THE four rivers – Buriganga, Balu, Turag and Shitalakhya – around Dhaka city are already dead as the dissolved oxygen level in the water bodies is almost zero, making aquatic life unviable. Quoting an environmental watchdog, this daily on Tuesday reported that water in the rivers has become untreatably polluted due to the discharging of industrial, household and human waste. The mindless pollution of the rivers will not only make the city more toxic and pause development but also causes water-borne diseases to many. The government, without pronouncing words on protecting the rivers from pollution, did nothing over the years and the end result are the “dead rivers”.
The environmentalists stated that if the dissolved oxygen is around 5 ppm in water it is usable for aquaculture, irrigation and household and industrial use – but the level is zero. Meanwhile, the groundwater is drying out quickly by diminishing at around five meters in a year in the capital, since the highly polluted surface water is not suitable for use and concrete blocks obstruct water from entering into the soil. It is anticipated that if the trend of rampant water pollution continues, Dhaka will turn into an unlivable city within next 20 years. The murky colour and the stench of those water bodies bear testimony to the fact that water pollution has taken a turn for the worse and the situation calls for immediate remedial measures.
While rivers are considered as the lifeline of every civilization, Bangladesh is blessed by hundreds of rivers but our gratuitous acts of polluting the rivers will ultimately lead to our downfall. If the government, environmentalists, and citizens do not act swiftly with efficiency and effectiveness to stop the pollution, the damage to our environment might become irreversible. River pollution is deadly serious that requires an immediate and coordinated solution. This is essentially a multi-disciplinary challenge. It is thus imperative for the government to form an inter-ministerial taskforce with private sector experts co-opted in it to go into the matter at length and come up with a concrete and doable action plan to stem the tide of pollution. International expertise and assistance can only be forthcoming on such a mission.
