Barisal City is situated on the banks of the Kirtankhola River
At least 50 tons of waste are dumped in rivers every day
Barisal City is situated on the banks of the Kirtankhola River, and its economy largely depends on the river.
However, there needs to be more supervision of the river. Unabated waste dumping has put the biodiversity of the river and the connected canals at severe risk.
Every day, waste from the fish landing and sales center, as well as the largest kitchen market in the divisional city, fills the rivers and canals. On the other hand, the Department of Environment and the Barisal City Corporation need to carry out their responsibilities to public satisfaction.
The fish landing center is located on Port Road, and the kitchen market is on Bazar Road in the city.
In the fish market, there are at least 300 stalls, all of which dump their waste into the river. The kitchen market also dumps a significant amount of waste, including plastic bags, into the river.
As a result, at least 500 yards of the river near the market have become a floating waste bin.
Humayun Ahmed, a businessman, said there is no waste bin at the market. At least 50 tons of waste are dumped in the river every day. These ultimately land in the connecting canals.
Khan Kamal, an official of the market management committee, said the committee has requested the city corporation to provide a waste bin at the kitchen market. However, the corporation has yet to respond to the request.
According to the sanitation section of Barisal City Corporation, around 160-180 trucks collect around 600-800 tons of garbage across the city every day. However, they cannot collect solid waste from the river and canal estuaries on a regular basis.
Yusuf Ali, officer-in-charge of the waste collection section of the city corporation, said there are only 20 waste bins in the city. However, the corporation is trying to increase the land area of the bins.
The official said a project proposal has been prepared to install at least 80 more bins in the city. If the project is approved and funds are allocated, the problem will largely be solved.
Kamal Mehdi, assistant director at the Department of Environment in Barisal, said his office is surveying the issue of river pollution and canal siltation caused by the dumping of waste. But the removal of waste from the canals and rivers is a task which rests on the city corporation, he added.
Gazi Zahid Hossain, convener of the Conscious Citizens Committee (Sanak), said if there is waste in the river and canal estuaries, the polluted water will spread throughout the city—endangering the life of aquatic animals. It will also affect public health.
