May 18, 2006

In 2005, the government introduced the National Environmental Policy, which addresses the environmental issues facing Pakistan. It has come up with various suggestions that include installation of wastewater treatment plants for all sewerage systems and devising and implementing rules for proper management of municipal, industrial and hospital waste, writes Sa’adia Reza


As the clock hands trudge from six o’clock to seven, Karachi’s M.A. Jinnah Road gradually over-spills with cars, vans, rickshaws, buses and motorcycles of all sizes, forming a dense jungle of vehicles. Blaring horns pollute the environment further, already corrupted by the poisonous smoke emitting from the vehicles as they inch their way towards their destination.

Pakistan is one country where the urban sights and sounds resonate more with noise and air pollution than anything else. With the easy ownership of cars and motorbikes, traffic has increased substantially in the recent years which has resulted in an alarming rise in air pollution, particularly during the morning and evening peak hours. The scenario has been further aggravated by the dust from the many dug-up roads that mingles with the toxic emission of the vehicles, sometimes making it difficult to breath properly.

Until a decade and a half ago the environmental issues in Pakistan were badly neglected, as subsequent governments focused on more “visible” problems that riddled the country. Resultantly, pollution –– air, noise, industrial and water in particular –– reigned supreme. Moreover, while the urban areas found themselves without a proper sewerage and sanitation system, the rural areas saw themselves being bereft of their forests, which are essential for our ecosystem. Garbage dumps have became a regular feature in each locality and as the monsoon season closes in, the urbanites once again fear that this lack of sewerage facility will lead to various illnesses that originate from dirty water and rot.

Figures suggest that at present around 7000 tons of waste is produced daily, of which only 40 per cent is cleared and transferred to landfill sights where it can be destroyed. On an average, one-and-a-half kilograms of garbage comes out of each house and this does not include the solid waste produced from industries and hospitals. In many areas there is no proper system of transferring the solid waste from houses to certain points from where it can be collected, even though some union councils have begun a door-to-door garbage collection programme in their areas. Consequently, people resort to disposing the waste by burning it in nearby vicinities, hence exposing themselves to toxic fumes that burnt plastic in particular give out.

However, with ban on plastic bags on the cards this bane would hopefully be dealt with soon. Even though it is just the very thin plastic bag, which can choke the sewerage, that will be banned, the step may encourage use of bags which are made out of biodegradable material. More attention should be paid to manufacturing bags that can be easily recycled. The government also needs to focus on more recycling plants in order to clear up the waste as early as possible and utilise it more effectively.

Recently, the city government awarded tenders to some private companies for 18 towns in Karachi who are responsible for moving the waste from the garbage points to the landfill sights located on RCD Highway at Gondh Pass, and Jaam Chakro in Surjani town. However, this move can only completely come into effect if it is carried out uniformly in all areas from the point where the garbage is collected from the houses, to the point when they are destroyed in landfill sights. Backlogs is another area that needs to be worked upon. Karachi’s Lyari river is a perfect example of backlog where garbage of all kind accumulates everyday, while the authorities turn a blind eye. Here, the government needs to carry on a massive drive in order to get rid of these backlogs.

In 2005, the government introduced the National Environmental Policy, which is an overarching framework for addressing the environmental issues being faced by Pakistan. The policy discussed the issue of solid waste management in detail and came up with various suggestions that include installation of wastewater treatment plants for all sewerage systems and devising and implementing rules for proper management of municipal, industrial and hospital waste.

A proper recycling system for both solid and liquid waste management, and awareness among masses to keep their vicinity pollution-free is also equally essential. It remains to be seen how much the federal and the local government follow these suggestions and whether they have the resources to do so.

With the development in various sectors in Pakistan, the number of vehicles on the road has increased dramatically. From 680,000 in 1980 to five million in 2003, Pakistan has seen a major traffic boom. Today, around 300 vehicles are registered in Karachi on daily basis, and more than 1.4 million vehicles operate in the city everyday. To complicate matters further, the conditions of the roads have diverted the traffic to a few main intersections, which has brought on noise and air pollution in those areas.

Also, given that many vehicles, particularly public transport, are issued fitness certificate without any proper inspection, it is no surprise that many vehicles on the road lack safety measures. At present, about 15,000 public transport vehicles are on the roads in the metropolis.

“Commuting in Karachi has become a regular nightmare,” comments Imran, who travels from Gulshan-e-Iqbal to M A Jinnah Road everyday by bus. “It’s only people with ACs in the cars who have it easy. Otherwise, most of us seem destined to inhale fumes and dust.” Most people complain of similar tribulations, but seem helpless since public transport is the only means for a large section of the society.

“Of the total pollution that is emitted from the vehicles, the public transport is responsible for 87 per cent of it. Out of this 90 per cent are diesel-operated vehicles,” says Mohammad Athar, EDO Transport. Diesel produces sulphur dioxide among other toxic fumes, which pose a major hazard to any environment. Since, both the locally manufactured and the imported diesel present more or less similar results, one option could be to purify the diesel. Unfortunately, Pakistan lacks the resources to take such a step at the moment and so this option will have to be ruled out.

The alternative is CNG which is what the city government is focusing on at the moment, claims Athar. “We have divided this project into two levels,” explains the EDO. At the first level the government plans to convert the mechanically fit public vehicles to CNG. At the second level, vehicles that are not fit will be pulled off the road and replaced with CNG buses. The government plans to build CNG stations at the bus terminals since the existing stations do not have the capability to cater to buses.

Of the public transport, rickshaws are major contributors to environmental pollution. So far, there are no safety standards available for rickshaws which run on liquid petroleum gas (LPG). The toxic emissions from rickshaws are dangerous to everyone in proximity besides unnerving the people with its everlasting sputtering noise. The city government has suggested a ban on two-stroke engine for rickshaws and introduce four-stroke rickshaws.

However, while the city government is happy with the steps, a huge question mark still hangs over the finances of such projects. Also, even though the EDO transport insists that our CNG resources will last for around 30 years, it still remains to be seen how the government manages them once they begin operating so many vehicles on CNG.

“So far we do not have the system or data to reduce pollution,” says Noman Saigol, the Advisor to the CM on environment. “In order to counter this lack of resources the provincial government is now joining hands with a few multinationals, like Puspakom from Malaysia which will keep a check on the toxic emissions from the vehicles.”

Air, water and noise pollution level in Pakistan is one of the highest in the world and is causing serious health concerns. A recent survey carried out by the Columbia and Yale universities on environment performance has ranked Pakistan 127th of the 133 countries assessed. This means that Pakistan is among the first seven countries that face serious environmental hazards, despite the fact that Pakistan’s energy demands are not very competitive. However, the lead and carbon emissions on the various urban areas of the country serve as major air pollutants.

Medical reports have revealed that 90 per cent of the diseases related to throat, eyes and ears have roots in the smoke emissions that we inhale everyday while commuting. Noise pollution is also one of the major contributors to disabled hearing, and various frustrations that build up in a society. And while many people do not realise it, illnesses like increased blood pressure is also a result of noise pollution of which a major contributor is traffic. Another contributor is the industries that have cropped up in many residential areas in recent years.