News Desk: Liquid waste from the Savar Tannery Industrial Estate being dumped into the Dhaleshwari turning the river water black and leaving thick foam on the surface. Even though officials say the waste is treated before dumping, test results of the water show the quality is still poor. The photo was taken two weeks ago. Photo: Palash Khan
The Central Effluent Treatment Plant (CETP) of Savar Tannery Industrial complex is discharging around 15,000 cubic metres of untreated waste liquid directly into the Dhaleshwari per day.
Experts say that the untreated liquid waste is detrimental for the biodiversity of the river.
The information surfaced in a meeting of the National River Conservation Commission held at its office yesterday.
The generation of liquid waste has raised to 40,000 cubic metres per day for the last six to seven days while the highest capacity of CETP to treat waste liquid is 25,000 cubic metres per day, admitted Mostaque Ahmed, managing director of Dhaka Tannery Industrial Estate Wastage Treatment Plant Company Ltd (DTIEWTPCL).
The generation of liquid waste has raised to 40,000 cubic metres per day for the last six to seven days while the highest capacity of CETP to treat waste is 25,000 cubic metres per day.
Leather processing after Eid-Ul-Azha have made the situation even worse in the last few months, he noted.
"We would implement production rationing procedures to reduce generation of liquid waste from the tanneries."
A sample test of the Department of Environment (DoE) conducted in last July, found waste generated from these tanneries is way higher than the standard allowed by Bangladesh Environment Conservation Rule 1997, even in the CETP-treated water.
The meeting, presided over by Dr Manjur Ahmed Chowdhury, chairman of National River Conservation Commission, hosted environment officials, relevant experts, representatives of the Savar Industrial Estate and law enforcers. Earlier, the NRCC chairman expressed disappointment over the efficiency of the CETP and similar labs in the Savar industrial area.
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