ISLAMABAD: The Capital Development Authority (CDA) is taking concrete measures for cleaning and restoration of streams and nullahs with a view to revive their natural condition. CDA Chairman Imtiaz Inayat Elahi stated this in a seminar ‘Save streams save the life on earth’ organized by the Rotary Club Islamabad, green city at Islamabad Club. The chairman said a survey for cleaning of nullahs had been completed and implementation mechanism was being streamlined for cleaning of the natural steams. He said Islamabad was only city of country that had unique aspect of environment as a dominating factor. However, the rapid increase of population massive development and inadequate management of the ecosystem has damaged the green posture of Islamabad. He said that now they had resized our priorities and conservation of environment has been taken as the primary objective of the future development.
He said their environmental conservation efforts were bearing fruits and Islamabad had been designated as the Green City. An innovative concept of Rain Water Harvesting has been initiated under which more then 20 projects has been completed which helped recharge aquifer and ground water table by 15 to 20 feet, he said. Elahi said CDA constituted a task force in collaboration with Rotary Club to identify the causes and factors that had contaminated the streams in Islamabad. The major damaging factor towards the beauty and nature flow of the streams included mixing of sewage from local sewage lines, illegal disposal of sewage into steams, direct sewage by the kachi abadies and Navy, Air Force sectors.
The CDA chief also told participants that lack of awareness on part of residents was also multiplying the factor as debris and the adjoining residents were illegally dumping solid waste into these natural steams and nullahs as well as the encroachment was also a major problem which was related the flow of steams. Elahi said CDA had taken some primary measures to rectify the problem. In this connection the broken sewage line in sector G-6 and Diplomatic Enclave had been repaired, Illegal sewage lines in Bari Imam had been plugged and residents were constructing the septic tanks for their sewage waste. He said CDA was also upgrading its laboratory for constructing water quality monitoring as well as planning the beautification of green areas along steams. He also said participants of the seminar that CDA had promulgated environmental protection regulations 2008 to control such environmental problems.
Elahi called upon the public and private sector to work jointly for sustainable solution to this problem. He said key to success in this regard lies in education and awareness of the general public to pave the way for restoration of natural streams of Islamabad.
