Work finally begins on upgrade of 3 STPs around Dal Lake

Work finally begins on upgrade of 3 STPs around Dal Lake

Srinagar: After missing many deadlines, the Lakes and Waterways Development Authority (LAWDA) has started work on upgrading the old technology used in Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) in Kashmir.
Lack of funds had long held up the much-needed upgrading of the STPs. Now finally the work has been started, at an estimated cost of nine crore rupees.
The three STPs around Dal Lake were installed in 2008. They were based on the old Fluidized Aerobic Bio-reactor (FAB) technology. This would be upgraded to improve the pollution checking mechanism.
Earlier, a team of scientists from the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) evaluated the STPs around the lake and recommended upgrading of FAB-based technology to improve efficiency.
As per an official at LAWDA, the level of dissolved nitrats, phosphates and other chemicals are much more than permissible limits in the Dal Lake. The Ph value is high, which means the water is alkaline. The sewerage adds nitrates and phosphates to the Dal waters and none of the old STPs is working with the desired results which was the main reason the old STPs needed to change, the official said.
Tufail Mattoo, Vice Chairman of LAWDA, told Kashmir Reader that due to many reasons the STPs were not updraded. “But now we have already started work on all the three old STPs with a budget of 9 crore rupees,” Mattoo said.
He added that by mid September the STPs would have been upgraded.

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