Polybags, waterlogging and indifference

Last Friday, Dhaka City went under knee-to-waist deep water, courtesy of this season's heaviest rainfall, measuring 130mm in just six hours---6 am to 12 noon.

Life came to a grinding halt, not just for those six hours. Residents of most parts of the city had to remain confined to their houses. Those who dared to come out to attend urgent businesses had to wade through flooded streets. Rainwater entered wayside markets, shops and ground floors of residential houses. Worse, rainwater kept many roads occupied until the next day due to non-availability of escape routes.

As it happens every time, newspapers and private television channels spend a lot of space and time showing the waterlogged streets and city residents' sufferings. The apathy of the two city corporations to deal with the issue topped the list of factors responsible for the recurring incidences of waterlogging. People and the media justifiably blame the corporations for not keeping their promise to ease waterlogging within the shortest possible time. They had made the promise while taking over the responsibility of restoring the major city canals four years back. Friday's waterlogging was a testimony to that fact. During the last four years, two city corporations reportedly spent more than Tk. 7.3 billion to address the problem of waterlogging. Before that, the Dhaka Water and Sewerage Authority (DWASA) had spent nearly Tk.20 billion for the same purpose. But, if not rainwater, the entire money has gone down the drain.

The main reason why  waterlogging has become a severe problem is that even after a moderate downpour, surface drains and canals cannot flush out water since they are clogged because of encroachment, indiscriminate garbage dumping and deposition of silt and mud. 

Restoring canals that are supposed to carry rain or wastewater is a troublesome job. The city corporations would need money and a strong will to do the job.

While canals have become virtually non-existent, the surface drains remain choked because of the dumping of discarded polythene and plastic materials. Besides sand and mud, canals are also loaded with the same articles that are seen as a grave threat to the environment.

Discarded polythene bags are seen almost everywhere. But that should not have been the situation in Bangladesh, for it was the first country in the world to ban plastic and polythene bags in 2002. It was a bold step that received widespread appreciation. Good work lasts only for a short time in this country. Polythene bags started appearing in the market after some months. As time went by, their production gradually returned to its previous level. Now, polythene bags are in use everywhere and in every possible manner. The usage of polythene has more than tripled since 2002. The amount of polythene used in 2019-20 was 592,223 metric tonnes. In the next four years, it has gone up further, as the authorities concerned have yet to enforce the ban.

Polythene, wrongly, has become an integral part of our daily life because of its durability, lightweight and low cost. The downside of polythene use is that people throw polythene bags indiscriminately after their single use. These bags eventually end up in drains, sewage pipelines, canals, rivers and other open areas. As polythene is non-biodegradable, it remains intact in the environment even for thousands of years.

Polythene also blocks the passage of nutrients through the soil and promotes the killing of beneficial microorganisms, leading to soil fertility loss. This ill effect, coupled with the obstruction it causes to the normal flow of water in drains, canals and water bodies, must be seen in its entirety.

Unfortunately, successive governments have overlooked the gradual increase in polythene use, even though the ban on its use is still in force. The government seems unwilling to take up the unpalatable task of stopping polythene production and marketing. Such reluctance has made the issue far more problematic and has left a long-lasting damaging effect on the country's environment.

In 1999, Bangladesh had only 300 polybag manufacturing units. Despite the ban, the number of such units is now more than 1000. What is worse, plastic waste is imported from countries like the UK and the USA. Interestingly, the government had withdrawn 5 per cent of the duty on polythene bags from the fiscal year 2022-23 budget. All these developments only point to the government's indifference, deliberate or otherwise, to reduce the use of poly bags.

Convenience and low cost are the factors prompting people to use polybags. Shopkeepers prefer the item for its durability and low cost. There is only one alternative--- jute bag, which is environment- friendly. However, the use of jute bags is not widespread since they are relatively expensive.

Gone are the days when people used to carry jute or cotton bags or bamboo-made handy containers to kitchen markets. Polybags have now replaced those. So, finding low-cost, environment-friendly bags for daily use is essential.

Besides, most people are unaware of the adverse impact of using polybags on the environment. An awareness campaign for the general population must be launched and continued for an extended time. Since the effect is not visible to the naked eye, the importance of such a campaign is immense. Only a few people, possibly, are aware of the existence of the Environment Ministry and the agencies under its control. They need to be assertive in generating enough concern among the general populace about the deteriorating environment, mainly because of the widespread use of polybags.