The transformation of Lahore Waste Management Company (LWMC) Waste Dumping in Mehmood Booti to a solar park and urban forest area progresses quickly. Authorities expect to end the first phase of the project by July this year, with the second phase expected to be completed by the end of the year.

Methagas emissions from the landfill are converted into usable energy through an investment of five billion rupees, and the project is also set to generate carbon credits.

The winding garbage eater near Mehmood Booti, ​​north of Lahore Ring Road, has long contributed to environmental pollution and health risks for local residents, especially LWMC workers, due to the sustained smell and methane emissions.

However, the 42 targets are large landfill, which once stood almost 80 meters high, now covered with land and transformed into a solar park and Byskov.

Most of Lahores waste was historically dumped at this place until 2016 when it was closed and waste disposal was moved to a new place in Lakhodair, which is now also approaching full capacity.

By 2023, the caretaker began an opportunity for the conversion of Mehmood Booti to a solar energy park and recreational space. The current provincial administration has now incorporated this initiative in Chief Minister’s “Clean Punjab” program.

Lahore Waste Management Company and Ravi Urban Development Authority (Ruda) jointly monitor the project. According to LWMC CEO BABAR SAHIB DEEN, the landfill will be used to extract gas that will be sold to nearby industries.

For this purpose, large plastic pipes have been installed, approx. a foot in diameter, at different points across the depositary to catch methane emissions.

In addition to gas extraction, an 11 goal is developed large on site on site, which is expected to generate about five megawatt electricity. Meanwhile, the surrounding 31 hectare area will be dedicated to city forest farming with wooden plantations and hiking trails.

Ruda CEO Imran Amin emphasized that the transformation of Mehmood Booti has transformed a previous waste dump into a lucrative asset that is expected to generate significant revenue.

The project provides financial benefits in the next two decades through carbon credits, biogas and electricity production. Officials estimate that sales of carbon credits alone will generate two to three billion rupees annually, while electricity from Solparken will be commercially viable.

In addition, biogas production from the landfill is expected to contribute billions of rupees to Punjab’s income stream. Feasibility for the Carbon Credit program has already been completed.

Carbon credits, also known as certified reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, are generated when a company, individual or institution takes on projects that reduce or eliminate greenhouse gases.

A metric ton reduced or eliminated greenhouse gas emissions correspond to a carbon credit that can be sold in the carbon market anywhere between five to fifty US dollars, depending on the quality of the project.

Authorities estimate that this project could generate between five hundred thousand to one million US dollars annually through the sale of carbon credit.

Local residents have expressed their appreciation of the initiative. Haji Muhammad Munir Mughal, a local community manager and businessman, noted that the smell and gas emissions from the landfill had previously forced many residents to move, where visitors also avoided the area.

He greeted the government’s efforts to rehabilitate the place to an environmentally friendly space. He further called on the authorities to expand similar environmental projects to the Lakhodair dumping site, which is also approaching full capacity.

Government officials have confirmed that work will soon begin at the Lakhodair dumping site. They believe that these initiatives will play a transformative role in improving Lahores’ air quality and the overall urban environment.