Production and users of plastic products are responsible for pollution – Environment Minister, Bangladesh
Saber Hossain Chowdhury, Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change in Bangladesh, stated that producers and users of plastic products will be held accountable for pollution.
He said this at a press conference in the meeting room of the MOEFCC at the secretariat on Sunday afternoon.
According to him, Bangladesh has two of the ten most polluted rivers in the world, namely the Padma River and the Jamuna River. Here not only our country’s polythene and plastic, but also our neighboring countries have pollution.
The minister said, due to our position, these pollutions are going to the Bay of Bengal through our rivers. So, we have our own pollution and also pollution from neighboring countries.
“Our 100-day program includes extended producer responsibility. That is, those who use plastic products, we will be responsible for the pollution. For that, I will assign them an economical price,” he said.
“It will also be said how they will reduce the use of plastic in production and design. I said in our 100-day program that we will finalize the draft within this month, we are working on that,” he added.
Saber Hossain Chowdhury also said, “I have sent the draft of Extended producer responsibility (EPR) to big companies and chambers.
I have brought the discussion with them to the final stage. When we talk about plastic, it is associated with the post-EPR circular economy. We are moving step by step.”
The minister mentioned that they are working with various government departments to plan where and what to plant in Dhaka city.
The Minister continued and said, “We have lost green areas, water bodies too. Therefore, we think that these should be included in the main plan for urban development. What we can do is determine what percentage should be.”
“But we don’t know to what extent we can implement the standards that exist around the world in Bangladesh. Dhaka is one of the most densely populated cities in the world. How do we find that place here?
We have already started some work. In Purbachal New Town Project, we have set aside a large portion for afforestation—140 acres of land,” he described.
“It is set aside for afforestation. But if the whole area becomes concrete, then we have no chance there,” he further added.
He also said that we can do what we think should be included in the minimum environmental requirements. “If that is not done, Dhaka city will lose its livability.”
Dr. Farhina Ahmed, Secretary of MOEFCC, Bangladesh, said, “Many types of genetically modified food are being worked on in agriculture to bring self-sufficiency in food.
Many vaccines are being researched in the health sector. Information is being shared internationally in this regard.”
“To do this safely. We have created a policy to ensure the safety of public health and biodiversity,” she added.
