At least 90 per cent of the wetlands in and around the capital have declined rapidly over the past decade. This has contributed to the complete disappearance of 54 fish species, affected the ecological balance, and put the flood flow zones in great peril. A sizeable portion of wetlands in Mirpur, Gabtali, Basila, Mohammadpur, Badda, Satarkul, Khilkhet, Rampura, Dakkhin and Uttarkhan has already fallen prey to influential real estate groups and developers in the absence of a regulatory body.
The loss of wetlands has resulted in serious water-logging problems for city residents, while production of food-grains has also plummeted over the years.
The ecological balance around the capital is now at stake due to destruction of the wetlands which served as its flood plains. The wetlands also served as cultivable lands during the dry season.
According to a survey conducted by the Bangladesh Centre for Advanced Studies (BCAS), there were 5.86 sq. km. of wetlands in Badda area in 2005, which declined progressively to 3.95 sq. km. in 2010 and 3 sq. km. in 2012.
Experts say that unplanned land use has seriously affected thousands of acres of cultivable lands, water-bodies and wetlands around the capital, and thereby made the city vulnerable to environmental threats. They also say that indiscriminate destruction of wetlands and croplands have already pushed the country to the brink of a large-scale natural disaster. Deforestation and the practice of dumping toxic wastes into water-bodies are also making the country vulnerable to climate changes and are posing serious health hazards to the people, they add.
Brick kilns have sprouted in vast tracts of arable land in Gazipur, Manikganj, Narayanganj, Narsingdi and Munshiganj, causing intensive river and soil as well as air pollution in their vicinities.
Dr Akbar Ali Khan, a former adviser to the caretaker government, said there is a law to protect the country’s wetlands. “This law should be implemented as soon as possible. Otherwise, the nation will face a disaster,” he warned.
Khan expressed concern over the gradual disappearance of wetlands around the capital. The government should take steps to protect the environment and maintain the ecological balance, he added.
Mohammad Abdus Sobhan, a green activist of Paribesh Bachao Andolan, said local authorities like the Pourashava, Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (RAJUK) and union parishads should apply the relevant law to protect the wetlands. “The authorities are not applying the law in a proper manner. They are also in collusion with unscrupulous people who have their eyes on the wetlands for real estate projects,” he alleged.
The groundwater level in the capital is being depleted by two to three metres every year due to the lack of adequate amount of wetlands in and around the capital, according to field data collected by the WASA, WDB, and other organisations. Experts point out that the capital does not have adequate number of water-bodies or lowlands to contain the rainwater for increasing the groundwater level.
The maximum depth of the aquifer in Tejgaon area is about 67 metres below the ground surface, about 65.4 metres below the ground surface in Mirpur, and 20-34 metres below the ground surface in Mohammadpur, Dhanmandi and Sutrapur areas, which are close to the river and wetlands.
The average annual rates of decline of groundwater table in different parts of Dhaka city ranged from 0.17 to 0.6 metre every year, from 1970 to 1980, and from 1.24 to 3.5 metres every year since 2000. The rate of depletion of the water table during the last 15 years in many parts of the City is 3 metres per year.
Abdus Sobhan, a former Department of Environment (DoE) official, told The Independent that the situation would get out of hand if immediate steps are not taken to protect the capital’s wetlands.
Mohammad Abdul Matin, general secretary of Bangladesh Paribesh Andolon (BAPA), noted that a vested quarter, in cahoots with a section of politicians, has been grabbing the wetlands girdling the capital. He added that the government has failed to implement the detailed area plan (DAP) to protect the wetlands and flood plains around the city. “The government is not powerful enough to reclaim the wetlands.
There would not be any sign of wetlands around the city, which survived since the Mughals founded the city 400 years ago, if immediate steps are not taken,” the green activist warned.
-With The Independent input
