Endangered Environments: Civilizations in Crisis

In Hemayetpur of Savar, the environment is being polluted along with the water of Dhaleswari river by the effluents of leather industry town. Several rivers including Banshi, Buriganga are connected with Dhaleswari. Due to this all those rivers are suffering from serious pollution.

Sharifa Akhter Swarna:

The environment is constantly being damaged. Rivers and canals, pollution and encroachment of canals, encroachment and use of forests, factories everywhere, unplanned urbanization are all consuming this environment and pushing the human civilization towards a dire crisis. The close relationship between humans and the environment has depended on the ability of animals to adapt to the environment since the beginning of creation. The environment is considered as the reservoir of biodiversity, the carrier of vitality and the shelter of the future, which if unfavorable, the development of other plant and animal life including humans will be hindered and the destruction and destruction of organisms will be inevitable.

Population growth, indiscriminate deforestation and deforestation, abuse of natural resources, excessive use of fertilizers and pesticides, industrial waste, toxic vehicle fumes, depletion of the ozone layer, use of plastic products, global warming, depletion of groundwater resources and water, unplanned industrialization and urbanization. And due to ultra-modernity, the environment is constantly being endangered all over the world. There is no doubt that in the near future, humanity will face a major environmental crisis. This environmental crisis has created panic for billions of people in the world today.

Of the 241 SDGs, 25 are environmental; However, according to the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network report 2021, Bangladesh, India and Pakistan are ranked 109th, 120th and 129th respectively among 165 countries in achieving the SDGs. Hundreds of species of animals and plants have been wiped out in the last century, pure and clean air, pure and fresh water, soil fertility, green land, vast forests, uncultivated vegetation, balance of ecosystems, seasonal management of temperature and rain etc. The recent corona pandemic has taught us to appreciate the value of oxygen intake and its essentiality for survival.

Nowadays, noise pollution has reached an unbearable level for everyone, from young to old, students, children and teenagers. Loud mics are being played at bus stands, playgrounds, and even near schools. In different cities of the country including Dhaka, even in educational institutions, the noise tolerance level is much higher than 50 decibels. According to the 'Frontiers 2022-Noise, Blazes and Mismatches' report, Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, ranks first in the list of noise pollution and Rajshahi is fourth among the top 5 cities in the list.

According to the report published by the World Health Organization in 2020, about 64 thousand people lost their lives in Bangladesh due to PM 2.5 in 2017. According to Greenpeace's Air Pollution Report 2021, Bangladesh ranks first among the countries with the most polluted air in the world, and Dhaka is the third among the cities with the most polluted air. According to the data of Department of Environment, from 2015-2019, brick kilns increased by 59 percent across the country and the number increased from 4 thousand 959 to 8 thousand 33. Among them 2 thousand 837 do not have environment friendly technology. 2,513 have no environmental clearances and almost 3,000 brick kilns have none.

There are 487 brick kilns in Dhaka district alone, contributing to 58 percent of Dhaka's air pollution. As a result of the negative impact on the environment due to the smoke from burning the soil from these brick kilns, the emission of greenhouse gases, deforestation and soil erosion are causing various damages and diseases to the living organisms. Soil is the main raw material for bricks used in increasing urbanization and industrialization and brick kilns are located next to agricultural land and use the fertile soil of agricultural land, which is a major threat to our environment and food security.

Removal of 6 inches of topsoil reduces soil fertility; But brick kilns are removing 18 to 22 inches of soil in some areas. If these brick kilns are not made environment friendly, we will not get rid of air pollution anytime soon.

A study by the non-governmental organization Development Research said that once the spread of the Sundarbans in Bangladesh was 17,000 square km, which is now 6,467 square km. According to the meeting of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, about 257,000 acres of forest land has been encroached across the country. About 161 thousand influential individuals and institutions have occupied these forest lands.

Building houses, agriculture and industries have been created by occupying forest land. The forest area under government control in Bangladesh is about 2.3 million hectares, which is about 16 percent of the country's total area. Of this, the forest area under the control of the Forest Department is about 16 lakh hectares, which is about 11 percent of the country's area.

However, there is also promising information from the government. Through the various activities undertaken by the government and the spontaneous participation of the people, the amount of tree-covered land in Bangladesh has increased to 22 percent of the country's total area, which the government has already taken various steps with a plan to increase it to 24 percent by 2025. The government has taken various steps to conserve the Sundarbans, as a result of which the tree resources of the Sundarbans have increased. According to the National Forest Survey data published in 2019, the total carbon stock in the Sundarbans is 139 million tonnes, while it was 107 million tonnes as per the survey conducted in 2009. On the other hand, increasing warming is causing polar ice to melt and turn into water, releasing new microorganisms. Punishment of arbitrary river pollution  Along with random river pollution, the number of fish in the sea-river-reservoir is decreasing day by day, the number of plastic bottles is increasing. The water of all the rivers around Dhaka has lost its natural quality long ago.

On April 19, 1999, the Ministry of Environment and Forest declared six areas of the country including St. Martin, Cox's Bazar, Teknaf Beach as endangered areas. Glass bottles, plastic bottles, packets of chips, packets of pickles, polythene, cans, tea cups, straws, packets of biscuits, pieces of fishing nets, nylon ropes and various non-biodegradable wastes can be seen in an area of about one and a half to two kilometers of St. Martin beach.

124 tons of plastic waste is generated in Dhaka city every day. According to a World Bank report, annual per capita plastic consumption in urban areas of Bangladesh was 3 kg in 2005. But in 2020 it increased 3 times to 9 kg. According to a report in the Environment International Journal, micro-plastics can enter the human body through air as well as food and drink. In addition, the consumption of food has become an integral part of our lives by blending and diversifying the general taste, nutrition and quality of food.

A recent Groundswell report by the World Bank predicts a global environmental catastrophe by 2030, which could become catastrophic by 2050. At this time, about 40 million people will migrate due to the adverse effects of climate in South Asia and half of them will be from Bangladesh. Unplanned agricultural systems, waste management in industrialization, uncontrolled use of fossil fuels, neglecting the environmental aspects of forest, mountain, river conservation and urbanization and inadequate enforcement of existing environmental laws in the country have emerged as major causes of climate change today. Adverse effects of weather and climate change are now visible in Bangladesh in multidimensionality.

Scientists have repeatedly warned of the dangers of global warming and climate change, but that has not helped developing countries compete with rich countries for trade and economic growth.

In order to save the world from the scourge of global warming, climate change and environmental degradation, it is recommended that developed and developing economic powers focus on protecting the environment as well as controlling the use of fossil fuels and being flexible in the competition of economic growth. Conservation of ecology and food cycle, changes in food habits and lifestyles, and efforts to protect the human-ethical-environmental values of people by making agriculture environment-friendly is the demand of the time.

National River Protection Commission Chairman Manjur Ahmed Chowdhury has expressed deep disappointment after seeing the terrible picture of river pollution from the waste of leather industry in Savar. On the other hand, there is no initiative to implement the two Central Effluent Treatment Plants (CETP) which were proposed to be constructed seven years ago to treat industrial liquid waste in Narayanganj. It is unfortunate.

It should be noted that 40,000 cubic meters of waste is produced daily in Savar's leather industry city, while the waste management capacity is 25,000 cubic meters. This means that 15,000 cubic meters of waste is directly falling into the river every day.

The Chairman of National River Protection Commission said while talking to reporters during the visit of Bisik Leather Industry City in Hemayetpur of Savar on Monday, "Savar is going to become a cursed town." "We are disappointed with the overall waste management activities of the Tannery City.

When I came to the lab, I saw that the in-charge of the lab was absent. There are no people in his presence. Necessary equipment is not available.'' In Hemayetpur of Savar, the environment is being polluted with the water of Dhaleswari river in the waste of leather industry town. Several rivers including Banshi, Buriganga are connected with Dhaleswari. Due to this all those rivers are suffering from serious pollution.

Last February, the National Parliament's Standing Committee on Environment, Forests and Climate Change had recommended its closure, expressing concern over the pollution of the river and surrounding areas by waste from Savar's industrial city. Committee president Saber Hossain Chowdhury commented, 'Leather industry cannot be allowed to continue as it is. Our concern is solid waste.

There are no facilities for its treatment. The river commission chairman did not stop the leather industry but asked to take action against those responsible for river pollution. In that case, there is not much difference in the speech of the chairman of the parliamentary committee and the chairman of the river commission. Both of them mean that the river and environment cannot be damaged for industry or development.

The question is who will tie the bell around the cat's neck? Parliamentary Committee or River Commission can only make recommendations for river protection. It is the executive department's responsibility to implement this recommendation. The tannery town of Savar has had the problem of sewage treatment from the beginning. BCCI was supposed to build a central sewage treatment plant there. The Chinese company they entrusted the job to, they couldn't do it. What is the response to this failure?

In 2015, the Department of Environment proposed the construction of two central sewage treatment plants to protect cooling water from liquid effluents discharged from dyeing and washing industries in Narayanganj. Seven years have already passed. River pollution has reached alarming levels. But the authorities are sometimes ending their responsibility by filing cases and fines against the industries concerned.

The leather industry was shifted to the banks of the Dhaleswari on the grounds of protecting the Buriganga. Now both Dhaleswari and Buriganga are getting polluted. All wastes generated in tannery towns must be treated; So that the river is not polluted. I admit that there is a need for industries for the economic development of the country as well as for increasing the production of export products. But it should be done in accordance with the law, not by destroying the river and the environment.

The BIP study reviewed 100 case studies of environmental disasters to analyze the causes of biodiversity and ecosystem destruction, including water pollution (42), air pollution (29), soil pollution, deforestation (17), plastic pollution (8) and other pollution (8). is done

By reviewing the incidents of environmental disasters, it was observed in the study of BIP that in 70 percent of the incidents of environment and environment pollution, the responsibility of the Department of Environment is observed, in 50 percent of the incidents, the responsibility of the local administration is observed.