Delivering a keynote address at a seminar on the "Effects of Acid Rain on Fish and Aquatic Life" here at a hotel, director general Fisheries Punjab Dr Mohammad Ayub said on Sunday that according to a recent survey conducted by the Environment Protection Agency, in Punjab about 92 percent diesel and 40 percent petrol vehicles are producing smoke in the city beyond the prescribed limits.
The harmful contents of smoke and dust have increased manifold. Heavy vehicular traffic also caused alarming increase in noise pollution.
Like other countries, the environmental pollution hazards are prevailing and flourishing in Pakistan and this state of affair needs to be strenuously looked into.
The DG said the situation of other types of pollution is also not different in Pakistan.
INDUSTRIAL WASTES: Different industries, including pharmaceutical, tannery, metallurgy, also food and textile established inside and suburbs of cities, are releasing heavy effluent and destroying the environment.
The disposal of untreated industrial wastes in natural water causes mortality of fish and other aquatic life. A number of water bodies that once were famous for fish production, are now depleted of life.
The generators used in cities in case of electricity failure and the smoke emanating from brick kilns around the city are adding to the problem.
Likewise, indiscriminate use of insecticides and dispersion of domestic wastes is also a dark side of the scenario.
Dr Ayub said: "This situation demands that research on the environment, including marshes and waterlogged areas, be carried out so that major factors causing harm to aquatic life may be discerned and harmful effects may be estimated. Research on pollution and strict implementation of rules and regulations for its control is the only way to meet the challenge, he added.