Toxic waste is wreaking environmental havoc in Karachi. A technical survey by the Scope Environmental Management Research and Information Centre reports that Karachi's 1,900 industrial units and 200 hospitals churn out nearly 75 tonnes of solid hazardous industrial waste a day. The absence of environmental regulations, proper waste treatment facilities, and adequate landfill sites in and around the city magnify the problem.
The chemical and allied industries, including chemicals, pharmaceuticals, paints and varnishes, and pesticides, which account for 78.42 per cent of the pollution, top the list of polluters, followed by the petroleum (6.93 per cent), leather (5.55 per cent), primary metals (3.25 per cent) and other industries (5.85 per cent).
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