Haroon Rashid

Evaluation and analysis of traffic noise in different zones of Faisalabad – an industrial city of Pakistan

Abstract Noise is surely one of the most undesirable by-products of the modern mechanized lifestyle. We see the rush and the fights between the masses relating to the traffic laws everywhere, their violations and their after-shocks. To assess the noise levels in busy roads of Faisalabad, a study was conducted at three different times of a day i.e. morning (9:00 am), noon (3:00 pm) and evening (6:00 pm). Out of a total of 85 sites, 6 sites at morning time, 52 sites at noon time and 27 sites at evening time were exceeding the permissible limit set by Pak-EPA (NEQS). The maximum noise levels recorded were 101.7 dB (A) at State Bank Road, 107.9 dB(A) at Jhal Pull and 107.9 dB(A) at Ayub Agricultural Research Institute (AARI) at morning, noon and evening, respectively. At the same time, the minimum noise levels recorded were 68.3(A) dB at Jhang Bazar, 75.7 dB(A) at Nishat Abad Pull and 71.3 dB (A) was at Jamia Chistian Chowk in morning, noon and evening, respectively. Overall maximum noise level of 107.9 dB(A) was found at two sites, and the minimum noise level was 68.3 dB(A).

Guidelines for Environmental Impact Assessment of JHAL flyover and underpass project in Faisalabad

Abstract In order to facilitate the study and estimate the environmental impacts of any developmental project, Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is a compulsory component for implementation of the project. EIA is the basic requirement for environmental assessment of any project. The EIA structure of Pakistan is functioning under a convincingly powerful legal envelop supplemented with a complete parcel of EIA guidelines. In Faisalabad city, a mega project of flyover and underpass is under construction with the purpose to overcome the heavy traffic load from different areas of the city. This research is based on defining the parameters for conducting project to minimize the adverse effects of the project. Based on the objective of research, the most appropriate methodology was finalized and further research procedures were adopted in order to find out the basic parameters required for this running project. This research covers a wide area which has been investigated for the potential environmental impacts of the project identifies significant parameters regarding environmental degradation and proposed plan for mitigation of these compliances.

QUANTIFICATION OF CO2 EMISSIONS FROM VEHICLES AND POSSIBLE REMEDIAL STRATEGIES IN FAISALABAD CITY

Vehicular emissions pose a negative impact on the environment. Carbon dioxide is the main contributor to global warming which result due to greenhouse effect. The aim of this study is to quantify the CO2 emissions from transportation sector and determine the amount of trees required for compensating that quantified emissions. Road transport sector causes more urban airborne pollution than any other single human activity. Faisalabad is 3rd largest city of Pakistan where the situation is getting alarming due to industrial explosion, population growth and increasing high volume of traffic and it was selected for quantification of CO2. The practical application of emission could be seen last winter in a form of smog and it affected the visibility as well as causing irritation problem in eyes and nose. The study was carried out based on the emission factors of petrol and diesel i.e. 2.3 kg/L and 2.7 kg/L respectively. After collecting vehicular data, distances w.r.t vehicles type and fuels w.r.t distances were determined .With application of emission factors calculations on various amount of fuel used by various vehicles the summation of all emissions were determined. The concentration of CO2 emissions are 601.96 tons minimum, 894.4 tons averagely and 1190.23 tons maximum respectively. As our whole system of transportation is based on fossil fuel and complete shifting to clean fuel is time consuming and difficult so, plantation is the natural and more effective way of cleaning our air because they are natural eaters of CO2. To compensate the maximum emissions, it requires 20million of plantations per year.

Spatial variability and long-term analysis of groundwater quality of Faisalabad industrial zone

Water is the basic necessity of life and is essential for healthy society. In this study, groundwater quality analysis was carried out for the industrial zone of Faisalabad city. Sixty samples of groundwater were collected from the study area. The quality maps of deliberately analyzed results were prepared in GIS. The collected samples were analyzed for chemical parameters and heavy metals, such as total hardness, alkalinity, cadmium, arsenic, nickel, lead, and fluoride, and then, the results were compared with the WHO guidelines. The values of these results were represented by a mapping of quality parameters using the ArcView GIS v9.3, and IDW was used for raster interpolation. The long-term analysis of these parameters has been carried out using the ‘R Statistical’ software. It was concluded that water is partially not fit for drinking, and direct use of this groundwater may cause health issues.

PREDICTING LONG TERM TRENDS OF GROUNDWATER QUALITY IN FAISALABAD USING STOCHASTIC FRAMEWORK

Groundwater is widely used for domestic, industrial and irrigation purposes and over 91% of drinking water requirement is fulfilled by this. It is the renowned fact that contaminated environment has a harmful effect on human, animal and plant life (Saeed and Bruen, 2003). The groundwater quality deterioration due to sewage and solid waste disposal is examined at different sources like bore wells and open wells by water quality analysis. One of the main sources of groundwater contamination is open drains that used as sewers. Water from open drains is often contaminated by bacteria from domestic sources. These infiltrate into the subsoil and reaches to groundwater bearing layers down to a depth of 15m beneath the surface (Hoencamp, 2007). Because of unique chemical properties of water due to its polarity and hydrogen bonding, it has the ability to dissolve, suspend, adsorb and absorb various compounds. Thus water is not pure in nature, as it gains contaminants from its contiguous and those arising from humans and animals as well as other biological activities (Khattak et al., 2012). In Pakistan, groundwater contamination is mainly due to byproducts of different industries such as sugar processing, textile, dying, Cement, leather, fertilizers, pesticides, food processing and others. These industrial effluents have leached down from the drain and pollute the groundwater (Rizwan and Riffat, 2009). It is estimated that in developing countries 60% of the population has no availability of pure drinking water. The health problem is mainly due to groundwater contamination. Worldwide, about 2.3 billion people suffered from different diseases due to contaminated water (UN World Water Development Report, 2003). In last two decades, patient’s number has increased about 200% due to polluted water. About 20 to 40% patients admitted in the hospitals are suffering from water borne diseases (Rizwan et al., 2009). Faisalabad city has made rapid progress in the industry since independence. It is famous for its different industries such as paper, leather, textile, sugar, vegetable oil, soaps, detergents, and many other industries. As a result of industries, a large amount of organic and inorganic solid wastes and heavy metals are being disposed of into the natural streams and drains (Farah et al., 2002). The groundwater is badly affected due to the haphazard construction of different industries Pak. J. Agri. Sci., Vol. 53(3), 679-685; 2016 ISSN (Print) 0552-9034, ISSN (Online) 2076-0906 DOI:10.21162/PAKJAS/16.3517 http://www.pakjas.com.pk