Tahjeeb Hossain Chowdhury:As part of the South Asian Ocean Territory (SAS), Bangladesh is currently facing the worst situation of marine pollution due to plastics – one of the most polluted pollutants in the world and affecting the oceans. Plastic waste dumping risks the Bay of Bengal
Marine debris, including plastic waste, is a solid material found in marine and coastal areas, a solid material that is produced, processed, and is a major problem due to its harmful effects on the environment, wildlife and human health in the Bay of Bengal, according to a country report based on a review of scientific and policy documents, along with a recent preliminary survey of Bangladesh’s four beaches.
The report, entitled “Database, Proposed Recycled Enterprise and National Status with Marine Litter Intervention”, is the result of the South Asian Maritime Program (SASP)’s Regional Action Plan on Marine Litter in the SAS Region. According to the report, due to human activities, marine waste reaches from the land to the sea through rivers, drainage systems, wind action, and intentional or unintentional currents in the sea.
During the survey, a total of 6,705 pieces of waste products were found along the beaches of Bangladesh – Labni and Inani in Cox’s Bazar and Anandabazar and Patenga in Chittagong – 18.5 km long. The litter contained 63% plastic, 13% foam plastic, 2% cloth, 1% glass and ceramic, 1% metal, 9% paper and cardboard, 3% rubber, 1% wood and 7% other materials. Plastic bags are seen as the most common type of litter: at least 2,182 pieces of plastic bags were found on the beach.
The survey found 588 pieces of insulation and packaging foam, 470 pieces of cigarette butts and filters and 300 bottles. Survey bottle caps and lids, drums, jerry cans, buckets, disposable containers, straws, strutters, drink packaging, food containers, bags, gloves, cigarette lighters, syringes, baskets, crates and trays, mesh bags, fishing gear, different types of plastic waste. The report made several recommendations to bring down and control the reckless dumping of plastic waste on the beach.
According to the report, there are two sources of marine debris: sea and land. Sea-based sources include merchant ships, ferries and cruise liners, fishing ships, offshore oil and gas platforms, and fish farming facilities, and land-based sewage, municipal and industrial wastes. About 80% of the garbage on the beach, including industrial sources and waste, comes from secondary sources. Most of the industries in Bangladesh are located near major river systems like Buriganga, Shitalakshya, Balu, Turag, Karnafuli, Rupsha and Meghna – all of which end in the Bay of Bengal.
With proper management, these industries dump their industrial wastes directly into this river, which eventually ends up in the bay. Globally, plastic is one of the most dangerous pollutants in the oceans and seas. This is directly affecting the ecology and biodiversity of the oceans due to its non-biodegradable nature. Plastic lasts for a thousand years and contains about 90% of the world’s ocean debris.
Plastic kills one million seabirds and one million marine mammals and countless fish each year. Also, plastic litter called microplastics breaks into small pieces that affect humans after entering the fish and food chain through seabirds, marine mammals, and fishnets, and cages. Microplastic beads can also cause cancer in humans.
(The writer is a marketing graduate, content writer, and data science enthusiast from Dhaka, reach him at [email protected])
Fayaz Yousuf: Water is a transparent liquidthat forms the world’s streams, lakes, oceans and rain. It is vital for all known forms of life. On Earth, 96.5% of the planet’s water is found in seas and oceans, 1.7% in groundwater, 1.7% in glaciers and the ice caps of Antarctica and Greenland, a small fraction in other large water bodies, and 0.001% in the air as vapor, clouds and precipitation.
Water constitutes two-thirds of the surface of the earth covering around 71 percent of the earth’s surface but only three percent is freshwater out of which 69 percent is “trapped” as ice, mainly in the two Polar Regions. The remaining freshwater occurs in rivers, lakes and aquifers which human being, plants and other animal species can use (WHO/UNICEF JMP, 2010).
Water scarcity has been causing conflict since the beginning of civilizations. Kjellén and McGranahan (1997) predicted that two-thirds of the world’s population will experience water stress conditions by 2025 and some countries would experience high water stress conditions where water withdrawal against available resources exceeds 40 percent. According to Ariyabandu, the withdrawal rate against available resources is 48 percent in South Asia. Bangladesh, as being a riverine country, has been facing dual challenges from water: firstly, unlimited floodwater during the wet season and secondly, increasing scarcity during dry season.
Bangladesh is one of the most densely populated countries in the world. More than 130 million people live in an area of 147 570 km2 and the population is increasing at a rate of around 1.6% annually. Dhaka is a megacity with a population of about 16 million and is growing at an annual rate of around 5%, one of the highest amongst Asian cities. According to a report, Dhaka will be the second-largest city in the world by the year 2015. The huge population puts forth massive pressure on the water supply system and causes a huge amount of deficit every year.
Water Issues of Dhaka City
In Bangladesh, the water supply coverage has been increasing both in the urban and rural areas since the 80’s. Almost 88 percent of water is withdrawn for irrigation, livestock while only 10 percent, and two percent use it for household and industry respectively (FAO, 2010). Nearly 97 percent of the rural population is using over 10 million hand tube wells to fulfill their drinking water demands.
In Bangladesh, there are two sources of water
Surface Water Resources
Ground Water Resources
2000mm of rainfall is received by Dhaka annually. Beside this, Dhaka is located close to the convolution of the mighty Ganges, Brahmaputra and Meghna rivers and it is frequently flooded, often devastatingly. These three rivers constitute the world’s second biggest river system with an annual discharge 25 times that of the Nile. However, Dhaka is one of the most challenging megacities in its water management.
The water supply and sewerage services have been allocated to one single public authority. Under the WASA Act (1996), Dhaka Water Supply and Sewerage Authority (DWASA) has the sole responsibility of providing water, sewerage and storm water drainage services in Dhaka. The Act provides for DWASA to manage its facilities and operate with a high degree of autonomy. It now supplies 0.51 km3 of water per year against the demand of 0.73 km3, serving around 72% of the city dwellers. The quality of the supplied water is very much in question. Almost 1000 private wells abstract another 0.35 km3 of groundwater per year, mainly for industrial purposes. Groundwater is used far beyond the sustainable rate and this groundwater mining puts a serious strain on the environment. The groundwater table has gone down 20 to 30 m in the past three decades and continues to sink 1 to 2 m per year.
Dhaka city faces two major problems in supplying water:
Gradual decrease of raw water sources and
Discharge of large quantities of polluted water (Serajuddin, 1993).
DWASA projects total water demand considering per person per day water demand as 150 liter and accordingly supplies water to the city dwellers. Total water demand in Dhaka city varies from 2100 to 2300 MLD with seasonal variation. However, total production capacity of DWASA is 2247.47 Million Liter per Day (MLD) (both groundwater and surface water).
Apparently, DWASA is able to fulfill current water demand through their capacity. However, DWASA has never reached its production target and actual production for groundwater and surface water is 1831.20 MLD and 256.30 MLD respectively with a demand-supply gap of 160 MLD.
There is variation of water consumption rate in different regions.To maintain daily life, a substantial amount of water is required. At least 50 l/p/d of water is considered as basic water requirement as suggested by Gleick and IWRA (1996).
To fulfill the daily water requirement from reliable source, dependency on private sector is increasing day by day. Most of the people in Dhaka city buy filtered or bottled water though they are not well aware of the quality of this water. There is a common perception of city dweller regarding DWASA supplied water that it is full of micro-bacterial organisms and contaminated with different chemical and biological contaminant. Even though almost 87 percent of the supplied water of DWASA is retrieved from groundwater that is safe from microorganisms and heavy metal contamination, it is likely that the supplied water might be contaminated due to the leakage in pipelines and reservoirs. In reality, poor management, irregular monitoring, and inadequate supply make people rely on privately owned water supply. In addition to bottled and filtered water business, there is another business of water filtering.
Reasons behind Insufficient Water Supply
There are several reasons behind the insufficient supply of water in Dhaka city like
Scarcity of water resources,
Pollution of water resources,
Huge amount of water has been collected from ground,
Illegal connection of water,
Lack of awareness on proper usage of water
Possible Solutions
In this issue, many scholars have agreed that only awareness alone can do enough to change today’s devastating water crisis situation. Along with this they also have suggested the immediate implementation of
Starting the reuse of Grey Water (a major fraction of domestic wastewater which is about 75% (vol.) of the combined residential sewage [Eriksson, et. al., 2002])
And
Staring the implementation and usage of Rainwater Harvestingin every household of Dhaka city.
Conclusion
At present, access to safe water is a burning question and scarcity of safe water can directly affect the long-term prospects for sustainable development. Many cataclysms can take place in near future due to the lack of safe water.
Present water supply system in Dhaka city is heavily dependent on groundwater that signals a cloudy future with severe water crisis. Though the WASA has already started to shift its present groundwater based production system to surface water production, this require huge investment and time.
Moreover, the status of peripheral rivers of Dhaka city is highly degraded with a major portion of it is under illegal encroachment. That is why it is highly doubtful to fulfill future demand just by relying on these sources. Considering the present crisis and future demand, it is high time to seek additional sources.
The writer can be reach at his email: mail4fayazyousuf@doanmanhhieugmail-com
Faruq Ahmed: Due to Cyclone Amphan, One lakh twenty thousand metric tonnes of mango has damaged. It amounts to ten percent of the country’s annual production of mango. Most of the mangoes which were supposed to be reaped within some days got knocked off the trees due to the mighty cyclone Amphan that brushed over the two districts.
According to the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE), there is a total of 4,115 hectares of land were used for cultivating mangoes with a target of 40,000 tonnes in the seven upazilas of Satkhira. Nonetheless, the cyclone Amphan spoiled at least 83 percent of mangoes. Rajshahi Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) that mango was cultivated on 17,573 hectares of areas with a target of 210,000 tons of mangoes current year. About 12 to 15 percent mangoes fell from the trees due to the overnight stormy wind which might cause loss around Tk. 10 crore of we hypothetically rate per kg mango at Tk 40.
Rashed Iftekhar, agriculturist at the Department of Agricultural Extension’s control room in Dhaka was revealed this information. Bangladesh’s total 22.31 lakh hectares of orchard, mangoes in about 7,384 hectares were damaged in the cyclone, he also added.
Now, mango farmers have urged the government to purchase mangoes with the engagement of fruit processing industries. By this way, their losses will be minimized.
Dr Sorof Uddin, senior scientific officer of Bangladesh Agriculture Research Institute, said to the media the district administration may take an urgent initiative to give the invitation to fruit processing industries for procuring the mangoes. Naturally, farmers start plucking mangoes midway through may every year while authorities set specific timeframes for its harvest in different districts of the country. The mango farmers also requested the Department of Agricultural Marketing for placing transport and marketing the mangoes to Dhaka and other places in the country as well.
Tahjeeb Hossain Chowdhury:In many areas of Bangladesh, there are lots of localities that still suffer from power outages and load sheddings. To counter that, Generators are used to make sure that the power stays uninterrupted throughout the power outage period. But the generator usage has a lot of perils that threaten the normal living quality of the citizens.
Many areas like Mirpur, Farmgate, Jatrabari, Kamrangirchor and some areas where industrial production is prevalent; have been suffering from the effects of the generator smoke. The populace surrounding factory areas have complained about the black smoke that comes out of the chimneys and exhausts.
The Generator usage creates residual particulate matter that gets mixed with the environment. Researchers in a recent study by the Center For Science and Development, based in Delhi, provided levels of PM2.5 and PM10 rises 10% to 30% in such areas where the diesel generators are in use. According to Environmentalist Dr. Lelin Chowdhury, the particulates can cause serious illnesses in people that can even lead to death.
Dhaka has been ranked second in the World Health Organization air pollution index. In daily pollution indexes, Delhi and Dhaka had been trading places in first and second places in recent times. Bangladesh is also the seventh most vulnerable country to be affected by climate change.
Every year more or less 15000 people have been affected by air pollution due to air pollution. The top 10 diseases that affect people most and lead to deaths have 5 respiratory-related illnesses which all have an origin in air pollution. The five diseases are lung cancer, ischemic heart disease, lower respiratory tract infections, stroke, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Children suffer from asthma-related problems more often than not.
The Poribesh Bachao Andolon initiative has time and again pressed on the importance of getting rid of the sources of air pollution. Its Chairman Abu Naser Khan has opined that any fossil fuel has the potential to cause air pollution. “Getting to the bottom of the usage of such fuels and decreasing uses should be a top priority” adds Abu Naser.
The Urban Areas in Bangladesh are being consistently polluted by generator smoke and decreasing their use is a must for us to ensure better living standards and save lives.
(The writer is a marketing graduate, content writer, and data science enthusiast from Dhaka, reach him at [email protected])
Fahmida Sattar: Dhaka water war, it is often said that mankind will experience a war over water in the near future. The claim has some truth in it, no doubt about that. But the term ‘Dhaka Water War’ is already an existing truth for Dhaka dwellers. It is indeed irony for a city surrounded by a river that it can not provide the least quantity of water. Experts often blame mismanagement and unplanned urbanization, rapid population growth in cities, etc. This article ‘Dhaka Water War’ will attempt to investigate the water crisis of Dhaka from a perspective where water is considered as a birth right not a mere commodity. In light of this idea, the article will also make an effort to provide some suggestions to lessen and then solve the water crisis, which has made the city of 15 million people a ‘living hell’. The focus will be on the community measures which require less budget and bureaucratic complexities.
The Current Situation
According to a report by The World Bank, Dhaka has the highest population growth rate for a city in the entire world. Around 3-4 million people, which constitute about one-fifth of the total population of this mega-city, live in slums. Most of the slums lack any proper water supply lines from WASA. Slum-dwellers standing in long rows, waiting for hours to collect a single gallon of water, is a very common scene.
Dhaka Water Supply and Sewerage Authority (WASA) said they are producing 160 to 165 crore liters of water which is about 25 percent less than demand. It extracts groundwater using 620 deep tube wells. In addition, more than 2,200 private wells also draw water to serve high-rise buildings and various institutions. The underground water now provides 88% percent of total demand, which was 95% before The Saidabad Water Treatment Plant went into action in 1995. As a result, the subterranean water level drops about 3 meters every year. The rate is 53.75 meters in Mirpur, 18.59 in Mohammedpur and 8.22 meters in Sutrapur. This rapid fall of underground water level does not only create a crisis in the supply of water but also the vacuum left by this fall possesses a great threat of an earthquake. Besides saline water is intruding to fill up space, posing a threat to getting fresh drinking water in the future.
As Bangladesh is often titled as `land of rivers’, the nearby rivers could be considered as a source of water to diminish the pressure on underground water. But WASA emits 1,000 tonnes of untreated human waste into the rivers adjacent to the city every day, which means river water is unfit for human consumption. The unmonitored industrial wastage system is worsening this problem day by day.
Community Measures of Dhaka Water War
One of the key factors which have a major effect on the gradual descending of subterranean water level is that our city planners often leave little chance for the rain water to get into the ground. Because most of the city areas are paved over, rainwater cannot be absorbed by the ground. Instead, it runs across the pavement, picking up oil, street debris, animal feces, and other waste as it moves. Reducing the amount of runoff rainwater is very critical to ensure the satisfactory level of underground water.
Experts use the term ‘rainwater harvesting’ to discuss the process of accumulation and deposition of rainwater for reuse on-site or underground. It goes without saying that the best way of letting rainwater go into the ground is keeping the importance of permeable surface in the head. For areas where hard surfaces are necessary, pavements should be built in a way so that it let the rainwater reach a permeable surface.
Building rain barrels is another effective way of reducing runoff and conserving rainwater. According to the tutorial, provided for the people of Minnesota, the USA by the state government, it needs only about half an hour to make a rain barrel at home. As Bangladesh yet to reach extreme water crisis conditions, building a community rain barrel is enough to tackle the present situation.
Rain gardens are another community mean of rainwater harvesting. These are concave-shaped gardens that collect runoff from downspouts, driveways and other hard surfaces. Plants that tolerate “wet feet” should be planted in the bottom, while plants that need less water are planted on the edges.
Rainwater harvesting has proven to be successful in other parts of the world. The 35 rain water harvesting systems working in NYC’s community gardens collect 422,900 gallons of water every year. That’s enough for 264,313 toilet flushes! The Institute of Water Management (IWM) shows if 60 percent of total rain water can be harvested in a city like Dhaka, it will be capable of providing 200 million liters of water every single day.
In India, the state of Tamil Nadu was the first to make the conservation of rain water compulsory for every building to avoid the rapid decrease in the underground water level. As a result of this, Chennai, the capital of Tamil Nadu, saw a 50% rise in water level in five years. The other states gradually followed Tamil Nadu’s example and found surprising results. The state of Rajasthan receives a scant 400 mm of rainfall annually where the relatively dry western region of Rajshahi, receives 1600 mm of annual rainfall. The decade of the 1980s is Rajasthan is marked with the revival of the ancient tradition of creating Johads, large rain water reserve tanks. Now there are over 4,500 working Johads, lessening the water crisis of one of the driest places in this subcontinent.
Conclusion
In comparison with the vulnerable economy of our country, one can easily draw the conclusion that no quick solution in near at hand. First of all, the crisis should not be let to go out of control. This can easily be done by reducing the quantity of usage and wastage. Moreover, community measures are easy to be introduced and apparatuses are very available. As there is a wise saying, “All’s well that ends well”, the article is being concluded with good news. This November, Honorable LGRD minister has announced that the government is going to provide water supply lines in every slum area of the city within December 2015. One can raise doubt about whether it is really going to happen at last. But what can satisfy Dhaka dwellers is that this matter is taken to attention. The whole world today is talking about the impending severe water crisis. Bangladesh should not be left behind.
Tahjeeb Hossain Chowdhury:It is no secret that Dhaka is a city that has been plagued with air pollution for a long time. The quality of air has worsened in the industrialization of the 1980s, 1990s, and of course the 2000s. Bangladesh has been leading the charts when it comes to pollution and that is definitely not something to gloat about and should elicit an opposite reaction.
In recent times the air quality issues have plagued the whole world and Bangladesh is certainly not an exception to that. Bangladesh has been put in the rankings as one of the worst countries to live in, in terms of air quality. Dhaka has been named one of the most inhospitable cities in the world.
Dhaka is the 17th worst city in the world in terms of air quality in the world. Delhi and Dhaka have been trading places with each other as the most polluted cities in the world on a daily basis. What’s alarming is the amount of smog and dust particles in the air in Dhaka. With the top 10 causes of death in Dhaka having 5 respiratory and heart conditions or a source of such, this is technically an alarming situation.
Dhaka has an infrastructure that resembles a board of dominos with buildings and structures piled with little or no space in between. With living spaces and industrial sites being lumped together, the pollutants rapidly mix with the air and eventually in the lungs of citizens.
With brick kilns, factories, construction sites, metal workshops, and transportation fumes so much intricately mixed with our city living quarters, air pollution is bound to be an issue. With the worldwide situation getting so bad, there needs to be precautions and studies in place to mitigate the situation. Citizens in Dhaka have been subject to a varying range of problems pertaining to such harsh air quality.
Underlying conditions such as lung cancer, various forms of heart disease, and strokes are becoming common for the citizens. So proper steps from the government and citizens alike is sorely wanted to tackle this ever-present calamity. Regulations and restrictions, as well as the promotion of good environmental habits, should be the key to tackling these problems.
(The writer is a marketing graduate, content writer, and data science enthusiast from Dhaka, reach him at [email protected])
Tahjeeb Hossain Chowdhury: The Shibsha River is threatening to consume the various vegetation found in the West Sundarbans. The World’s Largest Mangrove Forest, the western part, in particular, is facing a situation where even the Iconic and Namesake of the forest, The Sundari tree is also under immense threat.
The bank of Shibsha River has faced a damning case of erosion in recent times. The state is so dire that the erosion is threatening a land that expands to 15-20 kilometers in length. The Catastrophic erosion is causing the world-famous flora of the Western side of Sundarbans in a significant way.
Correspondents of different media have reported and published on newspaper that the erosion originally started from the eastern bank of the River. Inhabitants and fishermen of the area have lamented that erosion has intensified a lot during recent times and has made life quite difficult for humans and nature alike. They have also opined that the forest department should shoulder the blame for the spread as they played no significant part in stopping the whole spread to the western shores.
Many big trees and vegetation in the area were washed away and consumed deep beneath the riverbed. Two landmasses that develop because of silt, also known as Chars have appeared in the area. Professor Abdullah Harun Chowdhury of the Khulna University has opined that the salt portion in water and soil in the Noilan, Khulna, and Satkhira has risen and continues to rise.
He also added that the Salt and soil level increasing has lead to the soil losing the bond. Thus, as a result, has led to this terrible degree of soil erosion in the area. The forest officer in the region, Md Basir Al Mamun, said to the media that they have not yet been able to do a survey of the damage caused by the ongoing erosion. The last survey from the 2201-2014 period shows a 1 percent increase in the forest.
The forest conservator in the Khulna Area, Md Moinuddin Khan has said to media that the erosion is a natural occurrence in the Mangrove area. He has also said that they are ready to take necessary measures to stop the erosion.
(The writer is a marketing graduate, content writer, and data science enthusiast from Dhaka, reach him at [email protected])
Ashik Rahman: There has not been sewage and household dissipates did not stream into the Gulshan lake in a single day. Gulshan Lake, located Gulshan-Baridhara area was officially marked an Ecologically Critical Area (ECA) to save the water body from becoming pollution. And also to protect it from infringement which was declared before 12 years.
According to the grapevine trying to convince people that it was central to safeguard it for the ecology of Dhaka city, two giant signboards of the Department of Environment (DoE) of the government have been posted on either end of the lake since November 26, 2001.
Although there have been a lot of environmental law and organization but the Gulshan-Baridhara Lake continues to get more polluted day by day for not taking any steps from law implement departments, claimed environmental lawyer Rizwana Hasan.
Whatever officials of DoE claimed that Dhaka Wasa and Dhaka City Corporation are trying to stop pollution in the Lake. It’s important that Rajdhani Unnyan Kartripakhha (RAJUK) undertook a plan to build a 40 feet road along the eastern shoreline of the lake.
Incidentally, to survive any kind of life in a water body, the minimum standard required level of break up oxygen is six milligrams per liter. The ECA rule was established in the year 1999 under the Bangladesh Environment Protection Act, 1995.
There is a total of 12 ECAs have been identified in Bangladesh. These areas are Tanguar Haor, Hakaluki Haor and Marjat Baorare also need to be protected. Shores of the lake are used as dumping ground for city waste.
Tahjeeb Hossain Chowdhury:Bangladesh has finally made a decision to dispose of the 500 stock of toxic DDT that has been stored in Bangladeshi storehouses. An infamous substance for spreading toxicity, Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane or DDT in short, is an illegal pesticide that was stored for a long time in storehouses in Bangladesh.
As a part of a United Nations led campaign will see Bangladesh hopefully get rid of the storage which has been in Bangladesh for as long as thirty-four years. The import now is at the Chottogram Medical sub-depot or MSD, and will be shipped to Germany to be incinerated and destroyed for good.
As a part of the Government’s 42 million USD project titled the ‘Pesticide Risk Reduction in Bangladesh’, the DDT disposal will cost about 8.29 million of the overall budget. The operations will be carried out in conjunction with the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations.
The Global Environment Facility is funding the disposal operations. The GEF’s goal is to help manage the most worrying environmental problems of the world, as it was established on the 1992 Rio Earth Summit. If carried out smoothly, Bangladesh will be free of a troublesome component that has been polluting the environment for a long time.
The United States of America Banned the substance back in 1972. The worldwide prohibition of DDT commenced in 2004 under the Persistent Organic Pollutions Stock Convention. But in between the two dates, a WHO led and Asian Development Bank-financed project had imported the DDT in 1985. As the substance was not in technical compliance, the stock remained in the Chottogram MSD.
With subsequent natural calamities like floods affecting Bangladesh in the following years, the substance was washed away into the surrounding environment. It was already damaged due to the humidity and brought about damages as a result. On a DDT crisis workshop, a government official from the ministry of environment, forest and climate change has said that the stock might be the reason of cancer that led to two of his colleagues’ deaths.
Bangladesh’s riverine lands and the weather patterns would have meant that continued warehousing of the stock could have led to dire environmental and health damages to the surrounding area and people alike. The people and the environment can breathe a sigh of relief because of the announcement.
(The writer is a marketing graduate, content writer, and data science enthusiast from Dhaka, reach him at [email protected])
Tahjeeb Hossain Chowdhury:Streams destroyed in Bandarban as they are being dried up due to illegal stone extractions. Around 400 streams and waterfalls have dried out due to this.
At a conference held by the National River Conservation Commission and the Bangladesh River Explorers Association have said about the destruction and drying up of streams around the Bandarban region. The River Explorers Association President Monirul Islam has said that the illegal extraction of stones and boulders for industrial purposes have to lead to streams and rivers within the Bandarban region to dry up. As a riverine country, our economy and way of life, in general, depending on the flow of streams, brooks, and rivers.
The conference has had speakers from various river conservation groups and individuals in the movement. The esteemed deputy commissioner of Chittagong, Abdul Mannan presided over the conference. The River Conservation commission Chairman Dr Muzibur Rahman Hawlader was the Chief Guest.
The two-day conference has had members of the river activist arena speak up about the many instances of rivers drying up and our ecology in danger because such rampant damages. The Bandarban stream incident is one that is caused by humans. Mass ignorance while extracting these stones and boulders are damaging the rivers natural direction of flow. Thus, the unnatural flow has been the reason for the rivers drying up over time. The mountainous regions of Bandarban is filled with streams and waterfalls that are vital to the environmental balance. But the man-made disasters like the stream destruction are not doing any favours to the environment.
The Conference speakers have been putting these facts into perspective and have called upon the regulation and restriction of any human actions that lead to such destruction of our ecosystem. Activist Monirul Islam has put emphasis on the protection and conservation of the River Sangu which is one of the most crucial rivers in the Bandarban Area.
The conference also included seminars and discussions on the matters regarding the hill tract area’s conservation of water. The speakers talked about the mitigation of such issues with development projects in the near future.
(The writer is a marketing graduate, content writer, and data science enthusiast from Dhaka, reach him at [email protected])
