LAHORE: The Lahore Waste Management Company (LWMC) will award project to a Chinese company by the end of next month for the installation of three autoclave-based treatment facilities at its Mahmood Booti compost plant.

The facilities will collect, sterilize and shred hospital waste of 10 tons (per day) and dump it at the landfill site. The waste can also be diverted to the company’s 40MW waste to energy project that will be operational by 2021, according to official sources.

According to a spokesman for the company, the Specialized Healthcare and Medical Education (SHC&ME) department engaged the LWMC to explore a feasible solution to treat and dispose-off infectious healthcare waste of hospitals of Lahore in an environment friendly manner.

The department through a letter informed us that the provincial cabinet accorded approval regarding appointment of LWMC as an executing agency for the project titled ‘Hospital Waste Management Systems in Lahore. An MoU was signed between the LWMC and the SHC&MED and PC-1 was submitted with the Planning & Development Department for approval, spokesman Khawar Jameel told Dawn.

He said approximately 10.7 tons/day healthcare infectious waste was generated from 17 tertiary care hospitals, whereas no disposal facility was operational, except for an incinerator at the Children’s Hospital that has capacity of two tons per day.

LWMC Senior Manager Rehan Paracha said a public hearing regarding the approval of the project’s environmental impact assessment (EIA) was also held on Saturday. “Public hearing is one of the fundamental parts of the EIA study in which public is invited to give information about the project and to get their feedbacks. Public hearing for the EIA featured environmental impacts and their mitigation measure as well as the benefits of the project,” he added.

He said after the EIA, the company would award the project to a Chinese company. The cost of the project is Rs275 million. It will be ready for use by January next.

He said at present two tons of the hospital waste was being incinerated at Children’s Hospital. The remaining 8.7 tons waste was being incinerated by private facilities approved by the EPA.

“After installation of the autoclaves, such waste will be treated at Mehmood Booti, as it will not require to be incinerated,” he said.

Published in Dawn, August 12th, 2018