Asphalt Mixing Plant Mangal Posing Threat To Humans, Wildlife; Locals Warns Protest

Residents of Mangal area here Tuesday warned to stage a protest rally against Asphalt mixing plant of Communication and Works (C&W) department against use of substandard material to run their boiler

ABBOTTABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 15th Oct, 2019 ) :Residents of Mangal area here Tuesday warned to stage a protest rally against Asphalt mixing plant of Communication and Works (C&W) department against use of substandard material to run their boiler.

Inhabitants of Mangal said that the mixing plant is constructed just 200 yards away from the freshwater source which is being used by the dozens of villages of two union councils including Banda Peer Khan and Baldheri, adding that use of substandard material by boiler was causing serious threat of contamination to freshwater besides damage to environment and wildlife of the area.

While talking to APP a local journalist Babar Khan said the people are also worried about use of bituminous-bound materials, crushed rock, sand, gravel and slags material.

He said that waste materials were polluting the environment and the only clean drinking water source for the many villages of the area.

He recalled that two years back some of the wasted material was dumped in the water reservoir which was highly contaminated and resulted in killing of large number of fish.

Babar Khan further said the plant was installed by C&W department 20-year ago despite concerns by the local people. He said it was hard to breath within one kilometer radius of the plant owing to odor of the material burnt in the boiler.

He claimed that local people were suffering from several diseases including allergy, sour throat, bronchitis and others.

Babar Khan disclosed that the locals complained times and again against the boiler but Deputy Commissioner, Assistant Commissioner Abbottabad and Environment Protection Agency took no significant step except mere visit.

From last decade, locals were protesting against asphalt plants and demanding from the environment and other concerned departments of KP to take strict action against the plant which was omitting pollution and had made life miserable for them besides posing threat to environment and local fauna.