Wastewater recycling systems should immediately be introduced in Karachi to increase green cover without further depleting the scarce water resource for residents of the city.
This was one of the unanimous demands by the concerned speakers who spoke at a moot titled “Climate Change and our responsibilities” at the Arts Council, Karachi. The National Forum for Health and Environment (NFEH) in collaboration with Arts Council of Pakistan and EHS Services organised the programme to mark World Environment Day.The speakers, including concerned environmentalists, were of the view that household wastewater could easily be recycled for its use to increase tree cover in the city. They said that besides wastewater recycling for tree plantation the city should have a proper mass transit system for catering to the daily commuting needs of Karachiites with minimal harm to its environment.
They lamented that the proper mass transit system should have been built in Karachi after its population had exceeded three million but the same facility was still missing despite the fact that the provincial capital would soon be home to about 30 million people.
Karachi’s Administrator, Barrister Murtaza Wahab, who was the chief guest on the occasion assured the delegation that Karachi’s municipality would try its best to implement all the recommendations of the moot to improve the environment of the city.
He lamented that graveyards in Karachi had ample green cover but there was a very lesser number of trees for the living people in the city. He said that coming generations should know the importance of planting trees and actively taking part in their nurturing and growth.
He told the audience that he had planted a tree in his house each time his son and daughter were born as the trees were now as old as his child were. Barrister Wahab advised the citizens to adopt the same practice for playing their due role in improving the environment.
CEO EHS Saquib Ejaz Hussain stressed that work should be accelerated to complete the network of bus rapid transit systems in Karachi as its first-ever modern mass transit system to control harmful vehicular emissions.
