Paper mill damaging canal, environment
Raja Paper Mill, a newsprint and cardboard factory on Rangpur-Bogura highway in Chapriganj area of Gobindaganj upazila, is causing severe pollution to Ishamoti Gajari canal.
The pollution is posing threat not only to human health, but also to aquatic animals in the canal, affecting overall environment in surrounding areas.
The canal, originating from the Karotoa river, is the primary source of irrigation for agricultural lands in the area. It is also the source of fish for locals. Jute growers also depend on it for processing raw jute.
Raja Paper Mill has been dumping chemical waste into the canal since it went into operation three years ago, said locals.
A thick layer of waste and debris, accumulated throughout the years, now covers the canal and emits foul odour, making lives miserable at houses and schools within around a three-kilometre radius of the canal, they also said.
The pollution has rendered the canal’s water unsuitable for irrigation and it destroyed the entire ecosystem of the canal including aquatic animals such as fish, they alleged.
Nur-e-Diba Shanti, headteacher of Chapriganj Model Government Primary School, said the stench from the canal is so overpowering that conducting classes becomes difficult and some students often suffer from nausea and breathing problems.
Contacted, Gobindaganj Upazila Nirbahi Officer Ramkrishna Barmon said they were taking steps so the factory authorities install an effluent treatment plant to conserve the environment.
Raja Paper Mill’s manager, Nurul Islam, claimed that they have already set up an effluent treatment plant, but an undetected leak in it was spilling waste into the canal for the last few months.
A Chinese expert has detected the cause of the spill and the situation is normal now, he further claimed.
On Monday, Monower Hossain Chowdhury, lawmaker from Gaibandha-4, and Abdul Latif Prodhan, chairman of Gobindaganj Upazila Parishad, paid a visit to the factory and asked its authorities to stop the environmental pollution.