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Degradation of River Water Quality and Its Effects on Livelihood in NARSingdi Industrial Area, Bangladesh

Najmun Nahar*
Department of Geography and Environment, Jagannath University, Dhaka, Bangladesh

Neegar Sultana
Department of Geography and Environment, Jagannath University, Dhaka, Bangladesh

Md. Asraf Uddin
Department of Geography and Environment, Jagannath University, Dhaka, Bangladesh

Shahana Sultana
Department of Geography and Environment, Jagannath University, Dhaka, Bangladesh

Riffat Mahmood
Department of Geography and Environment, Jagannath University, Dhaka, Bangladesh

Abstract/ Executive Summary:

Industrial waste disposal into river, a common scenario in Bangladesh is affecting the water quality including the livelihood as well as biodiversity. Literature review reveals that Haridoa River in Narsingdi district is such an endangered water body which has almost lost its navigability due to industrial dumping; but very few studies have been done on it. Hence, present study aims to determine the level of pollution of this river water and its impact on the livelihood of surrounding people. In this study, a part of Haridoa River encompassing Gazaria Union, Palash Upazila, Narsingdi district has been selected as the study area and six water samples have been collected from six different sites. In the meantime, questionnaire survey was conducted on 109 households along with ten Key Informant Interviews (KIIs) and two Focus Group Discussions (FGDs). Study found that river water color is almost black with a foul odor. The basic and chemical properties i.e. temperature, pH, EC, Chlorine, Nitrogen and Phosphorous, none maintain the standard level of ECR’97; and reached in average at 35.90C, 8.59, 1.07 μs, 0.16 mg/L, 0.05 mg/L and 5.4 mg/L respectively. The study also reflects that around 40% household head changed their occupation during ten years and among them 14.67% changed their occupation from agricultural sectors. The deteriorating water quality also increases the number of patient of some specific diseases, such as high blood pressure, asthma, skin disease, diarrhoea and malaria; and the rate of increase is 22.93%, 21.09%, 14.68% and 12.77% respectively.

Keywords: Industrial development, Water pollution, Water temperature, Livelihood, Crop production.

Location: Narsingdi Industrial Area, Bangladesh

Start Date:

End Date:

Program Area: Risk Management in Agriculture

Commodity: Water pollution, Water quality

Objectives:

Islam and Azam, 2015, and other studies give emphasize on the major rivers Padma, Meghna, Surma but hardly very few study had been conducted on the Haridoa River of Narsingdi, though this river is highly vulnerable to industrial pollution. Therefore, the study has been conducted on Haridoa River located in Gazaria Union of Palash Upazila in Narshingdi district. The study mainly attempts to identify the water pollution level through physical and chemical analysis of collected river water sample as well as to assess the impacts of water pollution on the livelihood of surrounding people beside Haridoa River in Gazaria Union.

Methodology:

This study is divided into two parts- firstly, understanding the level of water pollution of Haridoa River and secondly, assessment of impacts of water pollution on the livelihood of inhabitants beside the Haridoa River in the study area. Both primary and secondary data have been used in this study. Primary data has been collected in two stages during post-monsoon period (October 2016) with the help of two groups of surveyors. One group of surveyors collected 6 water samples from Haridoa River and another group of surveyors conducted 109 interviews through the questionnaire survey. Although the study has mainly been based on primary data, secondary data has also been used to supplement the primary data especially for the review of literature.

2.1. Measurement of Level of Water Pollution For measuring the level of water pollution, river water samples were collected from the part of Haridoa River (about 2.30 km) which is encompassing Gazaria Union of Palash Upazila in Narsingdi District. To cover whole part of the Haridoa River in the study area, six water samples were collected from six different points maintaining an interval of more or less 0.35 km of river during October, 2016 and samples were analyzed for 8 different physical and chemical parameters of river water that were Color, Odor, Temperature, pH, Electrical Conductivity (EC), Chlorine, Nitrogen and Phosphorus. Each parameter was measured five times and the mean value of the readings is presented in this paper. Some of the parameters like pH, temperature and color were measured on site and some measurements (Chlorine, Nitrogen and Phosphorus) were taken at the Department of Soil, Water and Environment lab of University of Dhaka, Bangladesh. The 250 ml plastic bottles were used for collecting water samples which were washed well with distilled water and the water samples were collected securely and sealed with proper labelling. Aeration during sampling was avoided as far as possible. The water samples were carefully transported to the laboratory and were preserved for further physical and chemical analysis. Different instruments and techniques were used for measuring the parameters of river water samples. River water color and odor were determined by observation technique, temperature by thermometer, pH by digital pH meter, EC by digital EC meter and Chlorine, Nitrogen and Phosphorus by spectrophotometer. After completion of the laboratory tests of river water samples, all readings (site reading and lab reading) of the 8 parameters have been compared to the standard values as stated by Environmental Conservation Rules (ECR) 1997, Bangladesh for understanding the water quality.

2.2. Assessment of Impacts of Water Pollution on Livelihood In this part, questionnaire survey has been conducted on the surrounding people, who are living in the alongside of Haridoa River for exploring the impacts of water pollution on their livelihood. A structured questionnaire has been prepared, pre-tested and corrected which comprises open and close ended questions. Then 109 respondents were selected randomly from 5,693 households of Gazaria Union in Palash Upazila, who were mainly household heads of their family (BBS, 2013). In addition, 10 Key Informants Interviews (KIIs) have been taken from local people (3 doctors, 4 school teachers, 2 Union Parishad members and 1 Engineer) and 2 Focus Group Discussions (FGD) have been conducted (combined with male and female) for understanding the impact of water pollution on livelihood of local people.

Source of Information: Rajshahi University Journal of Environmental Science, 6, 118-127, 2017

Article Link (Online Journal):

Funding Source:

1.

Budget:

Total Budget (Tk.) :

Achievement/Findings:

The present study determines that the water quality of Haridoa river may not be in the position to support the aquatic life as well as domestic purpose. Due to the lack of time and resources, the sampling frame was limited to one month duration, October, 2016. The water samples were analyzed that includes Color, Odor, Temperature, pH, EC, Chlorine, Nitrogen and Phosphorus. The concentration of pH, Chlorine and Phosphorus were found much higher in Haridoa than the standard permissible limit, whereas EC and Nitrogen were found lower than standard value. The presence of such imbalance elements in river water enhances the pollution level of the river and causes unmanageable problem on the livelihood of the local people. This study shows the existing status of river water which will assist to focus on other industries and river management issue to develop a water and environment-friendly industrial development. It will encourage industry owner in using the water treatment plant as well as their proper management in order to ensure the quality of river water, fertility of the agricultural land, sustainable crop production, occupational stability as well as sustainable economic development. Therefore, further research studies are essential to determine the level of water pollution, the impact that industry is having on the environment and the people who interact with it.

Knowledge Management: Journal