Housing projects: Installation of wastewater treatment plants made mandatory in Punjab

LAHORE: The Punjab Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has made it mandatory for all housing societies, public or private, to allocate a specific area within their master plans for the installation of wastewater treatment plants before seeking environmental approval for their projects.

According to an official notification issued by Dr. Imran Hamid Sheikh, Director General of EPA Punjab, no Initial Environmental Examina-tion (IEE) or Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) case will be processed unless a clearly demarcated space for a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) is included in the project’s layout plan. The directive, issued under Section 6(1)(t) and Section 12 of the Punjab Environmental Protection Act, 1997, takes immediate effect.

The order emphasizes that untreated municipal or sewerage wastewater from housing societies poses a severe threat to public health and the environment by contaminating water bodies and groundwater resources and spreading waterborne diseases. It was observed that many housing schemes have been discharging untreated sewage into open drains and agricultural lands, resulting in significant ecological degradation.

As per the new regulation, no housing project will be granted environmental approval if it fails to allocate proper space for the wastewater treatment facility in its master plan. The reserved land cannot be repurposed for any other use, including waste disposal or ancillary facilities, and must be distinctly marked in the project layout.

The EPA also directed all project proponents to submit detailed engineering designs, treatment capacity plans, and operation and maintenance mechanisms for the proposed WWTPs as part of their IEE/EIA submissions.

Copies of the order have been circulated to all relevant authorities, including the Punjab Housing and Town Planning Agency (PHATA), Lahore Development Authority (LDA), Multan Development Authority (MDA), and other city development bodies, for strict compliance in granting environmental approvals. Officials said the move marks a significant step towards sustainable urban development and the prevention of pollution from housing schemes across Punjab.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025