Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz has announced the expansion of Pakistan’s Liquid Tree project, relocating the country’s first Environment Protection Agency-certified Liquid Tree unit from Faisalabad to Lahore and approving its rollout across major shopping malls and public spaces in the province’s urban centres. The initiative marks the first technology to receive certification from Punjab’s Environmental Protection Agency since 1987 and represents a significant shift toward biotechnology-driven solutions for addressing Pakistan’s worsening urban air quality and smog crisis.
The Liquid Tree is an innovative biotechnology solution that uses microalgae to absorb carbon dioxide and improve urban air quality in areas where traditional tree plantations are limited or not feasible. The system employs a bioreactor containing algae cultivated in water to remove carbon dioxide from the surrounding environment, functioning as an artificial tree capable of being installed in commercial buildings, plazas, and business districts where the physical constraints of urban density make conventional tree planting impractical. The project is equipped with an artificial intelligence-based calculator that provides real-time data on carbon sequestration, allowing administrators to monitor the system’s carbon absorption and oxygen release rates continuously without manual measurement.
More than 100 species of microalgae were collected from different regions across Pakistan, spanning from Karachi to Khyber, during a seven-month research phase in which the carbon sequestration capacity and effectiveness of each species were tested. The most effective algae species was identified in Sukkur, Sindh, and subsequently cultivated in collaboration with Government College University Faisalabad before being integrated into the first operational Liquid Tree unit. The seven-month research process and the cross-country sampling methodology reflect a scientifically rigorous approach to the project rather than a simple technology import, grounding the initiative in local biodiversity and conditions.
Lahore had recorded a noticeable improvement in its Air Quality Index for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic, while Punjab had emerged as the country’s top-performing province in environmental protection. According to official data, the average level of particulate matter in Pakistan had declined by 8.7 percent, with Punjab recording a 33.2 percent reduction. In the initial expansion phase, Liquid Tree units will be installed in major shopping malls as well as indoor and outdoor public spaces to help reduce air pollution across cities, with the chief minister describing the initiative as a scientific and practical step to address rising carbon emissions and smog levels that could significantly improve environmental conditions in urban centres. Punjab’s Environmental Protection Agency is also simultaneously expanding its green agenda through strengthened plastic bans and industrial buffer zone policies alongside the Liquid Tree initiative.
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