Bangladesh River Pollution
Bangladesh River Pollution
Buriganga
It was once the lifeline of the Bangladeshi capital. But the once mighty Buriganga river, which flows by Dhaka, is now one of the most polluted rivers in Bangladesh because of rampant dumping of industrial and human waste.
“Much of the Buriganga is now gone, having fallen to ever insatiable land grabbers and industries dumping untreated effluents into the river,”
“The water of the Buriganga is now so polluted that all fish have died, and increasing filth and human waste have turned it like a black gel. Even rowing across the river is now difficult for it smells so badly,” he told reporters.
The plight of the Buriganga symbolises the general state of many rivers in Bangladesh, a large flat land criss-crossed by hundreds of rivers which faces an uphill battle to keep them navigable and their water safe for human and aquatic lives.
Bangladesh has about 230 small and large rivers, and a large chunk of the country’s 140 million people depend on them for a living and for transportation.
But experts say many of them are drying up or are choked because of pollution and encroachment.
A World Bank study said four major rivers near Dhaka – the Buriganga, Shitalakhya, Turag and Balu — receive 1.5 million cubic metres of waste water every day from 7,000 industrial units in surrounding areas and another 0.5 million cubic metres from other sources.
Unabated encroachment that prevents the free flow of water, dumping of medicinal waste and waste of river passengers have compounded the problem, making the water unusable for humans and livestock.
“Unfortunately, all these bad things — encroachment, dumping of industrial waste and other abuses — occur in full knowledge of the authorities,” said Professor Abdullah Abu Saeed, an eminent campaigner for “Save Buriganga, Save Lives”.
Among the top polluters are dozens of tanneries on the banks of the Buriganga. The government recently initiated a move to relocate the tanneries outside the capital, and
Buriganga
It was once the lifeline of the Bangladeshi capital. But the once mighty Buriganga river, which flows by Dhaka, is now one of the most polluted rivers in Bangladesh because of rampant dumping of industrial and human waste.
“Much of the Buriganga is now gone, having fallen to ever insatiable land grabbers and industries dumping untreated effluents into the river,”
“The water of the Buriganga is now so polluted that all fish have died, and increasing filth and human waste have turned it like a black gel. Even rowing across the river is now difficult for it smells so badly,” he told reporters.
The plight of the Buriganga symbolises the general state of many rivers in Bangladesh, a large flat land criss-crossed by hundreds of rivers which faces an uphill battle to keep them navigable and their water safe for human and aquatic lives.
Bangladesh has about 230 small and large rivers, and a large chunk of the country’s 140 million people depend on them for a living and for transportation.
But experts say many of them are drying up or are choked because of pollution and encroachment.
A World Bank study said four major rivers near Dhaka – the Buriganga, Shitalakhya, Turag and Balu — receive 1.5 million cubic metres of waste water every day from 7,000 industrial units in surrounding areas and another 0.5 million cubic metres from other sources.
Unabated encroachment that prevents the free flow of water, dumping of medicinal waste and waste of river passengers have compounded the problem, making the water unusable for humans and livestock.
“Unfortunately, all these bad things — encroachment, dumping of industrial waste and other abuses — occur in full knowledge of the authorities,” said Professor Abdullah Abu Saeed, an eminent campaigner for “Save Buriganga, Save Lives”.
Among the top polluters are dozens of tanneries on the banks of the Buriganga. The government recently initiated a move to relocate the tanneries outside the capital, and