POLLUTION, especially air pollution, has for long been a major cause for concern for public health. Yet, the authorities have consistently remained nonchalant about the issue. While about 200,000 premature deaths are attributed to air pollution every year, the Air Quality Life Index says that pollution shortens the life expectancy of an average Bangladeshi by 4.8 years. Some areas such as Gazipur and Narsingdi fare much worse than others where air pollution shortens life by more than 6 years. The index also reveals that all of 166.4 million people live in areas where the annual average particulate pollution level exceeds the WHO guideline and 96.8 per cent of the population lives in regions that do not even meet the national standard. Bangladesh allows higher levels of pollutants in air in its air policy than recommended by the World Health Organisation. The WHO set the PM2.5 annual standard at five micrograms per cubic metre and Bangladesh increased it to 35 micrograms per cubic metre. Even if pollution levels were to meet the national standard, life expectancy would increase by more than two years.
At least 236,000 lives were lost in Bangladesh to air pollution in 2021, according to the State of Global Air report that held air pollution responsible for the premature deaths of about eight million people across the world that year. What is highly worrying, in such a situation, is that public agencies appear to have largely failed to contain air pollution and comply with the three High Court orders issued to control air pollution. The court directed the government to shut down brick kilns in and around the capital, ban black smoke-emitting and unfit vehicles, destroy vehicles that have served their shelf life and define their valid life spans, among others. The court also directed city authorities to ensure that owners of markets, shops and houses in the capital should develop their own waste collection system for the final collection by city corporations. All the directives appear to have been largely ignored, leaving Dhaka鈥檚 air to deteriorate further. About 3,000 brick kilns operate in and around the capital, according to the environment department, which claims to have recently shut down 700 brick kilns across the country. The government has spent a large amount of money on a number of projects aimed at air quality enhancement, but the projects seem to have yielded little results.
The government should own up to its failure, take up programmes that can yield results and also comply with the court directives to lessen the burden of air pollution. Realising that air pollution is a threat to public health, productivity and the economy, the government must take effective air quality enhancement plans. There is no scope for the authorities to compromise on an issue that so adversely affects all.
