Newspapers in Bangladesh are never tired of reporting projects to be taken up for people's welfare. Such projects are always 'to be' but none knows when these will really be executed. In fact, the Dhakaites are sandwiched between 'to be' and 'not to be'. This is the irony.
However, it should indeed be good news to hear that a $62.2 million Clean Air and Sustainable Environment (CASE) project will go a long way in improving air quality and safe traffic movement in Dhaka when it will be completed late next year. The World Bank (WB), the financier of the project, has found satisfactory progress in implementation of the project, which is targeted to be completed by mid-December, 2016.
The project is seemingly making progress as some of its components like the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) feasibility study, installation of solar powered traffic signals in 62 high traffic intersections in Dhaka, construction of 15-foot over-bridges and reconstruction or repair of 60km sidewalks, drains and road improvements in Mohammadpur, Tejgaon and Khilgaon areas in Dhaka have been completed. Under the project, 11 Continuous Air Monitoring Stations (CAMS) in eight major cities has been built to keep track of the air pollution levels.
The CAMS operate round the clock with expected data capture rate of 85 per cent. The Department of Environment is now preparing the daily Air Quality Index (AQI) based on the data generated from the CAMS.
But the Dhakaites are yet to know who really follows data generated by CAMS to plan and implement other development projects. There must not be laxity on the part of the authorities in taking proper steps to improve air quality of cities in Bangladesh on a priority basis. An estimated seven million people die due to air pollution globally, with more than half of the deaths linked to indoor smoke from cooking stoves, according to a report by the World Health Organisation (WHO).
Pollution of air is now the single largest environmental health risk. The majority of the deaths associated with air pollution were due to heart disease, stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and lung cancer. In the Southeast Asian region, the bulk of it, with 1.7 million premature deaths, was attributed to indoor air pollution. The sources for ambient pollution include diesel engines and industrial emissions. Sixty per cent of these deaths are due to cardiovascular diseases like stroke and heart disease.
The WHO has already rated Bangladesh as the fourth among 91 countries with worst urban air quality. The DoE has set up air quality monitoring stations in eight cities, including Dhaka, Narayanganj, Gazipur, Rajshahi, Chittagong, Khulna and Sylhet. Though Narayanganj has the highest level of gaseous pollutants, the air of the northern metropolis Rajshahi contains the highest level of dust particles. Among the gaseous pollutants which the DoE measures are carbon monoxide (CO), sulphur dioxide (SO2), oxides of nitrogen (NOx) and ozone (O3), methane and non-methane pollutants.
Coordinated efforts of different concerned agencies are now badly needed to take pragmatic steps towards improving air quality of Dhaka, Rajshahi and other cities. Pollution, with the passage of every day, is rising in these cities alarmingly. Mere monitoring will not help; speedy actions to curb it brook no delay.
arjayster@gmail.com
