World River Day : Let’s march for the rivers

Dr. Ahmed Kamruzzaman Majumder :
“Rivers are the arteries of our planet; they are lifelines in the truest sense” said Mark Angelo, Founder and Chair of BC Rivers Day and World River Day. With his strong words, Mark made a significant point. There is no life without water. These rivers and their water help sustain life for the world. In spite all of this, they themselves are at great danger. Negligence and insensitivity of people causes pollution and damage to the rivers. Thus in order to address this situation and increase awareness, and point-out the numerous services that the rivers provide, World River Day is celebrated around the globe. The whole idea, of celebrating such a day, came from the success of BC Rivers Day. The reason behind the establishment of World River Day is also because of the proposal initiated by Mark Angelo. Since 2005 this day has been annually celebrated on the last Sunday of September. Each year a theme is selected for World River Day and this year’s theme is, “March for the Rivers.”
According to the Global Water Distribution chart, only 3% is freshwater out of the entire water in the world. And out of that tiny amount of freshwater, only 0.03% is surface water of which 0.0003% is in the rivers. In almost every country in the world, rivers are at great threat, and it is high time we acknowledge this. Ever since the ancient past, humans have a key role in destroying and polluting rivers no matter what the case is. Fertilizers, pesticides/ insecticides/ herbicides and other pollutants used in agriculture are often drained in rivers. This leads to algae growing and making the water harmful to human health. Various oils, petroleum products and many industrial discharge and other pollutants are dumped into the rivers. This not only affects human but also many aquatic species in those rivers and in addition the species that depend on them. Our precious and loved Buriganga is not loved anymore. With all the unrestrained dumping of industrial and human waste, it can no longer be considered a river. It has become more of a black gel with a malodorous smell. This unpleasant condition of Buriganga symbolizes the general state of many rivers in our country, like the Dhaleshwari river. Due to the relocation of the tannery industries from Hazaribagh to Savar, now Dhaleshwari is suffering the same fate as Buriganga.
There are a lot of things that can be done and is being done around the globe to save rivers. Removing dams, replacing culverts and restoring floodplains and meadows are some of the big projects that are undergoing in many countries. But our rivers, it is highly important for the government to take good measures to control pollution of the rivers. Wastes, of any source, must be treated properly and not get dumped into the rivers. Strict laws and policies and even more strict implementation need to be there. There is no visible consciousness among many people, to comprehend the dangers that are surrounding the river systems. This must be pinned in everyone’s mind that the government cannot everything single handedly. We, the people, should also bear some responsibilities. As simple as abiding the laws can make a big difference.
There are about 230 rivers in Bangladesh, and a large portion, as much as 140 million people depend on them for a living or for transportation purposes. Rivers, by providing habitat, helps balance biodiversity. Events like World River Day would not solve all the river-problems, but it will surely give a tap to our consciousness and make us question ourselves that “Are we doing enough for the rivers?”

(Professor Dr. Ahmad Kamruzzaman Majumder, Chairman, Department of Environmental Science, Stamford University Bangladesh)