The Lake Qarun Environmental Rebalance Committee followed up on the implemented projects to revitalize and develop the lake, through the establishment of a salt extraction project and clearing out sewage.
Minister of Environment, Yasmine Fouad announced that several environmental sanitation plans have been implemented in the industrial facilities that drain on Lake Qarun, through the implementation of wastewater treatment and use units.
Eleven environmental sanitation plans have been completed to reuse industrial wastewater industrial processes, especially in paper and cardboard factories, which formed the largest sources of wastewater in the lake.
Fouad stressed during the committee’s meeting on Sunday, the importance of the Qarun Lake rebalancing project, as a rolemodel for compatibility between the environment and investment.
Protecting the environment does not conflict with investment, but rather is a basis for maximizing benefits at the national level, she added, and stressed the need to follow up on the work of these projects and the extent of its compatibility with the agreed time plans, in a way that contributes to achieving development in Fayoum Governorate.
Restoring Lake Qarun
Fayoum Governor Ahmed al-Ansary reviewed the measures that have been taken to restore the environmental balance of Lake Qarun.
The lake is an important source of income for the majority of the people of the governorate, he noted.
A new factory of the the Egyptian Minerals and Salts Company at Fayoum (EMISAL) is being established on the lake, he said, adding the factory will be connected to utilities of the northern road.
An examp being taken to rehabilitate the industrial and sanitary wastewater treatment plant in Kom Oshim, as the standards of water entering it were studied, treatment technology and construction designs were determined with a design capacity of 19,000 cubic meters, and subtraction procedures are underway.
Designs have been developed to start the construction of five sewage plants, financed by a European loan, in addition to the expansion of four treatment plants.
Projects under the presidential initiative “Hayah Karima” are being implemented in several villages to contribute significantly to restoring the ecological balance of the lake, he noted.
The projects are being carried out through the National Authority for Drinking Water and Sanitation, in ten water plants, Ansary added.
Dredging and expansion works are conducted to increase the level of fresh water reaching Lake Qarun, he said, adding 800 km of water canals and drains were cleared, and lining and rehabilitation of 103.32 km of canals were completed under the project.
