Sherry calls for segregation of toxic waste

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Climate Change Senator Sherry Rehman on Thursday said the National Hazardous Waste Management Policy 2022 should have been devised much earlier, adding that the imported hazardous waste would be regulated under the policy.

“The new policy will help regulate the import of toxic solid waste as this was never done before,” she said, while talking to the media persons. The climate change minister said the provinces agreed on the policy and needed to be empowered to tackle the hazardous waste.

She said the toxic waste needed to be segregated, because it affected agriculture, water and environment. “If even the 20 percent of the hazardous waste is imported, it is a matter of a great concern,” she added.

She said there is an urgent need to classify the waste, adding: “We have completed the consultation process with all the provinces, including Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), as being main the stakeholders, they would ensure the implementation of the policy.

She said it is crucial to start managing hazardous waste as a united front with the federal and provincial governments, working together to protect the environment and people, particularly the vulnerable communities at risk.