National Highway Authority (NHA) on Monday started a 2-day workshop on Environmental Training to aware contractors consultants and staff of environmental protection in the country.
The workshop jointly organised by NHA and World Bank to activate different stakeholders in improving environmental conditions during implementation of highway building projects.
Addressing the workshop, NHA's member operations, Aziz-ul-Haq Mirza laid emphasis on protection of environment and said, improvement of environmental conditions is an important issue and cannot be ignored any more.
To control pollution and keep environment clean and healthy is our responsibility, he said and hoped, the workshop will produce encouraging results. Aziz said, under the National Highway Improvement Programme, being undertaken with the assistance of the World Bank, specific sections of Karachi-Lahore-Peshawar National Highway will be improved, resurfaced and strengthened.
There is need to take possible measures to control pollution in roads construction process, he said.
Anil Somani of World Bank threw light on environmental safeguards and as applied to a road project and implementation and organisation responsibilities for the environmental management plan.
NHA's Director Environment, Mushtaq Ahmad Khakwani expressed views on environmental management plan of the National Highway Improvement Programme Regulatory requirements and guidelines for assessment and mitigation measures.