Prof Dr Ahmad Kamruzzaman Majumder :
World Cleanup Day is one of the largest but the youngest civic movements. For the first time ever, on September 15, 2018, more than 18 million people from 157 different nations took part in simultaneous global cleanup efforts. Since then, the third Saturday in September has been designated as World Cleanup Day. To date, the cleanup movement has brought together millions of individuals in 180 different nations to clean up the earth.
In line with the world, Bangladesh also needs more awareness about this day. Because there are various types of pollution all over Bangladesh, some of which are occasional and the major part is plastic pollution which is usually prevalent in cities. And changing it pollutes other environmental components. Plastic now has a wide range of uses and is not just used to make objects, bags, or bottles; this has raised concerns. Microbits, a minuscule plastic particle utilised as a cosmetic element, have been employed exponentially more recently, according to study published recently. Just a few examples are toothpaste, detergent, body wash, and face wash. In sewers, ponds, canals, and other bodies of water, these everyday home items are disposed of in a variety of ways. Microbeads have been found in fish eggs, the mouth, and even the stomach, according to an ESDO study on fish. In addition, using polymers and plastic products causes a number of health issues in people. Three different routes – the food chain, the water, and the air-are generally used for plastics to enter the human body. The chemicals used in the manufacture of plastic products pose serious health risks to people.
The developments of both long-term and transient problems in the human body, as well as the complications they cause, are caused by plastic products. Just a few of the pressing health issues that need to be resolved include cancer, asthma, skin conditions, birth defects, genetic changes, and other serious health difficulties. In 51 out of 104 examined products, microbeads were discovered, according to a recent study by CAPS. The most important of these factors is whether microbeads are included in facewashes and scrubs. Toothpaste, soap, and detergent have all been shown to contain microbeads. In contrast, only 86 percent of Americans are aware of microbeads. However, if we clean this up, it might cease spreading and lessen these dangerous occurrences.
In terms of population, Bangladesh is ranked tenth in the world. According to the 2019 report from the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics, there are 16.57 million people living there, and the population is growing at a 1.33 per cent annual pace. Urban regions have increased trash production due to population growth and a corresponding rise in waste management requirements. The most populous city in the world, according to population density, is Dhaka. People are moving from countryside to cities to meet a variety of requirements, which is causing Dhaka’s population to grow quickly. Human-made waste is also growing at the same time. Waste management is inherently a difficult problem, and it becomes even more difficult in the case of Dhaka city because, a study has found that 37 per cent of the Bangladesh’s waste is produced in the capital city. It also gets difficult to clean up the city after a festival of sacrifice. Pressure is building up in several areas of Dhaka city as a result of the absence of a competent and well-planned waste management system. Pollution is always present in the metropolis. At the conclusion of the identical image in other cities as well.
Today’s waste is tomorrow’s wealth and garbage is currency are two well-known proverbs relating to waste. Waste is processed and turned into useful and profitable alternatives in affluent nations like Sweden and Norway. They are also importing garbage from other nations as a result. Like the affluent nations around the world, Bangladesh should likewise implement a number of waste management strategies. The involved institutions should implement a strategy to turn trash into resources by storing, neutralising, inactivating, or processing waste in order to create a variety of new goods that are valuable. Along with the environment, it will have economic advantages for the nation and its citizens. Families should be educated about hygiene. Children will become conscious from an early age if their parents model good behaviour by not littering. Additionally, we should make everyone aware, especially youngsters, by incorporating a specific chapter on trash management in the textbooks and by pushing numerous awareness campaigns on good waste management in the media. And by doing so, guaranteeing that garbage disposal methods are prevented at all levels-from the individual to the general-a safe, healthy, and lovely environment is created.
(Dr Kamruzzaman is Dean, Faculty of Science, Chairman, Department of Environmental Science, Stamford University Bangladesh).
