ENVIRONMENT POLLUTION : Lack of political commitment, non enforcement of law blamed

Non enforcement is facilitating environmental pollution across the country, said environmentalists.
They said that the root problem  was the government’s lack of political commitment to address the environmental issues.
They blamed the authorities for turning a blind eye to increasing pollution posing serious risks to public health.
They said that the future generations were not safe from the hazards created by pollution.
Acute water, air and noise pollution became pervasive across the country due to sheer negligence of the authorities, said environmentalists.
They said that the unchecked sale of foods treated with formalin an other harmful chemicals was causing ‘silent genocide’.
They said that serious water pollution was causing grievous harms rural and urban populations.
They said that countrywide water pollution caused by industrial and sewer waste dumping in rivers and water bodies was posing serious threat public health.
In the dry season, Dissolved Oxygen in the Buriganga, Turag, Balu, Sitalakkhya rivers drops to almost nil, said the Department of Environment
A recent UNDP study revealed that the aquatic life in the four rivers was endangered by their deteriorating water quality.
Pollution by brick kilns also poses public health risks in their  adjacent areas besides damaging fertility of crop lands, said environmentalists.
Until November, out of 6,886 kilns across the country, 3,049 used fixed chimneys known for causing environmental pollution, according to the DoE.
Unchecked use of electronic horns by vehicles and motorbikes in the capital and the other cities has been blamed for causing sound pollution  exceeding the legal limits posing threat to public health.
Experts said sound pollution could cause blood pressure, tachycardia, headache, indigestion, peptic ulcer, sleep disturbance.
They said pregnant women and the babies they were carrying face greater health risks.
Water pollution caused by dumping of industrial, municipal and sewer waste became the greatest source of public health hazards, Poribesh Bachao Andolon executive general secretary Md Abdus Sobhan told New Age.
Sobhan, a former additional director general of DoE, described formalin-treated food as the cause of new diseases and a silent genocide.
He said there was no shortage  of pollution control laws but non enforcement made them useless.
He described lack of political commitment and public awareness was mainly responsible  for the increasing environmental pollution.
Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association chief executive Syeda Rizwana Hasan said air and noise pollution was the biggest source of problem for public health in the urban areas. .
Rizwana blamed uncontrolled industrialisation and urbanisation for the environmental pollution.
She said the DoE should shut down the industries that cause water and air pollution.
She said that mere collection of fines was proving ineffective in curbing pollution by industries.
Barisal University vice chancellor and soil, water and environmental scientist SM Imamul Huq identified water, air and noise pollution as major source of public health hazard in the urban areas.
DoE director (monitoring and enforcement) AKM Mizanur Rahman admitted that lack of enforcement was the main reason behind the failure to prevent environmental pollution.
He said that DoE faced acute  manpower shortage in tackling the issues across the country.