‘Combined effluent treatment plant finally approved’

KARACHI: Federal government has finally approved Rs11.7 billion five combined effluent treatment plants in Karachi with the joint funding of Sindh government, while the federal government will provide 33 percent funds instead of 50 percent agreed earlier, officials said.

Addressing a workshop of UNIDO (United Nations Industrial Development Organization) on environment issues in leather industry, Sindh minister for industries and commerce Manzoor Hussain Wassan hoped that with the help of UNIDO, environmental hazards would decrease and exports would increase.

He said Pakistan’s leather industry was one of the most important export sectors with exports of around $1.0 billion. However, they decreased around 15 to 20 percent due to various reasons.

Wassan said Sindh government had provided schemes of Rs25 million each in all industrial areas in Karachi. Abdul Raheem Soomro, secretary for industries and commerce, said combined effluent treatment plant was announced in 2005 by then president of Pakistan while Sindh government had agreed to provide 50 percent funds since day one.

The remaining 50 percent was to be provided by the federal government, which it did not. “Federal government has agreed to provide only 33 percent while the rest will be provided by Sindh government,” he said.

The Central Development Working Party (CDWP) has approved the project saying that the industry should also play their role in its maintenance. The project will now be moved to ECNEC for final approval, which will follow work on it.

He said industries would have to pre-treat their effluent; otherwise the plant would not work. Some small industries might have problems in treatment while the bigger industries should show their responsibility, he said. “It is the moral, legal and social responsibility to treat your effluent,” Soomro said.

Karachi Water and Sewerage Board will execute the project. Gulzar Firoz, president, Pakistan Tanners Association (PTA) Environmental Society, informed the participants about salient features of the UNIDO environment project, which has been divided in three phases; strengthening the transformation of low emissions, capacity building and pilot demonstration of the project.

He said being a GSP Plus holder, Pakistan was required to follow the environment laws of the United Nations. He urged UNIDO representatives to increase solid waste management of the tanneries in the project. Ivan Kral, programme manager of UNIDO and country representative UNIDO Ms Nadia also addressed the workshop.