We even found traces of bacteria and fungus in Dhaka air

Bangladesh’s ranking in air pollution isn’t improving. This time too Bangladesh topped the air pollution index of the world’s major cities. Why is the situation not improving?

Shafi Tareq: All of us more or less know why the situation isn’t improving. No one wants to take any effective initiative to halt those who are responsible for air pollution. Everyone knows that one of the major causes of air pollution in Dhaka is outdated vehicles. When there is a road accident, then too we see that those vehicles don’t have licences or don’t have fitness certificates. Yet those cars are on the streets, openly spewing out black fumes. There are government agencies to control this. BRTA, the Department of Environment and the district administration can take action in this regard if they want.

If you run a random selection check of vehicles that are causing pollution, you would find that most of these vehicles are 20 to 25 years old. In Japan and other developed countries, cars over four years old aren’t used because after that span of time, the fuel from the vehicles spread more pollution. That is why these cars are reconditioned and sent to countries like Bangladesh. That means we are importing pollution along with goods.

But there is massive pollution caused by brick kilns and construction work. It is easier to control this. For example, it is possible to cancel the licences of the brick kilns and even demolish these on grounds of creating pollution. And then there are RAJUK, city corporations and the department of environment to monitor the construction work.

Shafi Tareq: Actually it will not do to look at the problem specifically in the light of building or infrastructure construction. Dhaka city is headed towards an overall disaster. The number of people living in this city is a few multiple times more than possible. Logistics and services are having to be ensured for this massive volume of people. For example, the government is paying more attention to the construction of roads, buildings, flyovers, metro rail and large infrastructure. And such development is politically important because these projects win people’s praise. And such work causes the most air pollution. Construction work requires huge amounts of bricks, sand, cement, paint and so on. The more these are used, the more pollution will increase.

Dhaka is now one of the fastest growing cities. We should have had proper planning and regulations to ensure that this rapid infrastructural construction did not lead to excessive pollution. But that was not done. And while everyone has been affected by air pollution, this is not that clearly visible. This has a gradual impact but for a long term. That is why our policymakers are not bothered about air pollution. The media has a responsibility in this regard too.

What do you mean by long-term problem? The media has regularly been providing news on Dhaka’s ranking in air pollution, air quality and so on.

Shafi Tareq: If there is an accident or a fire, the damages are there before our eyes. The cries of the victims’ families touch our hearts. The government rapidly takes certain immediate measures. But air pollution is leading to permanent ailments like coughs and colds, lung problems, cancer, hypertension and more. These ailments lower people’s life span and lead to early death. Work capacity falls. You all may not blame air pollution. You may think there is something wrong with yourself. And so the government people do not attach importance to air pollution. As for the media, they simply publish Bangladesh’s air pollution ranking and that’s it. There must be regular highlighting of the health risks, environmental damages, impact on agriculture, biodiversity and the negative effects in various other areas.

Generally speaking, everyone notes the particulate matter PM2.5 and PM10 to understand the level and degree of air pollution. Do you see any other harmful substance in the air?

Shafi Tareq: General speaking, we assess the air quality of any location by taking the presence of particulate matter into consideration. But our recent research has revealed certain extremely hazardous elements in Dhaka’s air. For instance, from November to May we found strains of bacteria and fungus in Dhaka airstream. We know that coughs and colds increase during this time and these germs certainly float in the air. But we knew that these could not travel far. Our research indicates that when a person sneezes or coughs, these germs can travel 10 to 100 metres and enter another person’s body by means of inhalation. It is worse if it falls on food. The germs then enter the stomach and can cause serious infection and harm.

We must avoid food in open air where dust can fall. Many feel that it is fine if the dust is removed and then the food eaten. But the bacteria and fungus that we found in the air with the dust, remains behind. That is why air pollution is taking us towards serious public health disaster.

Is there proof that air pollution has a direct link with these health problems?

Shafi Tareq: We certainly have proof. For example, in 2015 a total of 100,000 persons were suffering from coughs and colds in the capital. The air quality in 2023 became almost doubly worse compared to then. And the number of people suffering from coughs and colds exceeded 500,000. We saw an increasing presence of toxic heavy metals in Dhaka’s air then. The presence of elements that cause cancer, such as lead and cadmium, is increasing in Dhaka’s air. Overall, Dhaka’s air is becoming extremely toxic. But no one is bothered.

What is the way out of this situation?

Shafi Tareq: We must find a way out. We all know the ways, more or less. Firstly, there must be widespread awareness campaigns about the harms of air pollution. The government policymakers must be sensitized about this so that they pay the matter due importance. After all, Bangladesh displayed considerable success in tackling the Covid pandemic.

It will be possible to tackle the situation if our health system, volunteers and non-government organisations all worked together. But the basic work must be conducted by the government. If petrol and gas pumps could be stopped from providing fuel to outdated polluting cars, these would be changed.

Stern action must be taken against the brick kilns. There must be a high-powered committee comprising RAJUK, the city corporation and private sector entrepreneurs to control the dust in construction work. We managed to fix the readymade garment factories after the Rana Plaza collapse. So why will we not be able to control the dust and pollution during construction work? Actually, there must be political will in this regard. Only then will it be possible to free the air of pollution and make it pure. Countries like China, India and Thailand have already started this.

Thank you so much for your time.

Shafi Tareq: Thank you too.