Best Practices of Solid Waste Management at Institute of Business Management, Karachi, Pakistan

Recently we conducted a study to evaluate the existing solid waste management practices at Institute of Business Management (IoBM), Karachi which shows that the institute possesses best management practices related to solid waste collection, transport, segregation, recycling/reuse, and final disposal. Adequate number of color-coded bins have been laid at appropriate locations throughout the university campus. Institute has enough staff for waste management including waste collection, transportation, and disposal. Results of our study indicate that about 2,033 kg of solid waste/month (24.5 tons/annum) is generated from the IoBM campus. Out of the total, about 67.8 % is the recyclable and reusable plastic, paper, and metal waste while, the remaining (about 32%) is mostly organic waste generated from various facilities of the university. Economic analysis indicates that about 252,012 Pak rupees annually are earned from selling the recyclable and reusable inorganic solid waste. Study also indicate that about 500 kg of good quality compost per month can be prepared from the organic waste including food and yard waste that can be used for existing horticultural activities at the university. Moving towards a sustainable integrated solid waste management system necessitates improved system of waste collection, segregation, reselling, and compostin

Role of Urban Parks in Carbon Sequestration– A Case Study of Safari Park, Karachi, Pakistan

Urban parks besides their recreational use can be the potential source of climate mitigation through carbon sequestration. Present study aims to identify the carbon sequestration potential of Safari Park which is by far the largest public park of Karachi established in 1970 covering an area of 0.72 km2. A total of 153 individual trees belonging to 25 species and 14 families were included in the study. Five dominant species with highest Important Value Index (IVI) were Cocos nucifera (14.62 %), Azadirachta indica (14.21 %), Guaiacum officinale (9.93 %), Washington robusta (9.31 %) and Delonix regia (7.11 %). The highest carbon content was sequestered by C. nucifera (9472 kg) followed by D. regia (7599 kg), W. robusta (3576 kg), A. indica (1861.5 kg) while, C. erectus sequestered the lowest carbon content (765.6 kg). Pearson coefficient of all 5 dominant species showed a significantly positive correlation (p \u3c 0.05) between volume and diameter at breast height (DBH) at 0.80 - 0.93 cm, providing an assumption that trees with high DBH have a greater role in carbon sequestration. With a ratio of 17 native and 8 non-native species, the park can serve as an example of well-balanced and diverse ecosystem (Shanon and Simpson Indices of 2.8 and 0.92) focused on yielding maximum carbon content. Because of its large area with high DBH, Cocos nucifera accumulated the most carbon. The tree composition can be taken as a foundation for urban planners who are focused to integrate species diversity, richness and carbon offsetting requirements while setting up a public park in similar arid and semi-arid conditions

Incomplete miscarriage during the first trimester: a comparison of indoor versus outdoor procedure

Introduction: Miscarriage is defined as the natural death of a fetus inside the uterus. To remove complete conception material after a miscarriage, vacuum aspiration or dilatation & curettage are methods to remove uterine contents. Controversies exist regarding both procedures. So we conducted this study to confirm the more successful method. Objective: To compare the effectiveness of manual vacuum aspiration versus traditional evacuation and curettage (E & C) among females presenting with incomplete miscarriage during the first trimester of pregnancy Materials and Methods: This randomized controlled trial was done at the Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Shalamar Hospital, Lahore for 6 months. Then the selected females were divided randomly into 2 equal groups. In group A, females had manual vacuum procedure while in group B, females had evacuation & curettage under general anesthesia. After 12 hours of the procedure, ultrasonography was done to confirm complete evacuation. Results: The mean age of the patients was 29.87 ± 6.71 years, the mean gestational age was 8.06 ± 2.82 weeks. The effectiveness was noted in 248 (91.85%) patients. Statistically, manual vacuum showed significantly more effective as compared to evacuation & curettage procedure in the management of incomplete miscarriage i.e. p-value = 0.008. Conclusion: It has been proved that manual vacuum aspiration is more effective than traditional evacuation & curettage in the management of incomplete miscarriage

Effect of Nutrient Concentration and pH on Growth and Nutrient Removal Efficiency of Duckweed (Lemna Minor) From Natural Solid Waste Leachate

This study aims to investigate the effect of nutrientconcentration and pH of leachate on growth and nutrientremoval efficiency of duckweed (Lemna minor). A batchexperiment was conducted using pH range of 4-10 and twoinitial leachate dilutions with nutrient concentrations of N (90and 20 mg L -1) and P (76 and 16 mg L-1) and effect of pH andinitial nitrogen (N) and phosphorous (P) contents of naturalleachate was investigated on growth and nutrient removalefficiency of Lemna minor. Nutrient removal rates of duckweedincrease with an increase in initial nutrient concentration ofleachate at all pH levels. At both leachate dilutions, pH range of6-8 with an optimum of 7.1 is good for nutrient removalefficiency of duckweed from leachate. The highest rates ofnitrogen (1.22 g m-2 day-1) and phosphorous (0.95 g m-2 day-1)removal were achieved from more concentrated leachate at pH7.1. Growth rate of duckweed decreases with an increase ininitial nutrient concentration of leachate at all pH levels.Maximum growth rate of duckweed (19.6 g m2 day-1) wasachieved at pH 7.1 from less concentrated leachate. Nitrogenand phosphorous uptake in duckweed biomass was higher inless concentrated leachate at all pH values. Optimum pH for Nand P uptake by Lemna minor is 7.1 at both leachate dilutions.At this pH duckweed showed 94 % and 91 % uptake of N and Prespectively from less concentrated leachate

Greenhouse Gas (CO2, CH4 & N2O) Emissions from Electricity Consumption in Private Sectors Universities of Karachi.

Increasing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is worsening the climate change and its impacts all over the world. Currently there are number of techniques to estimate the GHG emissions and their concentration in the atmosphere. This study estimates the GHG (carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide) footprint based on the one-year average fossil fuel consumption in selected Private Sector Universities of Karachi. The annual average GHG emissions from all of the universities were calculated to be 2,183.84 Tons of carbon dioxide (CO2), 41.3544 kg of methane (CH4) and 7.2612 kg of nitrous oxide (N2O). The CO2 emission from individual universities were in the range of 800 to 5,000 tons per year. Similarly, the CH4 was emitted in the range of 15-90 kg per year. N2O emission from all the selected universities was found very low in the range 2-16 kg per annum.  The study found that the overall rate of GHG emissions is rapidly increasing with an increase in fuel consumption resulted from high number of enrollments in selected universities. Study recommends the energy saving measures and the transition from fossil energy to renewable energy

Organizational level energy conservation and efficiency - a case of public sector organization in Karachi, Pakistan

Pakistan is facing chronic energy crises since many years. This paper aims to provide an overview of the current status of energy efficiency and conservation practices at organizational level in Pakistan. The first phase of this study evaluates the trends in electricity consumption in selected buildings over the last six years (2017–2022). Subsequently, a survey was conducted in selected buildings to assess employee morale and knowledge of energy efficiency and conservation. Results show an insignificant change in electricity consumption in selected buildings during the past six year’s period indicating a poor culture of energy savings in the selected organization. Despite a constant electricity consumption from 2017 to 2022, a significant fluctuation in average billing amounts was observed. This is possibly due to electricity tariff that has continuously been fluctuating since last few years in Pakistan including Karachi. Study reveals that more than 50% of the employees in selected organization were aware about the importance of energy efficiency and conservation however, they rarely practice the energy saving measures during their routine activities. This is perhaps due to the lack of sense of national stewardship among the employees. It was also found that most of the employees of the selected organization are aware and motivated towards the environmental and climate change concerns related to energy production and its efficient use. However, again a small number of employees were found practicing the energy conservation and efficiency measures. According to this study, companies should encourage staff members to save energy by offering frequent trainings and educational opportunities. Additionally, the organizations ought to think about switching to renewable energy sources

Return on Investment (ROI) Analysis of OFF-Grid Solar Photovoltaic System in Residential Sector of Pakistan

Pakistan being a developing country is observing a rapid rise in electricity demand and currently the big cities such as Karachi, Quetta, Rawalpindi and Lahore are most severely affected by the recent power crises. Therefore, at this time it is important to explore and investigates the alternate and renewable power sources in the country. This study investigates the significance in terms of economic feasibility of off-grid solar photovoltaic systems in the residential sector of Pakistan. Study area comprises the rural and urban residential sector of all four provinces of Pakistan. The return on investment and project payback periods are calculated using the NEPRA defined electricity tariff inclusive of tax so that a concrete conclusion of investing in off-grid solar could be drawn. Results of this study show that most selected areas in Pakistan have sufficient solar radiation potential for electricity generation. Study finds that solar electricity in Pakistan is one of the cost effective and environmental and social friendly forms of electricity. Payback periods of photovoltaic system in Sindh, Baluchistan, Punjab and KPK have been calculated 3.98, 2.33, 3.99 & 6.78 years, respectively. Results of this study may be useful for collective as well as individual consumers while calculating the economic viability of an off grid solar system. Keywords: Photovoltaic System, Solar potential, Electricity, Off-Grid Solar System, Return on investment, economic feasibility, Pakistan

HOW TRANSFORMATIONAL LEADERSHIP EFFECT EMPLOYEE’S COMMITMENT IN BANKS

Organizations have alwaysbeen in search of high caliber individuals since last few decades; however, to keep employees with distinctive capabilities committed is a matter of visionary leadership. Various studies have discovered novel ways of fabricating desired motivational levels among group members, one of those techniques which has been more viable towards employee commitment is transformational style of a figurehead. Due to financial and time restraints employees of 12 banks form private as well as public sector of Lahore city were taken as a population sample. Survey questionnaire technique was used for data collection; self-administered questionnaires were distributed among 200 bank employees with 77% response rate. Analysis of the data revealed a positive connection among transformational leadership style and employee commitment. Present study suggest a transformational leadership style as a precursor for the attainment of an elevated level of commitment which will further become accommodating towards retaining and captivating high stature employees