Dear All,
As the part of worldwide "Green Revolution", storing natural surface water (from rain, streams, lakes,etc.) to man-made water reservoirs such as dighi or pukur in Bangladesh, levy protected large reservoirs upstream of water treatment plants for potable water supply or upstream of hydro-plants etc. in different countries, initiatives and projects are being taken to resolve the scarcity and problems of drinking water and using water for farming or cultivation. Surface water stored in these man-made sources will be arsenic free. In Bangladesh, the water of monsoon can be stored easily, in the monsoon season, into the man-made reservoirs all over the country, even around every house. People will be able to drink for the rest of the non-monsoon seasons, arsenic free natural monsoon water from these man-made stores. Since arsenic has become so prevalent in the underground tube well water, Bangladeshis may change the habit, leaving the habit of drinking underground water; and develop the habit of our past generations, to drink surface water. Our ancestors could drink directly from the natural water sources, without having very less bad affects, for the main reason that the pollution was very very low in the nature at that time. Since pollution is high now, it would only be beneficial to store pure monsoon water in protected man-made water reservoirs, and drink with minor filtration, and boiling & cooling if needed, based on the case by case situations.
People and Government together may form Public-Private ventures, for promotion, capital, planning, design, construction, regulation, circulation, etc.
Since monsoon will last for ever (at least in the next hundreds of years), this initiative will resolve the major problems of potable and irrigation water for ever. This is just a thought and if it makes sense to the others, let's try to promote this idea, for the benefit of the people of the country and for our future generations.
Thanks,
KR
To: Shetubondhon@yahoogroups.com
From: matribhumi_bd@yahoo.com
Date: Mon, 2 Feb 2009 19:26:35 -0800
Subject: [Shetubondhon] Re:Open Letter to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Arsenic Disaster in Bangladesh.
Re:Open Letter to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Arsenic Disaster in Bangladesh. About two years ago we raised important questions about the improper disposal of arsenic waste from the Sono filters as well as other filters and treatment units in Bangladesh regarding its environmental concerns. As experienced environmental professionals, we believe that it is our moral obligation to bring this issue to the promoter of the filters, users of the filters and the govt agencies so that everyone is aware of the issue and take necessary steps to stop improper disposal of arsenic waste. We shared numerous articles and case studies with the scientists who are promoting and allowing the improper disposal of arsenic waste to occur in Bangladesh. They neglected to heed our call and instead promoted the open dumping of toxic arsenic waste based on false data and poor assessment. Many people asked why the UNICEF and other NGO's are using these filters if the filters' arsenic waste disposal violates the scientific laws and principles of environmental health? Why is the World Health Organization not concerned about the indiscriminate disposal of arsenic waste in Bangladesh, Nepal, India and other countries? Are these organizations aware of the EPA's arsenic waste disposal regulations and impacts of arsenic waste to the public health, ecosystem and environment etc? In July 2007 in the article entitled, "Emergency Water Supply: Arsenic Removal Filters? Or Use of Tube wells in Wet season, and Dug wells and River Waters in Dry Season?," we presented the following solutions for arsenic disaster in Bangladesh. Emergency Water Supply Solutions to the Arsenic Affected Regions of Bangladesh: Wet Season Solution: Why is the above mentioned wet season solution considered to be the best solution? Because during the wet season plenty of arsenic free waters can be abstracted from tube wells and dug wells, and prior to the arsenic disaster in Bangladesh people abstracted arsenic free water from dug wells for thousands of years and from tube wells for 70-80 years from above the present arsenic contaminated zone (the thousands of year old oxidation zone that is overlain by the recently created new oxidation zone). In the event that bacteria is present in wells, both the wells and water can be disinfected through chlorination. The disinfection of water by chlorination is much cheaper and convenient than the arsenic removal filters. During the wet season, arsenic free water can be produced from dug wells and tube wells at a cheaper price than any other method. The people won't have to deal with toxic arsenic waste at all. The implementation of this project will reduce the toxic waste and the water supply cost by at least 50% than the current arsenic removal systems round the year. This method will fully protect the health and safety of the people, ecosystem and environment of Bangladesh from the arsenic disaster. We do not think any Bangladeshi or foreign environmental geologist, hydrogeologist, water engineer, environmental economist, policymaker and politician are able to present a better solution than this one. We think the above mentioned solution is the best environment friendly, cost effective, emergency water supply solution for the wet season. We can destroy pathogenic bacteria, but we can't destroy arsenic. The honorable ministers of LGRD, Water Resources, Agriculture, Environment, Science and Technology, Education, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and the elected opposition political party leaders should immediately explore the above mentioned water supply method. This is a serious national issue and we request that they work together to protect the people of Bangladesh from the arsenic disaster. We would like to assure the govt. of Bangladesh that the well trained and experienced scientists and engineers will fully agree with our proposal and they would fully support the implementation of this emergency water supply system in Bangladesh. We request that the Prime minister Sheikh Hasina and the opposition group leaders immediately examine, evaluate and compare this method with other alternative solutions on an urgent basis. Now the question is how much cost is involved to implement this project? How much time is required to fully install the tube wells in the affected areas? How many tube wells need to be installed? What are the sources of financial support needed to execute this project? How much money is available to the Bangladesh govt. to implement the project etc.? The DPHE is the main organization capable of implementing the project. The DPHE and the National Arsenic Mitigation Committee of Bangladesh have detailed information necessary to examine and evaluate the project within a few weeks. They can take help from the Bangladesh Water Development Board, Geological Survey of Bangladesh, Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation and other professional NGO's in this regard. If they need any help from us to execute the project, the WATC International Research team will provide them with all the necessary information and the team will examine the various aspects of the proposed project and work with Bangladesh govt. for implementing the project. If the DPHE and Bangladesh National Arsenic Mitigation Team are not capable of preparing the plan, we would like to inform the the govt. of Bangladesh that WATC international research team will be happy to develop a plan for both wet season and dry season. The dry season is fast approaching and during this time the sufficient arsenic free water is not available in Bangladesh for drinking, irrigation and industries. The journalists of Bangladesh are keeping us informed about the extent of arsenic poisoning on a regular basis. So what are the best solutions for the dry season? Is there any more cost effective and environmentally friendly solutions than the present arsenic removal filters operating in Bangladesh? We would request the govt. and the people of Bangladesh to review the following articles:1. Arsenic Threatens Global Health:, http://www.sciencea 2. Desert gust blows health risks from Calif. mines: http://www.msnbc. The situation in Bangladesh is getting worse every day. We believe the people of Bangladesh will be able to realize and learn from these articles about what is happening and what will happen to the public health, ecosystem and environment in Bangladesh from the indiscriminate disposal of arsenic waste. We think we can solve the arsenic disaster in Bangladesh with the help of the international community. In order to convince the international community to provide financial and technical assistance, we must develop sustainable, cost effective and environment friendly solutions based on sound scientific data and evidence. The data must be collected and interpreted by professionals who have had proper institutional training and working experience in dealing with soil and groundwater contamination projects. Respectfully, Meer Husain,P.G. Environmental Geologist, Kansas Dept. of Health & Environment, Cowley County Community College, Team Leader-Wichita Area Technical College International Arsenic, Water, Ecosystem and Environment Research Center, Wichita, Kansas, USA. Continue.... |
check out the rest of the Windows Live™. More than mail–Windows Live™ goes way beyond your inbox. More than messages
Invite your mail contacts to join your friends list with Windows Live Spaces. It's easy! Try it!
__._,_.___
[Disclaimer: ALOCHONA Management is not liable for information contained in this message. The author takes full responsibility.]
To unsubscribe/subscribe, send request to alochona-owner@egroups.com
Change settings via the Web (Yahoo! ID required)
Change settings via email: Switch delivery to Daily Digest | Switch to Fully Featured
Visit Your Group | Yahoo! Groups Terms of Use | Unsubscribe
__,_._,___