The Pakistan Environmental Protection Agency (Pak-EPA) has called on the Capital Development Authority (CDA) to improve operations at Islamabad’s main sewage treatment plant as the facility struggles with outdated equipment, insufficient testing, and capacity challenges amid the capital’s growing population.
A recent inspection led by Pak-EPA Director General Nazia Zaib Ali found significant shortcomings at the CDA Sewage Treatment Plant. The Environmental Monitoring Team noted that the site’s Water Testing Laboratory only examines a limited range of water quality parameters, falling short of what is needed for thorough environmental assessment. Most of the laboratory equipment is currently non-functional, raising questions about the accuracy and reliability of the plant’s water quality monitoring.
The inspection also highlighted serious deficiencies in the treatment process itself, particularly in the vital Secondary Treatment stage known as the Activated Sludge Process. Laboratory results revealed that the Primary Treatment stage is removing only about 10 percent of Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD), significantly lower than the standard expectation of 40 percent.
According to the plant’s representatives, a shortage of funds and insufficient budget have hindered critical maintenance and operations. Islamabad’s rapid population growth is putting further pressure on the plant, whose capacity is no longer sufficient to manage the increasing volume of sewage, especially from densely populated neighborhoods.
Pak-EPA is urging the CDA to take immediate action to enhance and expand the treatment facility, repair and upgrade laboratory equipment, and strengthen environmental monitoring. The agency emphasized that treated wastewater must comply with national environmental quality standards before it is released into natural water bodies or reused for agriculture, landscaping, or industrial purposes. Failure to address these concerns, Pak-EPA warns, could have serious environmental and public health consequences for the city.
