ISLAMABAD: Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Climate Change Malik Amin Aslam on Saturday conceded before the Islamabad High Court (IHC) that development projects are being undertaken compromising on the environment aspect.

Appearing before an IHC bench in connection with a petition filed by a resident of I-8 against the construction of a boundary wall along a natural ravine, the adviser said: “Environment impact assessment (EIA) report is supposed to be prepared before commencing of project but it is sought after completion of the project.”

IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah observed that environment is being compromised because successive governments did not empower the Pakistan Environment Protection Agency (Pak-EPA) to enforce the law.

“You should make Pak-EPA independent and empowered to take action against influential people without any discrimination,” Justice Minallah advised the climate change ministry.

According to him, the poor man was suffering the most from the adverse impact of climate change.

Says EIA report is supposed to be prepared before commencing any project

He remarked that due to environmental degradation and non-implementation of applicable laws, the ecosystem in the protected national park has virtually deteriorated, adding negligence of the Capital Development Authority (CDA) was also unforgivable.

He, however, expressed hope that despite all challenges, the SAPM would ensure implementation and enforcement of the environment laws.

Justice Minallah sought a report from the climate change ministry on enforcement of environment laws and adjourned the hearing for three weeks.

Last week, the court had stopped the CDA from undertaking the project without the EIA report.

The court had observed: “One of the most important statutory regulators i.e. Pak-EPA established under the Act of 1997 has either been deliberately kept incapacitated and ineffective or meeting the challenges of climate change and environmental degradation is not a priority of the federal government.”

Pakistan is ranked amongst the top 10 countries declared as most vulnerable to the life threatening outcome of climate change.

It has been assessed as amongst those countries which have the highest rate of deforestation. Experts have classified Pakistan as a prime target of global warming.

Justice Minallh observed that unregulated human activities, particularly illegal construction and urban sprawl, are prime causes for global warming, air pollution, water scarcity, loss of forests, extinction of agricultural land and wildlife.

The Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) already faces a serious water crisis and it would definitely be exacerbated if effective environmental management is not implemented on an urgent basis.

According to a report compiled by the Asian Development Bank, “Climatic changes are expected to have a wide ranging impact on Pakistan, affecting agricultural productivity, water availability and increased frequency of extreme climatic events.”

A World Bank study carried out in 2015 had estimated that environmental degradation was costing Pakistan almost nine per cent of its GDP.

Published in Dawn, August 23rd, 2020