PESHAWAR, April 4: The NWFP government would assist marble and stone crushing units to adopt cleaner production practices in compliance with the national environmental quality standards.

The marble and stone crushing sector would be made to adopt cleaner production practices by executing a development project that would be funded from the provincial government's resources.

Sources said that the need to launch the project was felt after the owners of marble and stone crushing units did not pay heed to the repeatedly issued warnings by the environmental protection agency (EPA), NWFP.

The project, already approved by the competent provincial forum, would cost Rs2 million. The owners of marble and stone crushing units would be imparted technical teaching for properly treatment and discharging of the liquid waste.

The sources said that the unchecked practice of discharging hazardous liquid wastes and contaminated water without adopting proper procedures and precautionary measures on the part of the marble and stone crushing units had seriously affected environment in several parts of the province particularly in areas close to Warsak road and Grand Trunk Road.

"After acknowledging that the repeated notices to the marble and stone crushing units for violating relevant sections of Pepa, 1997, did not yield the desired results, the government decided to tackle the situation in a different way," said the source.

Officials said that apart from launching projects to enhance capacity of the marble and stone crushing units, the EPA was in the process of serving notices to the owners of some more units involved in offences covered under the environmental act.

"The agency would shortly serve notices, under section 16 of the Act, to stone crushing units and marble units for not taking appropriate measures to ensure proper treatment of water," said an official source.

The sources said that apart from issuing fresh notices, the agency was making preparations to defend its cases against offenders before the environmental tribunal.

The three-member environmental tribunal for the NWFP and Punjab, constituted under the Pakistan Environmental Protection Act (Pepa), 1997, is scheduled to meet at Peshawar on April 10 to hear the cases filed by the EPA, NWFP.