Dhaka's main rivers dying
Plasma Plus, a scientific research laboratory, has just concluded a study on behalf of Dhaka WASA on the pollution levels of the six major rivers (Turag, Balu, Sitalakkhya, Dhaleshwari and the Bangshi) that sustain the capital city and the results are not good. What was found is that most of the rivers scored "yellow", indicating that the water is unsuitable for human consumption and may only be used for recreation, pisciculture and livestock. The heavy presence of organic micro-pollutants and heavy metals that are non-degradable make water of these rivers undrinkable. Little wonder that the Sayedabad Water Treatment plant has to use excessive ammonia to treat Sitalakkhya water to make it fit for human consumption.
This paper, along with environmentalists, the civil society and electronic media have been advocating since 2009 for authorities to wake up from their slumber to the fact that without a healthy river system, the continued existence of the capital city of some 20 million simply cannot be guaranteed. Rivers are not merely there to provide us with fish to eat, but they provide the drinking water and a natural drainage system for the rainfall and waste generated by humans, all of which are essential prerequisites of city living.
Yet, these cries have fallen on deaf ears. Industrial effusion has continued to be dumped untreated into major rivers like the Sitalakkhya and the deadly toxins from Hazaribagh have been allowed to enter the Buriganga over years – all thanks to turning a blind eye to the practice by concerned authorities. Realtors have had a field day for years as they have, with impunity, encroached upon rivers and today we are in this terrible situation. This is a matter of life and death and unless steps are taken to enforce laws that exist on paper, Dhaka may soon become an unliveable city.
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