23 more tanneries to be shut over pollution: JS body

A parliamentary body today said 23 more tannery industries, causing high levels of pollution, will be shut down while utility services of seven tanneries have already been disconnected due to the environment pollution.

It also mentioned that action was taken to shut down Savar Tannery Estate.

The parliamentary standing committee on Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change said this at a meeting at Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban in Dhaka.

"Braving various obstacles, we were able to take actions against the Savar Tannery Estate shutting down several tannery industries. There will be no compromise on the issue of environmental pollution," Saber Hossain Chowdhury, chief of the parliamentary watchdog, told reporters emerging from the meeting.

There are around 120 tannery industries in the tannery estate.

In 2003, the government took initiative to build BSCIC Tannery Industrial Estate on 200 acres in Hemayetpur after moving all tanneries from the capital's Hazaribagh in order to prevent pollution and protect the Buriganga river.

According to statistics of Department of Environment, the central effluent treatment plant of the estate has the capacity to treat around 25,000 cubic metres of liquid waste every day, but the tanners generate around 40,000 cubic metres of liquid waste.

That means 15,000 cubic metres of untreated liquid waste are now dumped into the Dhaleshwari river.

The estate also does not have the facility to treat solid waste, including heavy metals and Chromium, which is also dumped into the Dhaleshwari.

Around 1.60 lakh cubic metres of solid waste have been dumped in the river over the past three years.

WOMEN'S AWARD FOR CONTRIBUTION TO THE ENVIRONMENT

Saber Chowdhury said they have recommended giving awards from the next year to women on the occasion of International Women's Day to recognise the contribution of women in the environment sector.

The ministry is scheduled to formulate policies on how this will be done.

TIGER SANCTUARY IN CTG HILLS

The parliamentary committee has recommended the creation of a Bengal Tiger's sanctuary in the hilly region of Chattogram.

The committee asked to see if the ecosystem of the region is suitable for the Bengal Tiger.

It was decided that the matter would be discussed in detail at the next meeting of the committee.

"Occasionally, the Bengal Tiger enters our border from Myanmar and India. As a result, it would be a good thing if we could make the area suitable for their living," Saber said.

The meeting recommended to discourage the production of plastics by increasing the tax on local raw materials and to present the list of unauthorised establishments in the forest department land in its next meeting.