Strict Punishment for Noise Pollution: Environmental Advisor, Bangladesh.
Noise pollution has become a serious problem. Syeda Rizwana Hasan, a leading environmentalist and advisor in Bangladesh’s Interim Government, in charge of the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MOEFCC), Bangladesh and the Ministry of Water Resources (MOWR), Bangladesh, said that strict enforcement of laws and penalties will be introduced to address this issue.
She made this statement on Tuesday, November 19, at the closing ceremony of the 3rd National Nature Festival 2024, held at the auditorium of Dhaka Residential Model College, Dhaka.
Rizwana Hasan emphasized that we must fight against noise pollution. She noted that Bangladesh ranks first in the world for noise pollution.
While the country is becoming a middle-income nation, such practices cannot continue. At least in urban areas, strict enforcement of laws and punishments are being planned to stop noise pollution.
She highlighted that the main source of noise pollution is the use of vehicle horns, which has become a daily habit. If we can avoid honking unnecessarily from our own vehicles, noise pollution will be significantly reduced.
From late December to January, awareness campaigns will be conducted on 10 major roads in Dhaka to stop honking. After that, legal actions will begin. The Dhaka airport area is now a silent zone, and the lessons learned will assist future initiatives.
The advisor noted that this year had the highest temperatures in 50 years from climate change, and the southern regions faced unprecedented flooding. A major cause of these natural disasters is climate change, which is driven by the burning of fossil fuels.
Rizwana Hasan added that Bangladesh has access to renewable energy, which can be much cheaper than other forms of energy.
However, many solar panels installed on buildings are not functioning. If the solar panels were working, short power outages of 20 minutes to a few hours would be manageable, and the government wouldn’t need to purchase costly fuel for electricity. Bangladesh has great potential in solar and wind energy.
Brigadier General Kazi Shamim Forhad, Principal of Dhaka Residential Model College, chaired the event, which was attended by Nature Club Chief Coordinator Mohammad Nurunnabi, as well as teachers and students.
