Dream of a Green Dhaka

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Zahirul Hoque Mozumder
Published : 19:22, May 26, 2018 | Updated : 19:26, May 26, 2018

Zahirul Hoque MozumderMost probably, the biggest shift in scientific practice throughout the history of science and technology is development of clean and Green technology for human well-being. It is also a major shift in human thoughts in developing civilisation.
A  Green earth, once considered as a poetic imagination, caught the attention of scientific community and moulded their technological practice accordingly. It’s a philosophy, a stand and a cry among the scientific communities to save Mother Nature from further deterioration. This concern has spilled into common people because of massive media activities on the sufferings the earth is undergoing. Human society has placed itself in a guilty position for harming the earth to ensure their own comfort by different anthropogenic activities.
It is a generally agreed upon fact  among the environment thinkers and scientists that massive industrialisation, reckless urbanisation, deforestation, mining, use of fuel based mechanised transport and huge amount of electricity production has polluted the earth for last three hundred years to such a degree that outshined the last million years of human activities.
Some pollution and destruction of nature is local while some human activities have created pollution in the global scale. The most quotable one is carbon emission, which is responsible for global warming and cause of climate change.
Climate change has created vulnerabilities of flora and fauna in a global scale. Every day, one or more species are becoming endangered or extinct and thus biodiversity is seriously threatened.
We shouldn’t forget the fact that humans (Homo sapiens) are not an isolated species rather a part of food chain and other ecological webs with the other species. So, isolated and dominant survival of humans by endangering other species will ultimately endanger humans too.
Global warming is a major phenomenon that has contributed to global climate change to a larger extent. Sea-level rise, early or late set of seasons and over rain or draught are some of visible affects that global warming is held responsible for. These affects have created livelihood vulnerabilities to a large number of people over the whole earth.
Bangladesh is no exception. A good number of people have become environmental refugees and have already resorted to internal migration to cities.
Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, is also bearing all the global environmental impacts on its shoulder as well as its own sore of environmental degradation.
A city that is older than Kolkata is much stressed due to its population, unplanned urbanisation, unplanned structures, untreated industrial effluent and vehicular pollution. Noise pollution, air pollution and scarcity of safe drinking water have become a daily realty in its civic life here.  
The beauty of the city or its major life line, the Buriganga, has turned into a river of effluents. Dirty and stinky water hosts very little number of aquatic species. A river with high acidic water and very low amount of dissolved oxygen has lost her quality to harbour aquatic flora and fauna, as well as to attract citizens for an evening walk by, to breathe fresh air.
Pitifully, the greenery of Dhaka is some public parks and the lone Botanical Garden in Mirpur. In addition to this there is some street forestation. Rooftop garden is a rare thing to observe. This small amount of natural green qualifies Dhaka to be called as a city without lungs.
The sewerage of Dhaka city is clogged with non-biodegradable solid wastes like polythene, plastics and solid wastes from construction sites. Indiscriminate use of concrete pavement is causing rapid depletion of ground water due to hindered recharge; already has caused huge runoff water to flow over to Buriganga, carrying small sized solid wastes, spilled oil and chemicals.  Buringanga is carrying the end results of our environmental sins we do in our daily life.
For a sustainable society environmental concern, awareness and action have to be shown in every sphere of our life from global level to country level and down to community level. At the global scale, there are agreements and protocols on carbon reduction. At the country level there is environmental legislation particular to a country.  Also, in many cities of the world, they have their specific environmental legislation to save the city, which Dhaka or other cities of Bangladesh are lacking in.
To restore back to a green Bangladesh, we need to start our action without any delay. Things have to be thought out carefully regarding environment, because Bangladesh is a growing economy with the possibility to become a middle income country by 2021 through industrialisation and export.
To this end in view, we shouldn’t follow the dirty trail of the industrialised world that already emitted a lot of carbon. They also went through a phase of massive urban and river pollution.   
Bangladesh should adopt the latest concepts and developments in environmental protection. It is expected that the development paradigm Bangladesh is putting forward to her citizens would adapt the frontier ideas of environmental safety.
As a sound start of environmental restoration and subsequent preservation, Bangladesh should start with Dhaka city, by making it a green city.  So that Dhaka may act as a model city before the whole Bangladesh, in terms of good urban environment.
As environment protection action, Dhaka has already prohibited two-stroke engines vehicles to curb air pollution. Also shifting of the tanneries is a major step. But there is a long way to go for Dhaka and to become a model.
It is expected that there should be strong legislation implemented by the city corporation and other authorities concerned to build a Green Dhaka that will mean Green in the total sense.
In the total sense, ‘Green’ means, not only plantation of some trees in parks, on road medians or roof top. It also means a way of living, a practice whereby pollution is least possible.  It ranges from industry to community life and down to personal life.
The city corporation should legislate, enforce and campaign to build a “Green mind” and “Green attitude” of its citizens. A  Green Citizen would be a concerned citizen in his lifestyle, consumption and disposal, both in his community and in personal level.  
A Green Dhaka will be the gateway to a Green Bangladesh.

Zahirul Hoque Mozumder is an associate professor of Electrical and Electronic Engineering at the University of Dhaka.

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***The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the opinions and views of Bangla Tribune.
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