Staff Reporter :
Green activists on Monday stressed the need of taking immediate action against the authority and industry owners of Savar Tannery Estate for direct dumping of chemical waste into Dhaleshwari river without proper treatment.
The estate of pollution is at alarming level, threatening people’s lives and biodiversity. The group has accused ignorance and mismanagement of Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation (BSCIC) as well as leather industry owners.
Poribesh Bachao Andolan (POBA) organised a press conference in this connection at its head office in the city after a recent visit to the Savar Tannery Estate.
Chairman of POBA Abu Naser Khan presented the key note paper, while its General Secretary Engineer Abdus Sobhan, Co-Secretary MA Wahed, Md Salim, Member Mostari Begum, Abul Hasnat Chunnu, President of Tannery Labour Union Abul Kalam Azad, President of Modern Club Abul Hasnat and General Secretary of NASF Taiab Ali, among others, took part in the programme.
According to them, the two modules of Central Treatment Plant (CTP)
in the tannery estate have failed to reach its desired level of treating 12,000 cubic meter of waste due to failure of implementing the actual plan of waste treatment by the authorities. There is no laboratory installed for regular checking of the waste quality and treatment, though it was stated in the master plan of the leather estate.
The reality is that waste of the tannery estate is going into the Dhaleshwari River directly contaminated with life threatening chemicals like Chromium creating threat for the residents of the area and biodiversity.
Abu Naser Khan underscored the need of taking immediate action for attaining sustainability of the estate, as after long negotiation with the industry owners the government has reached the success point and transferred the industries from Hazaribagh for saving Buriganga River from pollution.
But mismanagement and ignorance of the authorities are pushing the pollution into the Buriganga and heavily polluting the Dhaleshwari River, which have to be stopped as soon as possible.
“To look after the development progress of the tannery estate, the authorities should create a management committee to ensure the quality of the development progress,” said Abu Naser Khan.
“Besides mismanagement of waste, there is no facility for labourers working in the tannery estate, authorities must ensure housing, health, education and entertainment facilities for them to make the development sustainable,” he said.
Moreover, besides dumping liquid waste in the river, solid waste of leather is being dumped in the surrounding areas and water bodies, though there was plan of producing electricity from such solid sludge. No system developed yet for salt recovery though there was salt treatment plant establishing plan according to the master planning of the leather estate.
Poor drainage management system helping waterlogging over roads and polluting the adjacent areas being mixed with leather waste while rains. Such situation is creating severe problems for the people living over there.
To sustain the achievement of the Savar Tannery State, the authorities must follow the master plan and develop the leather state. Otherwise, it will turn into Hazaribagh and exceed the previous pollution level.
Green activists on Monday stressed the need of taking immediate action against the authority and industry owners of Savar Tannery Estate for direct dumping of chemical waste into Dhaleshwari river without proper treatment.
The estate of pollution is at alarming level, threatening people’s lives and biodiversity. The group has accused ignorance and mismanagement of Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation (BSCIC) as well as leather industry owners.
Poribesh Bachao Andolan (POBA) organised a press conference in this connection at its head office in the city after a recent visit to the Savar Tannery Estate.
Chairman of POBA Abu Naser Khan presented the key note paper, while its General Secretary Engineer Abdus Sobhan, Co-Secretary MA Wahed, Md Salim, Member Mostari Begum, Abul Hasnat Chunnu, President of Tannery Labour Union Abul Kalam Azad, President of Modern Club Abul Hasnat and General Secretary of NASF Taiab Ali, among others, took part in the programme.
According to them, the two modules of Central Treatment Plant (CTP)
in the tannery estate have failed to reach its desired level of treating 12,000 cubic meter of waste due to failure of implementing the actual plan of waste treatment by the authorities. There is no laboratory installed for regular checking of the waste quality and treatment, though it was stated in the master plan of the leather estate.
The reality is that waste of the tannery estate is going into the Dhaleshwari River directly contaminated with life threatening chemicals like Chromium creating threat for the residents of the area and biodiversity.
Abu Naser Khan underscored the need of taking immediate action for attaining sustainability of the estate, as after long negotiation with the industry owners the government has reached the success point and transferred the industries from Hazaribagh for saving Buriganga River from pollution.
But mismanagement and ignorance of the authorities are pushing the pollution into the Buriganga and heavily polluting the Dhaleshwari River, which have to be stopped as soon as possible.
“To look after the development progress of the tannery estate, the authorities should create a management committee to ensure the quality of the development progress,” said Abu Naser Khan.
“Besides mismanagement of waste, there is no facility for labourers working in the tannery estate, authorities must ensure housing, health, education and entertainment facilities for them to make the development sustainable,” he said.
Moreover, besides dumping liquid waste in the river, solid waste of leather is being dumped in the surrounding areas and water bodies, though there was plan of producing electricity from such solid sludge. No system developed yet for salt recovery though there was salt treatment plant establishing plan according to the master planning of the leather estate.
Poor drainage management system helping waterlogging over roads and polluting the adjacent areas being mixed with leather waste while rains. Such situation is creating severe problems for the people living over there.
To sustain the achievement of the Savar Tannery State, the authorities must follow the master plan and develop the leather state. Otherwise, it will turn into Hazaribagh and exceed the previous pollution level.
