When it comes to the issue of waste management, it appears our capital city isn’t the only region that has been failing its citizens as the local residents of Narsingdi are witnessing unprecedented levels of pollution and health hazards caused by the open dumping of waste in the municipality -- a lot of the waste being produced by several, unregistered poultry farms operating in the vicinity.
Waste management has been one issue that cities and surrounding areas often falter in getting right, especially Dhaka -- after all, ineffective waste management is what led to the death of the once mighty River Buriganga, which is now among the most polluted bodies of water in the whole nation. But it is when the waste we generate starts to become a public health concern that we should all be alarmed.
While industrial waste comes from the impunity enjoyed by these factories who are free to pollute our waters with little to no consequences, human waste mostly arises from the utter lack of sanitation and sewage facilities -- in the case of Narsingdi, it appears industrial waste is the primary reason.
If there is any credibility to the allegations of these poultry farms being unregistered, the local administration needs to investigate it without delay. But even if these farms are registered, they should still be fined and have the appropriate punitive measures slapped on them for such reckless disregard for public health and safety.
Ineffective waste management leads to not only pollution but diseases such as dengue to worsen, and given the severity of the dengue epidemic that the nation is going through at this moment, waste management is one area that we cannot afford to mishandle.
We cannot keep ignoring this mess for much longer.
