Researchers have found the existence of microplastics in the Sutang River in Habiganj. This information has emerged from a joint study by teachers from the Department of Environmental Science and the Department of Aquatic Resources Management of Habiganj Agricultural University. The water of this river is used for irrigation in the surrounding haors for Boro rice cultivation. It can be said that microplastics are entering the fish in the river and haor. Researchers are even saying that microplastics are present in the rice in the haor.
The research is being conducted through the Habiganj Agricultural University Research System with funding from the Ministry of Science and Technology and the University Grants Commission.
Plastic particles smaller than five millimeters are called microplastics. In addition to destroying the environment, these microplastics cause serious harm to the human body. When factories that manufacture plastic products throw their industrial waste into the environment, the chemicals and tiny plastic particles released from them spread around. As a result of these mixing with the soil, fertility decreases. And the tiny plastic particles also enter the human body in various ways through the air. River fish, oysters—and even whales in the ocean—think of these microplastics as food.
One of the rivers of Habiganj is Sutang. The origin of this Sutang river is Tripura, India. The 82-kilometer-long Sutang river flows through Habiganj Sadar, Shayestaganj, Lakhai and Chunarughat upazilas. Once this river was one of the main means of communication for the locals. Even during the Boro season, agricultural work is done using the water of this river. However, like other rivers in the country, the condition of this river is critical today. The industrial factories built recently in the Alipur area of Shayestaganj upazila of Habiganj are responsible for this. The waste from these factories built along the Dhaka-Sylhet highway is flowing through the Shailjura canal connecting the river and polluting the Sutang river. A foul smell is emanating from the water. This has also made it difficult to move along the river banks. The river has become devoid of fish due to pollution.
On the other hand, due to the polluted and foul-smelling water of this river, farmers are unable to use the vast haor boros in the river basin for irrigation of crops. The users of the river water are also facing serious health risks. They are suffering from various diseases including skin diseases. Ducks, chickens and cattle that come into contact with the river water are dying.
Due to the impact of microplastics, there are no fish species in this river now. Not even snails. We have already confirmed that microplastics are affecting the Sutang River.
Md. Shakir Ahmed, researcher and teacher at Habiganj Agricultural University
Tofazzal Sohel, general secretary of the Habiganj district branch of Bangladesh Environment Movement (BAPA), said that due to the dumping of industrial waste in the Sutang River and other canals and rivulets in Habiganj, the water is turning black and stinking. A layer of waste (plastic microbeads) has fallen on the bottom of the river. The unbearable stench and pollution have increased the health risks of people. People living on the banks of the river are suffering from various diseases including respiratory problems and skin diseases. The toxic black water of this industrial waste is now flowing into the Meghna River, becoming muddy and muddy.
The lead researcher in the study on the presence of microplastics and heavy metals in the water of the Sutang River is Md. Shakir Ahmed, a lecturer in the Department of Environmental Science, Habiganj Agricultural University. Iftekhar Ahmed, a lecturer in the Department of Aquatic Resources Management of the same university, is also involved in this study. They did not find any aquatic animals in the river while working from the Bulla section of the river to Sutang.
Researcher Md. Shakir Ahmed told Prothom Alo that due to the impact of microplastics, there are no fish species in this river now. Not even snails. They have already confirmed that microplastics are affecting the Sutang River. They also said that the water of the Sutang River is used for agricultural irrigation in the haors near the Sutang River. There is a high risk of the same microplastics being present in the rice of that haor.
Lecturer Iftekhar Ahmed, who is involved in the same study, said, they found a large presence of microplastics of different colors and sizes in water and fish samples collected from different points of the Sutang River. More sample testing is underway in the laboratory. They are conducting the study mainly to determine the level of pollution in the river water during the monsoon and winter and the presence, size, and quantity of microplastics in fish, water, and sediment (poly). It will also be possible to determine the health and environmental risks to people living along the riverbanks as a result of this pollution.
Source: Prothom Alo
