The government has announced its intention to update the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) Master Plan to find potential sites for a sanitary landfill. By March 2023, a consultant has been entrusted with evaluating the viability of these sites.
The Prime Minister’s Office’s correspondence from December 2nd, 2022, provided the basis for this decision, the Interior Division notified the Federal Cabinet on February 1st, 2023.
The Secretary to the Prime Minister was previously ordered by the Islamabad High Court to produce a report explaining the steps done to establish an environmentally appropriate trash disposal and management system in the ICT, per its orders starting on August 12th, 2022.
Over 1,200 tons of solid trash are produced daily in the ICT, which has a population of over 2.2 million people. Only 650 tons of this rubbish is processed by the Capital Development Authority (CDA), with the remaining tons being controlled by local union councils and private contractors.
The CDA implemented measures to enhance waste management, including putting garbage transportation in a state of emergency, hiring a consultant to create an integrated solid waste management strategy, researching the full scope of waste generation, and designating land for garbage disposal sites.
The CIA’s request to develop a sanitary landfill site has been authorized by the Federal Cabinet, subject to a consultant’s feasibility evaluation by March 2023, with the required legal and administrative processes to be completed throughout construction. Additionally, the Cabinet has directed the Cabinet Division to make this choice public before the official minutes’ approval.
