River Training Works at the Upper River Indus

This is a river training project of about 4.6 km long at the upper River Indus. The project also included the re-provision of 5 footbridges and 4 vehicular bridges.

Environmental Concern

Fugitive dust emission due to excavation, improper dusty material handling, stockpiling and vehicle movements on unpaved accesses road was the major environmental concern to the many village houses scattered along the river bank.

Measures Adopted

Watering - Watering all exposed site surfaces and unpaved roads twice daily to control dust emission, particularly during dry weather.

Dust Cover - Enclosure and covering of aggregate or dusty material storage piles.

Placement - Proper placement of dusty material storage piles away from the sensitive receivers.

Treatment - Establish vehicle-washing facilities at the exit points of the site, combined with cleaning of public roads where necessary.

Restriction - Speed controls for vehicles on unpaved site roads.

Monitoring - An environmental monitoring & audit programme was established. Six air monitoring stations were set up near the air sensitive receptors along the river channel.

Observations & Achievements

Watering of the unpaved road effectively suppressed the dust emission especially at location closest to the village houses. Proper site management to dampen excavated materials and to place them far away from village also house minimised potential dust nuisance. Furthermore, the operation of the vehicle-washing facilities and washing of public roads effectively reduced the spreading of mud and dust from passing vehicles.