Alvira Farheen Ria
Undergraduate student, Environmental Science and Management, North South University
E-mail: alvira1902@gmail.com
Litter such as plastic bottles, cans, chips packets and whatnot, strewn around public places are a common sight in Dhaka. While almost everybody is bothered by this and complain about it being a sore sight for the eyes and an unpleasant experience for the nose, we do not realize that we are all a part of the problem. Littering is generally viewed as a harmless activity and is not really seen as an offense, even though it has serious impacts on the environment. Litter is extremely unhygienic and can spread diseases. It causes air, soil and water pollution and even blocks drains, which in turn contributes to the insufferable waterlogging problem of our city. The fact that a lot of the littered items are nonbiodegradeable makes these damages long-term and far worse. And how can we forget about the innocent animals foraging for food that get strangled, poisoned and hurt, by the very litter we throw?
If all this is still not enough to convince us that littering should be seen as an offense, let me share a personal experience of when someone’s ‘harmless’ littering had turned into a dangerous situation. One fine day somebody from the building next to ours decided to throw their cigarette butt outside their window, down the very narrow space between some buildings. The cigarette butt had then landed on electrical wires below and created a fire. Fortunately, no damage was done as everybody started pouring water from above and the fire subsided. However, this scenario could have ended very badly, with lives and property lost, only because somebody had not disposed of their cigarette properly!
From childhood, each and every one of us has been taught to keep our rooms clean. We would never intentionally like to be in a place that is dirty or smelly. Infact, none of us would ever even throw our chips packets openly at home and get away without being reprimanded by our parents. Why then, do we not extend the same courtesy to our city, which is also our home? Some of us will be quick to point out that there are a lack of bins and hence nowhere to throw our waste. While that is very true and needs to be changed, it is no excuse for the littering that we partake in. What makes us, the educated, aware and high class citizens, throw chips packets outside from our moving vehicles? Why do we not collect our wastes like plastic bottles that are going to take forever to degrade, in separate bags temporarily and hold on to it until we can safely dispose of it?
The truth is, littering is now a socially accepted bad habit and is hardly viewed as something to be ashamed of. This issue needs to be taken seriously by both the authorities and us citizens. Perhaps this could be done with the introduction of strict regulatory measures or a reward system like the bottle deposit scheme. More bins that are accessible and cleaning up of already littered places could also provide as useful. However, these are all short term measures and the only way to bring about a permanent change is through nationwide awareness. The media needs to step up and have discussions, and maybe even make catchy jingles and anti-littering ads, reminding people constantly to not litter. The most effective and important step, however, is to instil this value at an early age through the education system so that we can raise a generation of citizens who know that it not right to litter.