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Air pollution in capital city Dhaka |
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Air pollution in capital city Dhaka has gone higher than Mexico City and Mumbai killing thousands prematurely each year. According to the Department of Environment (DoE), the density of airborne particulate matter (PM) reaches 463 micrograms per cubic meter (mcm) in the city during December-March period - the highest level in the world. Mexico City and Mumbai follow Dhaka with 383 and 360mcm respectively. An estimated 15,000 premature deaths, as well as several million cases of pulmonary, respiratory and neurological illness are attributed to poor air quality in Dhaka, according to the Air Quality Management Project (AQMP), funded by the government and the World Bank.
Vehicular air pollution is a major cause of respiratory distress in urban Bangladesh. If pregnant mothers come across excessive pollution, it may cause premature death of their children. According to the National Institute of Diseases of Chest and Hospital (NIDCH), nearly seven million people in Bangladesh suffer from asthma more than half of them are children. Cases of children suffering from bronchitis and chronic cough have also shot up in recent years. Children breathe more air relative to their lung size than adults. They spend more time outdoors, often during midday and afternoons when pollution levels are generally highest. WHO air quality guidelines (2005) recommend a maximum acceptable PM level of 20mcm cities with 70mcm are considered highly polluted. Airborne lead is the worst of the harmful PMs. By penetrating the lungs and entering the blood stream, lead may cause irreversible neurological damage as well as renal disease, cardiovascular effects, and reproductive toxicity. The phasing out of petrol-driven two-stroke auto-rickshaws in 2003 and their replacement with four-stroke versions, which use a much cleaner burning fuel (compressed natural gas), significantly decreased the volume of air contaminants. But, according to DoE sources, a sharp increase in the number of vehicles and construction sites in 2004-2008 led to a deterioration of Dhaka's air quality. Old, poorly serviced vehicles, 1,000 brick kilns, dust from roads and construction sites, and toxic fumes from industrial sites are major sources of air pollution. So, the authorities should take the initiative to reduce air pollution in Dhaka city. Contributor: Md. Shohagh & Tapas, Dept. of Geography & Environmental Studies, University of Chittagong |
 
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18 Comments
Thank you for sharing.
Posted 29-08-2013 18:46
Air pollution kills us :( we have to stop it :)
Posted 25-02-2013 17:23
Thank you for the informative report.
7 million people is a really big number.
7 million people can make a big city and it is like that everyone lives in the city is suffered from asthma.
It seems like that an immediate measures must be taken right now.
Posted 25-02-2013 08:46
Air pollution is becoming a major issue. Pollution is increasing day by day because of the drastically increase in number of industries. We have to take this issue very seriously.
and yes, Thanks for the information.
Posted 25-02-2013 05:57
Good compilation! Quiet informative :D
Posted 25-02-2013 04:26
It is one of the major problem in most under developing countries..
Posted 25-02-2013 03:51
Hello Arati Rana, happy to see you in EcoGen :)
Posted 25-02-2013 02:09
I hope you are doing great Osama!!
its really very sad to see such situation which is exactly like our capital city Kathmandu....-.-
Posted 24-02-2013 21:23
very informative report thank you..
Posted 24-02-2013 20:46
thanx for the report
Posted 24-02-2013 18:33
I fully agree with Saad...burning topic in most of developing countries
Posted 24-02-2013 18:23
Air pollution is one of the worst killers. It is painful and aggravates the pain of the sick people.
Posted 24-02-2013 18:18
I've heard that a lot of other large cities such as Beijing and Tehran are suffering from air pollution. City officials should improve infrastructures and laws. Thanks for the report :)
Posted 24-02-2013 16:50
Thanks for the reporting
Posted 24-02-2013 16:26
Bangladeshi government trying to do something effective project to prevent air pollution in capital city Dhaka.
Posted 24-02-2013 16:11
I am sorry to hear that air pollution problem in Dhaka is that bad..Thanks for the article.
Posted 24-02-2013 15:58
Interesting article i must say,
but you see I am of the opinion that its not just the increase in number of motorized vehicles and construction sites that are responsible for the worsening of air pollution, I rather think its the whole traffic congestion and lack of information for the people which affects this issue the most. I mean we see lots of people keeping their vehicles keyed in while they are stuck in some traffic jam and they don't bother turning off the engine. This reduces costs as well as reducing the carbon footprint.
Posted 24-02-2013 15:37
Thnx 4 the report....
Posted 24-02-2013 15:30