'Family loses Tk 5,000 per month for pollution'


FE Team | Published: October 28, 2017 19:16:26 | Updated: November 11, 2017 10:27:19


Photo: bdnews24.com

A family living in Dhaka city has to incur a loss of additional Tk 4,000-Tk 5,000 per month, on average, due to dust pollution.

City households have to spend the additional money on cleaning up their cloths, utensils, furniture and other materials.

Poribesh Bachao Andolan (Poba) General Secretary Engr Abdus Sobhan revealed the information on Saturday citing his independent assessment on the city's dust pollution.

The air pollution is usually caused by construction work-related processes like concrete crushing, cement batching and road stone plants, Sobhan said.

He also said that pollution is not only destroying the environment and clean air, but also depriving the city dwellers of breathing in fresh air.

According to a Department of Environment (DoE) study, the level of particulate matter (PM-10) was the highest 499 ugm/m3 in the last dry season in Dhaka.

The permissible level is 150 ugm/m3 as set in the Environment Conservation Rules 1997.

Bangladesh Poribesh Andolan (Bapa) General Secretary Abdul Matin said dust pollution turns acute due to lack of coordination among the urban agencies; like RAJUK, city corporations and Dhaka WASA; in implementing development projects.

As quality is not ensured in road repair, he said, city roads got damaged fast and generate unusual dust making the lives of city dwellers miserable.

Green activists have asked the authorities concerned to take monitoring initiatives to check dust pollution in Dhaka city as its air quality is set to fall with the onset of dry season.

DoE additional director general Quazi Sarwar Imtiaz Hashmi said the department has already published advertisements in newspapers on sound and air pollution to make the city dwellers aware of these pollutions, reports UNB on Saturday.

"We've also started conducting drives against polluters, who generate dust polluting the air, aiming to check air pollution in the capital," he said.

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