Tag Archive for 'Bangladesh water supply'

Rainwater Storage At Homes To Go Binding

Published on 08/24/2011 in groundwater, hydrology, peak water, policy, rainwater harvesting, tap water, water conservation and water shortage. 0 Comments Tags: .

Photo retrieved from: www.google.com

“The government is going to amend the country’s ‘building code’ to make harvesting of rain water mandatory for all the buildings as the level of ground water is falling fast because of excessive use.

Sheikh Abdul Mannan, a member of Rajuk (planning), has said that the government wanted to encourage the builders so that they keep provisions for rooftop harvesting of rain waters. The developers can also preserve rain water in any ground facilities if roofs are not an option for them.

But it is going to be binding for them one way or the other.

He said a new provision titled, ‘Rain Water Harvesting and Ground Water Recharging’ will be punched in the ‘Dhaka Mahanagar Building (Construction, Development, Protection and Removal) Rule’ enacted in 2008.

“The provision must be included in all building plans from 2012 if the code is amended by the end of this year,” he said.

Local government minister Syed Ashraful Islam on Tuesday told parliament that the government was working on ensuring collection of 70 percent water demanded in the capital city of Dhaka from rainwater and water holes in the next 10 years.

Engineer Mannan said 87 percent of water requirements in the city came from underground source, 13 percent from the Buriganga and the Shitalkkhya rivers.

“The water of these rivers has become unfit for use even after refining,” he said.

“Dependence on ground water is increasing to meet the demand. As a result, the level of ground water is decreasing two-three metres (eight-10 feet) every year, which raises fears of landslide. In this situation, use of surface water is being emphasised,” he added.”

Read more: bdnews24.com

lily victoria

Big Coal WikiLeaks Emergency in Bangladesh: Does Obama Support Removal of 100,000 Villagers?

Published on 03/25/2011 in agriculture, contaminated water, displacement of people, greenwashing, groundwater, mining, policy and privatization. 0 Comments Tags: , .

 

Photo retrieved from: www.gurumia.com

“When thousands of Bangladeshi take to the streets again on March 28th as part of a decade-long battle to halt a devastating British-owned open-pit coal mine, the world will not only be watching whether Bangladesh’s government will honor a coal ban agreement from 2006 or resort to violence.

In light of disturbing WikiLeaks cables, American and worldwide human rights and environmental organizations will also be questioning why the Obama administration is covertly pushing for Bangladesh to reverse course and acquiesce to an internationally condemnedmassive open-pit mine that will displace an estimated 100,000-200,000 villagers and ravage desperately needed farm land and water resources.

The short answer, from US Ambassador James Moriarty’s leaked memos:” “Asia Energy, the company behind the Phulbari project, has sixty percent US investment. Asia Energy officials told the Ambassador they were cautiously optimistic that the project would win government approval in the coming months.

Two years ago, an independent review of the coal mine by a British research firm warned:

“Phulbari Coal Project threatens numerous dangers and potential damages, ranging from the degradation of a major agricultural region in Bangladesh to pollution of the world’s largest wetlands. The project’s Summary Environmental Impact Assessment, and its full Environmental and Social Impact Assessment are replete with vague assurances, issuing many promises of future mitigation measures.”

Read more: AlterNet

 

lily victoria

Report from South Asia: Is Universal WASH Access in Reach?

Published on 07/01/2010 in contaminated water and solutions and outreach. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , .

2010-06-29-washinschoolssmaller.JPG“Five to ten years ago many villagers did not have safe drinking water or a sanitary latrine — the situation on the ground has improved. In Bangladesh, deaths caused by diarrhea have decreased significantly in the past several years.

“Many folks I spoke with attribute the substantial drop in death rates to the increase in the amount of safe drinking water. In most villages I visited families had their own tube well, though some did share a well with a few other families. Before this rapid expansion of a water source close to the home, many families collected water from the ubiquitous unprotected ponds of Bangladesh and West Bengal. According to Water For People country coordinator Rajashi Mukherjee, “The ponds are absolute death traps; hygiene is the last thing you can associate with them.” Fortunately, with the proliferation of tube wells, most people can now avoid collecting water from unsanitary ponds.

“One of the unfortunate and unforeseen side effects of the installation of the millions of tube wells is that a fair proportion of the wells are infected with naturally-occurring arsenic. Many programs have emerged to test and mark the wells, but large-scale solutions to rectify the problem are not yet in place. I did see several arsenic removal technologies of varying cost, but the very expensive options would be hard to bring to scale without large donor support. There were also other less expensive arsenic removal technologies that are still being tested that might hold promise in the future.”

read more: Huffington Post

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