Punjab Makes Septic Tanks Mandatory For All Housing Societies, Plazas

All housing societies have been directed to adopt a “dual water management system,” which means each house must be equipped with a three-chamber septic tank while societies themselves must install a treatment plant at community level

LAHORE: (UrduPoint/UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News-Sept 16th, 2025) The Punjab Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has introduced a new regulation requiring every house and plaza in housing societies to have a septic tank, in a bid to protect underground water and reservoirs from sewage contamination.

According to Director General EPA Imran Hamid Sheikh, all housing societies have been directed to adopt a “dual water management system,” which means each house must be equipped with a three-chamber septic tank while societies themselves must install a treatment plant at the community level. Research shows that three-chamber septic tanks can reduce around 70 percent of solid waste and 40 percent of pollution in wastewater.

The EPA has also set specific size requirements for septic tanks:

5-marla house: 6 ft long, 4 ft wide, 4 ft high

10-marla house: 9 ft long, 6 ft wide, 4 ft high

1-kanal plaza: 10 ft long, 6 ft wide, 5 ft high

3–4 kanal plazas: 15 ft long, 6 ft wide, 5 ft high

Above 4 kanal plazas: 16 ft long, 6 ft wide, 5 ft high

DG Sheikh stated that no new housing society will be granted environmental approval unless it fulfills this septic tank requirement.

Official instructions have been sent to the Lahore Development Authority (LDA), Faisalabad Development Authority (FDA), Gujranwala Development Authority (GDA), Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA), as well as deputy commissioners, to strictly enforce the policy at the time of land allotment.

The Judicial Water and Environment Commission and other relevant institutions have also been notified.

EPA field officers have been instructed to ensure strict compliance to safeguard underground water and the environment from sewage hazards.

Explaining the mechanism, EPA Deputy Director Ali Ijaz said a septic tank is an underground structure, usually built with concrete or bricks, that partially treats wastewater from toilets and kitchens.

In a multi-chamber tank, heavier particles settle at the bottom, grease and foam rise to the top, while relatively cleaner water passes into the next chamber. This process significantly reduces pollutants before the water is absorbed into the ground or directed to a treatment plant, though it is still not potable.

Ijaz added that septic tanks prevent untreated sewage from contaminating groundwater, which can otherwise lead to serious waterborne diseases such as cholera, typhoid, and hepatitis.

Making septic tanks compulsory, he emphasized, is a vital step to protect both public health and the environment.