HC directives ignored

Repeated notices of the Department of Environment (DoE), protests from environmentalists, warnings from environment experts, and the High Court's directives for the government to stop pollution of rivers -- nothing could refrain industrialists from their vile practice of dumping effluents in the rivers in and around the capital.
It is mainly industrial pollution, which left the rivers of Dhaka city biologically dead, as 60 percent of the total effluents dumped in the rivers are industrial wastes while the rest are household liquids including excreta of city residents. Pollution of the city rivers has reached such a level that the groundwater system, where aquifers are recharged from riverbeds, is also being contaminated.
Although the Bangladesh Environment Conservation Act (ECA) clearly prohibits pollution of rivers, and makes it mandatory to set up effluent treatment plants (ETP) for certain categories of industries, no success has been seen due to not having the 'polluters pay' principle enshrined in the law, according to which the polluters must pay for reversing the pollution done by them. Environmental laws of many countries are guided by the principle including of neighbouring India.
According to DoE statistics, there are around 7,000 industries in and around the capital, around 200 of which have ETPs, but many of them do not use the plants in order to maximise profit by cutting the cost of running those.
A survey by DoE reveals, from March 2006 to April 2009, the department's inspectors visited a total of 951 establishments, 791 of which are industrial units and 160 are hospital, clinics and others. Among the visited industrial units 567 required ETPs while only 138 of them had those. Later 49 more industrial units set up ETPs during the period, and 56 others are in the process of setting up the plants.
During the visits, DoE inspectors found only 105 industrial units with ETPs were operating the plants while 82 kept theirs switched off.
The government is reluctant to implement the environmental law as in two decades it has not set up a single ETP at its own industrial units under Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation (BSCIC). The government is even letting foreign companies pollute the country's environment, as it has not ensured installation of central ETPs at Export Processing Zones (EPZ).
Makers of different famous brands of goods, who have factories in Bangladesh, cannot pollute the environment in their home countries, but are cavalierly polluting the water bodies of Bangladesh while the government is idly watching.
A survey by the World Bank shows, there are over 300 effluent discharge outlets in Dhaka city and Narayanganj, 19 of which carry major discharges of mixed effluents of industrial and household wastes into the city rivers.
The DoE report mentions that Givency Garments Limited at Monipur of Gazipur did not even take any environment clearance certificate from the department, and the factory did not have any ETP during a visit by DoE inspectors on April 8 this year. The factory was discharging its untreated multi-coloured effluent directly into the drainage system.
Elegant Washing Plant of the same area, visited on the same day, was found to have an ETP, but it was not in operation, while the plant was discharging its untreated effluent into the drainage system, which ultimately dumps the waste into the Turag and Bangshi rivers.
Mahmud Hossain, owner of a washing plant with an operating ETP in Gazipur, said his factory generates 150 cubic metres of wastewater every day.
"We spend 8 to10 lakh taka a month for lime, poly-electro lime, poly-aluminium chloride and poly-electro chloride to treat the waste," he added.
"We can stay honest and treat the wastewater before discharging, and still can make profit from the business," he noted.
ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS
According to the Environment Conservation Rule 1997 under ECA, every industry of certain categories must have in-house ETPs, otherwise they would not get environmental clearance from DoE, which is mandatory for getting power and gas supply.
In ECA, 69 kinds of industries are listed under the Red category and another 69 kinds under the Orange B category, for all of which ETPs are a must, as they produce effluents harmful for the environment.
Industries under the Red category are: tanneries, power plants, all mining projects, fuel oil refineries, distilleries, waste incinerators, sewage treatment plants, landfills, ship, metallic boat, and wooden boat manufacturers, engineering workshops, water treatment plants, motor vehicle workshops, electroplating factories, industrial estates, and industries that produce formaldehyde, urea fertilizer, TSP fertilizer, chemical dyes, artificial rubber, paper and pulp, sugar, fabric dye, caustic soda and other alkalis, iron and steel, raw materials, photo films, explosives, acids and their salts, nitrogen, plastic raw materials, asbestos, fibreglass, pesticides, phosphorus, chlorine, ordnance, nuclear power, wine, non-metalic chemicals, detergent, non-iron basic metals, life saving drugs, animal glue, rodenticides, refractories, industrial gas, battery, tobacco, refrigerator, tyre and tube, board mills, carpets, sewage pipe lines, murate of potash, etc.
The law even determines what kinds of wastewater may be discharged and what should be the level of its stench, and how much smog and noise a factory may produce. For violation of the rules, courts may fine any business establishment up to Tk 10 lakh, and sentence persons responsible for the violation to a maximum of 10 years imprisonment, or both.
DHAKA WATER AND SEWERAGE AUTHORITY (Wasa)
In the seven months from November to April, virtually no water but only malodorous mucky liquid flows through the ever narrowing Buriganga, Shitalakkhya, Turag, and Balu rivers, as no government could stop discharge of untreated liquid waste into them.
Dhaka Wasa collect polluted water from the rivers and supply that to city residents after treating it at its treatment plants. Currently, 85 percent of the total water demand of the city is met through groundwater sources as most of the surface water is contaminated, according to Wasa.
Currently, Dhaka Wasa is producing around 1,200 million litres of water a day for urban supply through about 423 deep tube wells, resulting in an yearly depletion of ground water level by two metres due to over extraction, experts warn.
The pollution that has set in the rivers Buriganga and Shitalakkhya, has made it almost impossible to treat their water. The overall situation suggests it could not be any graver.