regulations and are causing serious health hazards by creating pollution.

A three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar ordered Director General Pak-EPA Farzana Altaf Shah to close all such industrial units in I-9 and I-10.

The court had taken up a 2007 public petition against pollution caused by the industrial units in I-9 and I-10. The petition was filed by Nazir Ahmed and other residents of the two sectors. On Tuesday, the apex court ordered the advocate general Islamabad to provide force, including police, to Pak-EPA to help ceasing the industrial units causing pollution within two weeks.

Advocate general directed to provide needed force, including police, to Pak-EPA to stop functioning of such industrial units in two weeks

During the hearing, the EPA chief told the court that her department had been monitoring industrial units for the last eight years and in response to notices issued by the agency a number of steel furnaces had installed the recommended devices.

However, they utilised the devices only when the representatives of EPA carried out surveys or inspections. This was because the functioning of such devices increased their cost, she added.

When she informed the court that environment tribunals had overturned the decision of the agency to close down the industrial units, the bench ordered that all industrial units closed on the orders of the apex court would reopened only on the orders of this court.

The petitioners claimed that local residents had fallen victim to chronic and life-threatening diseases such as asthma, respiratory infections, allergies and heart ailments due to pollution caused by the industrial units, especially steel furnaces and marble factories.

In 1993, the Capital Development Authority (CDA) had developed a negative list of undesirable industrial plants working in the industrial estate. It encouraged them, especially the steel furnaces, to switch to some other trades as they had been offered a waiver of the normal fee. A few units took up the offer and changed their businesses.

According to earlier reports, 1,500 tons of effluents generated by the pharmaceutical industry, flour, oil and ghee mills, marble factories and plastic extrusion units were being thrown into Leh Nullah every day, heavily polluting the underground water.

Around 500 factories in the I-9 and I-10 industrial estates are causing water and air pollution. Of them, 204 are manufacturing units, including eight steel melting furnaces, 11 rerolling mills, 25 flour mills, five oil and ghee mills, 31 marble cutting and polishing units and 23 metal working and engineering units, GI pipes, soap, chemical, plastic, marble, spices and printing, which either lacked or had inadequate facilities for treatment of waste emissions.

An earlier survey conducted by Pak-EPA had also confirmed high levels of hazardous particles in the air which could cause various respiratory diseases. While almost all industrial units were adding to pollution, eight steel melting units were held mainly responsible for doing the greatest damage to environment.

Published in Dawn, June 27th, 2018