Lahore: The Punjab government has moved into the next phase of its Suthra Punjab Program, with a renewed focus on monetizing municipal waste and addressing environmental challenges. As part of the initiative, landfill sites on the outskirts of major cities, including Lahore, will be converted into income-generating assets through carbon credit trading and biogas production.
The Lakhodare waste dumping site, located near Lahore, is expected to generate PKR 1 billion annually through carbon credit sales under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement. The site is also capable of producing up to 20 tons of biogas.
In a meeting chaired by Punjab Local Government Minister Zeeshan Rafiq, various recycling and energy generation strategies were discussed. Senior officials, including Punjab Local Government Secretary Shakeel Ahmed Mian and Additional Secretary for Development Ahmer Kaifi, attended the session.
Lahore Waste Management Company (LWMC) CEO Babar Sahib Din briefed the participants on proposed recycling methods and their economic potential. The Minister revealed that the government is exploring plans to generate energy from animal waste (offal), estimating that Lahore alone could produce 1,000 tons of energy from it. He directed officials to organize a roadshow in Lahore or Islamabad to promote the province’s waste-to-energy efforts to both local and foreign investors, with plans to hold similar events internationally.
Secretary Shakeel Ahmed Mian emphasized that waste recycling is globally recognized as a key solution to environmental degradation and called for a comprehensive proposal to be presented to the Chief Minister.
LWMC CEO Babar Sahib Din added that a 50 MW power plant is also under consideration in collaboration with the Punjab Energy Department. He noted that under the broader Clean Punjab initiative, large volumes of municipal waste are collected daily in Lahore, and several local and international companies have already expressed interest in the province’s recycling and energy conversion efforts.
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