An unconventional way to control river pollution
Saturday, 12 September 2009
M Ashiqur Rahman
CONTROLLING river pollution has been a burning issue in Bangladesh for two decades. But the failure to prevent or curb pollution has led to poorer river water quality.
Like many other developing countries, for river pollution control Bangladesh relies on expensive and somewhat outdated western technology for treatment of pollutants. These technologies from industrial countries are neither suitable nor easily adaptable to the social, economic and environmental conditions of developing countries. The technology requires setting up of imported effluent treatment plants. The treatment of the pollutants may provide the best solution to the problem unless they are controlled at the source by using cleaner production, recycling and resource recovery mechanism.
In the United States, Australia and China 'market-based' mechanism encouraged voluntary reduction of the pollutants by the polluters. In this system polluters must use the correct technology or face financial consequences. Under this policy, emission constraints are not source-specific. Rather it provides equal incentives to all polluters by increasing the marginal cost of pollution. Moreover, the stakeholders such as producers, consumers, users, government authorities and the local community get directly involved with this process. The importance of none of the stakeholders, who generate or who oppose pollution, cannot be underestimated for an effective pollution control.
It is obvious that to protect the rivers in Bangladesh from further pollution the country needs to look beyond the ineffective conventional policies and strategies. An innovative and integrated approach could overcome the problem. Monetary incentives, rewards and other recognition for reducing pollution could possibly be effective in restoring the rivers. The involvement of the community should be useful.
The rivers in Bangladesh get polluted during the dry season, November to May. The capacity of most of the rivers to dilute pollution increases dramatically during the wet season, June to October. It creates the possibility for using 'non-uniform reduction' measures.
Another significant issue is that different polluters have varying levels of capacity to cut back their pollutants. Some can do it better than others. This creates the scope for a tradable permit system for controlling water pollution, with a 'cap' guarantee when the total allowable emission is not exceeded. For instance, the Hunter River Salinity Trading Scheme of Australia leads the world in using this economic instrument in protecting its waterways.
The scheme, involving a number of point sources of salinity in the Hunter River, since introduction in 1996, has halved while economic activity and employment have grown substantially. It has thus become a win-win example for all who use the river.
Regular monitoring of the quality of river water (physical, chemical and biological composition) is an important aspect to control river pollution. However, being expensive and time consuming activity, it might be difficult for developing countries to do on a regular basis. Even powerful agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency of the United States assigns this task to the community with assistance from the local administration. Bangladesh could explore this option to ease the burden of monitoring the rivers.
Awareness about the negative consequences of the harmful activities, which affect the country's precious natural resources including river can drastically minimise the damage caused to them. It is time for Bangladesh to stress on environmental education from the primary to the tertiary level of studies because today's learners are tomorrow's leaders.
(The writer, a senior lecturer in the North South University, is currently pursuing PhD in environmental management at the University of Sydney, Australia)
CONTROLLING river pollution has been a burning issue in Bangladesh for two decades. But the failure to prevent or curb pollution has led to poorer river water quality.
Like many other developing countries, for river pollution control Bangladesh relies on expensive and somewhat outdated western technology for treatment of pollutants. These technologies from industrial countries are neither suitable nor easily adaptable to the social, economic and environmental conditions of developing countries. The technology requires setting up of imported effluent treatment plants. The treatment of the pollutants may provide the best solution to the problem unless they are controlled at the source by using cleaner production, recycling and resource recovery mechanism.
In the United States, Australia and China 'market-based' mechanism encouraged voluntary reduction of the pollutants by the polluters. In this system polluters must use the correct technology or face financial consequences. Under this policy, emission constraints are not source-specific. Rather it provides equal incentives to all polluters by increasing the marginal cost of pollution. Moreover, the stakeholders such as producers, consumers, users, government authorities and the local community get directly involved with this process. The importance of none of the stakeholders, who generate or who oppose pollution, cannot be underestimated for an effective pollution control.
It is obvious that to protect the rivers in Bangladesh from further pollution the country needs to look beyond the ineffective conventional policies and strategies. An innovative and integrated approach could overcome the problem. Monetary incentives, rewards and other recognition for reducing pollution could possibly be effective in restoring the rivers. The involvement of the community should be useful.
The rivers in Bangladesh get polluted during the dry season, November to May. The capacity of most of the rivers to dilute pollution increases dramatically during the wet season, June to October. It creates the possibility for using 'non-uniform reduction' measures.
Another significant issue is that different polluters have varying levels of capacity to cut back their pollutants. Some can do it better than others. This creates the scope for a tradable permit system for controlling water pollution, with a 'cap' guarantee when the total allowable emission is not exceeded. For instance, the Hunter River Salinity Trading Scheme of Australia leads the world in using this economic instrument in protecting its waterways.
The scheme, involving a number of point sources of salinity in the Hunter River, since introduction in 1996, has halved while economic activity and employment have grown substantially. It has thus become a win-win example for all who use the river.
Regular monitoring of the quality of river water (physical, chemical and biological composition) is an important aspect to control river pollution. However, being expensive and time consuming activity, it might be difficult for developing countries to do on a regular basis. Even powerful agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency of the United States assigns this task to the community with assistance from the local administration. Bangladesh could explore this option to ease the burden of monitoring the rivers.
Awareness about the negative consequences of the harmful activities, which affect the country's precious natural resources including river can drastically minimise the damage caused to them. It is time for Bangladesh to stress on environmental education from the primary to the tertiary level of studies because today's learners are tomorrow's leaders.
(The writer, a senior lecturer in the North South University, is currently pursuing PhD in environmental management at the University of Sydney, Australia)