From Risk Zones to Safe Zones: The Case for Green Urban Planning
By Dr. Nusrat Hafiz & Sadia Noshin Prome
What happens when the places we trust most; our schools, offices, and homes; become the very sites of environmental danger? In rapidly urbanizing cities, this is no longer a distant concern. Across Bangladesh and beyond, the unchecked spread of infrastructure has brought vital institutions alarmingly close to tanneries, airports, chemical plants, and industrial discharge zones. The result is a silent, escalating threat to public health, environmental integrity, and community safety.
Urban Growth Without Environmental Guardrails
Bangladesh’s cities are expanding fast; projected to be more than 56% urban by 2050. Yet this growth has outpaced environmental foresight. Schools rise near industrial exhausts, housing projects emerge under flight paths, and offices share boundaries with factories emitting toxic fumes. This is not simply poor planning; it is a systemic failure to embed environmental safety into the DNA of urban development. Each misplaced building chips away at the right to clean air, safe learning, and healthy living.
Environmental impact assessments must evolve from bureaucratic formalities into enforceable protections. Zoning laws should prioritize clean buffers, safe distances, and green corridors. Environmental health is human safety; there is no separating the two.
Pollution, Proximity, and the Price We Pay
Children studying near tanneries or chemical factories inhale air laced with volatile organic compounds and heavy metals. These invisible pollutants stunt cognitive growth, impair lungs, and sow the seeds of chronic disease. Meanwhile, noise from airports and highways disrupts learning, sleep, and mental wellbeing; undermining both productivity and public health. Poorly placed or built structures in floodplains or industrial buffers multiply the dangers during accidents or climate shocks. What begins as negligence can quickly become catastrophe.
Designing Cities That Protect, Not Endanger
Building safer, greener cities is neither idealistic nor optional; it’s economically smart and socially urgent. The global building sector remains a leading source of emissions and material demand, underscoring why safety-by-design must become a baseline, not a bonus.
A safer urban future requires:
- Green zoning and buffer belts: Separate schools, homes, and hospitals from high-risk industrial and aviation zones.
- Eco-safe building codes: Mandate non-toxic materials, natural ventilation, and fire- and chemical-resistant designs.
- Real-time monitoring: Install affordable air and noise sensors around schools and neighborhoods, with transparent dashboards.
- Nature-based defenses: Expand tree cover, restore wetlands, and use permeable surfaces to absorb runoff and filter pollution.
These interventions align with global resilience strategies and can transform our urban narrative from reactive rescue to proactive prevention.
Learning from the World
Nations across the globe have shown that growth and safety can coexist; when guided by vision and vigilance. Japan designs schools with fire- and flood-resistant materials and green buffers that cool and clean the air.
Singapore maintains strict separation between industrial and residential zones and invests in real-time air monitoring. Germany and the Netherlands use urban forests and zoning laws to prevent schools or hospitals from being built near high-emission industries. New Zealand mandates emergency preparedness and pollution safeguards in schools and homes. Safety isn’t just about responding to emergencies; it’s about designing cities that prevent them.
A Green Safety Culture for Bangladesh
Bangladesh now stands at a decisive juncture. As we build new cities and expand old ones, we must ask: Are we designing for growth, or for life? Four steps can make safety the norm, such as, first to enforce zoning laws to keep critical institutions out of mapped hazard corridors.
Next, to retrofit existing schools and homes near industrial zones with vegetative buffers, improved filters, and safe evacuation routes. We can institutionalize environmental education so citizens recognize and report risks. Finally, we need to hold polluters accountable through transparent reporting, community monitoring, and enforceable penalties.
From Awareness to Action
Safety is not a luxury; it is a right. And environmental safety is its foundation. We cannot afford to wait for the next toxic spill or air quality crisis to act. Let’s build schools where children breathe freely, offices that hum with productivity not pollution, and homes that are sanctuaries, not stress zones. Let’s make environmental safety the baseline of urban design, green infrastructure the tool, and community wellbeing the measure of success.
Dr. Nusrat Hafiz is an Asst Profession & WEC Director at BRAC University. She can be reached at nusrat.hafiz@bracu.ac.bd. Sadia Noshin Prome is an undergraduate student at BRAC University.
