'Plastic use must be stopped in Cox's Bazar and Rohingya camps'

Every day, tonnes of plastic waste is produced in Cox's Bazar and Rohingya camps which is harmful for the environment and the cropland of the locality.

To save biodiversity, all types of plastic use should be stopped in this region immediately, said speakers at an event organised by Bangladesh Poribesh Andolon (BAPA) and Cox's Bazar CSO NGO FORUM (CCNF) at the premises of Cox's Bazar district administration office on Saturday (25 February). 

Mentioning that garbage is being thrown everywhere in municipal areas of Cox's Bazar and Bakkhali river has become full of polythene, the speakers said that government laws should be implemented to stop plastic use by creating alternatives.

The holistic interest of all relevant stakeholders is needed to make this happen, they said. 

CCNF Co-Chair and PAHLS Chief Executive Abu Morshed Chowdhury, Mukti Chief Executive Bimal Chandra De Sarkar, BAPA President Fazlul Kader Chowdhury, Cox's Bazar Literature Academy General Secretary and poet Ruhul Quader Babul, prominent academician Maqbool Ahmed, Cox's Bazar Climate Committee Leader Kamal Uddin Rahman Pyaru, Cox's Bazar District Press Club President Faridul Alam Shaheen, Cox's Bazar Costal Journalists Forum President SM Iqbal Bahar Chowdhury, BAPA Organizing Secretary HM Nazrul Islam, Chayanir President Kallol Dey Chowdhury, PULSE Bangladesh Society Chief Executive Saiful Islam Chowdhury Kalim, and CCNF Co-Chair and COAST Foundation Executive Director Rezaul Karim Chowdhury spoke at the event.

Mizanur Rahman Bahadur and COAST Assistant Director Zahangir Alam jointly moderated the event where NGO representatives were present. 

In the opening remarks of the event, Abu Morshed Chowdhury said, "We need to stop using plastic if we want to save our blue economy. For this, we need the proper execution of government law." 

Rezaul Karim Chowdhury said, "On behalf of CCNF, we urge to Filippo Grandi, head of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, and Arjun Jain, principal coordinator of Inter Sector Coordination Group (ISCG), to take necessary initiatives to stop plastic use in the relief activities in the Rohingya camps." 

"We hope that they will take the necessary steps. We will reward those UN organisations, INGOs, and national and local NGOs who will take such initiatives," he added.

Fazlul Kader Chowdhury said, "According to research, it takes about 70 years for a plastic product to decompose. It has also been proved by scientists that rainwater cannot go down if plastic is under the ground. In recent times, we have seen that the water has become salty in Cox's Bazar."

Bimal Chandra De Sarkar said, "Plastic covers about 40% of the ocean surface, and scientists fear that by 2030 there will be more plastic than fish in the ocean. And about 100,000 marine lives die every year because of plastic."

Maqbool Ahmed said, "Political will and decision are very important to stop the production and sale of plastic. It is important to engage policy makers and legislators with the movement to stop plastic use."