The 1970 Bhola cyclone,nationalist politics,and the subsistence crisis contract in Bangladesh

The devastating Bhola cyclone in November 1970 is credited with having triggered the political events that led to the division of Pakistan and the creation of Bangladesh in 1971. A callous response to the disaster by the Pakistani regime resulted in a landslide electoral victory for Bengali nationalists, followed by a bitter and bloody civil war. Yet, despite its political momentousness, the Bhola cyclone has been the subject of little political analysis. This paper examines the events, arguing that its extraordinary political significance put disaster management on the nationalist agenda; the famine of 1974 confirmed its centrality, producing a social contract to protect the population against disasters and subsistence crises on which the country's acclaimed resilience to the effects of climate change rests. The Bhola cyclone also drew international attention to this neglected, little‐known region, and in general can be seen as foundational for the subsequent developmental achievements of Bangladesh.     

Arsenic concentrations in rice, vegetables, and fish in Bangladesh: a preliminary study

Arsenic contaminating groundwater in Bangladesh is one of the largest environmental health hazards in the world. Because of the potential risk to human health through consumption of agricultural produce grown in fields irrigated with arsenic contaminated water, we have determined the level of contamination in 100 samples of crop, vegetables and fresh water fish collected from three different regions in Bangladesh. Arsenic concentrations were determined by hydride generation atomic absorption spectrophotometry. All 11 samples of water and 18 samples of soil exceeded the expected limits of arsenic. No samples of rice grain (Oryza sativa L.) had arsenic concentrations more than the recommended limit of 1.0 mg/kg. However, rice plants, especially the roots had a significantly higher concentration of arsenic (2.4 mg/kg) compared to stem (0.73 mg/kg) and rice grains (0.14 mg/kg). Arsenic contents of vegetables varied; those exceeding the food safety limits included Kachu sak (Colocasia antiquorum) (0.09-3.99 mg/kg, n=9), potatoes (Solanum tuberisum) (0.07-1.36 mg/kg, n=5), and Kalmi sak (Ipomoea reptoms) (0.1-1.53 mg/kg, n=6). Lata fish (Ophicephalus punctatus) did not contain unacceptable levels of arsenic. These results indicate that arsenic contaminates some food items in Bangladesh. Further studies with larger samples are needed to demonstrate the extent of arsenic contamination of food in Bangladesh.     

Impact of industrial effluent on growth and yield of rice (Oryza sativa L.) in silty clay loam soil

Degradation of soil and water from discharge of untreated industrial effluent is alarming in Bangladesh. Therefore, buildup of heavy metals in soil from contaminated effluent, their entry into the food chain and effects on rice yield were quantified in a pot experiment. The treatments were comprised of 0, 25%, 50%, 75% and 100% industrial effluents applied as irrigation water. Effluents, initial soil, different parts of rice plants and post-harvest pot soil were analyzed for various elements, including heavy metals. Application of elevated levels of effluent contributed to increased heavy metals in pot soils and rice roots due to translocation effects, which were transferred to rice straw and grain. The results indicated that heavy metal toxicity may develop in soil because of contaminated effluent application. Heavy metals are not biodegradable, rather they accumulate in soils, and transfer of these metals from effluent to soil and plant cells was found to reduce the growth and development of rice plants and thereby contributed to lower yield. Moreover, a higher concentration of effluent caused heavy metal toxicity as well as reduction of growth and yield of rice, and in the long run a more aggravated situation may threaten human lives, which emphasizes the obligatory adoption of effluent treatment before its release to the environment, and regular monitoring by government agencies needs to be ensured.     

Evidential role of municipal solid waste and liquid effluent on environment and public health

Cities in Bangladesh produce large amounts of solid waste (SW) through various human activities which severely pollutes our native environment. As a result, SW pollutes the three basic environmental elements (air, water, and soil) by increasing pathogenic microbial load, which might be hazardous to public health directly or indirectly. In this study, we conducted 30 samples (i.e., soil, water, and air) collected from areas where municipal solid wastes are dumped (Tangail Sadar Upazila, Bangladesh). All the samples were analyzed to assess bacteriological quality for presumptive viable and coliform count using different agar media. We performed serial dilution 10⁻³–10⁻¹⁰ times for soil and water samples, and the diluted samples were spread on Mac-Conkey agar and nutrient agar plates. For the air sample, the sterile media containing petri-dish was placed adjacent to the dumpsite of the municipal waste and kept for an hour. Then all the samples were incubated at 37°C overnight for total viable count (TVC) and total coliform count (TCC). Biochemical tests and PCR were performed for the identification of these microorganisms. The antibiogram study was performed to reveal their (identified bacteria) susceptibility against clinically used antibiotics according to the standard disk diffusion technique. The highest bacterial loads were found in the air: TVC 3.273 × 10³ and TCC 1.059 × 10³ CFU/plate; tube-well water: TVC 8.609 × 10³, and TCC 8.317 × 10³ CFU/mL; in surface water: TVC 6.24 × 10¹³ CFU/mL and TCC 2.2 × 10¹² CFU/mL; in soil: TVC 2.88 × 10¹¹ and TCC 1.02 × 10¹¹ CFU/g, respectively. Microbes from SW can be transmitted through air, dust particles, or flies, and here we found an average of 1120 microbes spread over 63.61 cm² area per hour. Eight bacterial isolates (Pseudomonas spp., Klebsiella spp., E. coli, Proteus spp., V. cholera, Salmonella spp., Shigella spp., and Vibrio spp.) were identified by the biochemical test. Among them, E. coli and Shigella spp. were further ensured by PCR targeting bfpA and ipaH genes. Antibiotic susceptibility test results showed that E. coli isolates were highly resistant to erythromycin (80%); Shigella spp. were resistant to nalidixic acid (90%), whereas Salmonella spp. was found resistant to kanamycin (90%). Vibrio spp. were also resistant to azithromycin (80%) and erythromycin (80%), which should be a great concern for us. A semi-structured survey revealed that 63% of respondents suffered from different clinical conditions (intestinal diseases) due to SW pollution. So, steps should be taken to improve the proper management and disposal of solid waste and liquid effluent to save our environment and public health.     

Do financial development,trade openness,economic development,and energy consumption affect carbon emissions for an emerging country?

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - It is agreeable that the rapid progress of civilization throughout the years came at a great price for severe environmental damages. Currently, human...     

Comparative corrosion characteristics of automotive materials in Jatropha biodiesel

This study investigated the corrosion characteristics of widely used automotive materials: copper (Cu), aluminum (Al) and stainless steel (SS) in Jatropha biodiesel. The corrosion rate of the materials was measured by the weight loss and changes in the surface morphology using immersion test in biodiesel. Before and after the immersion test, fuel samples were characterized by the change in chemical composition, viscosity, density, and water content. Experimental results revealed that Cu had the highest corrosion rate, while SS had the lowest. The main fatty acids observed in the tested biodiesel were oleic (44.6 wt %), linoelic (31.9 wt %), Palmitic (14.6 wt %), and Stearic (7.6 wt %). Apart from linoelic acid, the compositions of all other acids were increased after the immersion test of 1600 h. Also, the viscosity, density, and water content of the fuel samples were increased after the immersion test. However, these properties were within the maximum standard limit except water content.     

Probabilistic health risk assessment of toxic metals in chickens from the largest production areas of Dhaka,Bangladesh

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Chicken is one of the major protein sources and more affordable for the population of Bangladesh. Its quality monitoring is of high priority for food...     

Needle stick and sharps injuries among health care workers in Gondar city, Ethiopia

Background

All employees in health care settings handling needles or other sharps are at risk for needle stick and sharps injuries (NSSIs). Health care workers in under developed countries are at greater risk of infection from blood borne pathogens because of the lack of safety devices and the high prevalence of these pathogens.

Objectives

The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of NSSIs and associated factors among health care workers in government health institutions in Gondar city, Ethiopia.

Methods

Institution based cross sectional study was conducted from May-December, 2010. The study included 344 health care workers who were selected from the source population using simple random sampling technique. Data were collected through interviews using structured and pre-tested questionnaire and the collected data were entered and analyzed using SPSS version 16.0.

Results

The prevalence of NSSIs among health care workers in the preceding 12 months was 106 (30.8%), of which 58 (54.7%) was reported by females. Lack of training on occupational health and safety, working more than 48 h/week, dissatisfaction with work environment and work culture, greater than 10 years of work experience and having low and moderate perception of risk were found to be significantly associated with NSSIs.

Conclusion

The study found high prevalence of NSSIs among health care workers. Effective training, ongoing awareness on the risk of hazards, preventive measures such as engineering control, and post-exposure prophylaxis following NSSIs are essential to reduce the risk of such injuries.     

Influence of multi-industrial activities on trace metal contamination: an approach towards surface water body in the vicinity of Dhaka Export Processing Zone (DEPZ)

Industrial wastewater discharged into aquatic ecosystems either directly or because of inadequate treatment of process water can increase the concentrations of pollutants such as toxic metals and others, and subsequently deteriorate water quality, environmental ecology and human health in the Dhaka Export Processing Zone (DEPZ), the largest industrial belt of 6-EPZ in Bangladesh. Therefore, in order to monitor the contamination levels, this study collected water samples from composite effluent points inside DEPZ and the surrounding surface water body connected to effluent disposal sites and determined the environmental hazards by chemical analysis and statistical approach. The water samples were analysed by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry to determine 12 trace metals such as As, Ag, Cr, Co, Cu, Li, Ni, Pb, Se, Sr, V and Zn in order to assess the influence of multi-industrial activities on metal concentrations. The composite effluents and surface waters from lagoons were characterized by a strong colour and high concentrations of biochemical oxygen demand, chemical oxygen demand, electrical conductivity, pH, total alkalinity, total hardness, total organic carbon, Turb., Cl(-), total suspended solids and total dissolved solids, which were above the limit of Bangladesh industrial effluent standards, but dissolved oxygen concentration was lower than the standard value. The measurement of skewness and kurtosis values showed asymmetric and abnormal distribution of the elements in the respective phases. The mean trend of variation was found in a decreasing order: Zn > Cu > Sr > Pb > Ni > Cr > Li > Co > V > Se > As > Ag in composite industrial effluents and Zn > Cu > Sr > Pb > Ni > Cr > Li > V > As > Ag > Co > Se in surface waters near the DEPZ. The strong correlations between effluent and surface water metal contents indicate that industrial wastewaters discharged from DEPZ have a strong influence on the contamination of the surrounding water bodies by toxic metals. The average contamination factors were reported to be 0.70-96.57 and 2.85-1,462 for industrial effluents and surface waters, respectively. The results reveal that the surface water in the area is highly contaminated with very high concentrations of some heavy/toxic metals like Zn, Pb, Cu, Ni and Cr; their average contamination factors are 1,460, 860, 136, 74.71 and 4.9, respectively. The concentrations of the metals in effluent and surface water were much higher than the permissible limits for drinking water and the world average concentrations in surface water. Therefore, the discharged effluent and surface water may create health hazards especially for people working and living inside and in the surrounding area of DEPZ.     

Soil salinity,household wealth and food insecurity in tropical deltas: evidence from south-west coast of Bangladesh

As a creeping process, salinisation represents a significant long-term environmental risk in coastal and deltaic environments. Excess soil salinity may exacerbate existing risks of food insecurity in densely populated tropical deltas, which is likely to have a negative effect on human and ecological sustainability of these regions and beyond. This study focuses on the coastal regions of the Ganges–Brahmaputra delta in Bangladesh, and uses data from the 2010 Household Income and Expenditure Survey and the Soil Resource Development Institute to investigate the effect of soil salinity and wealth on household food security. The outcome variables are two widely used measures of food security: calorie availability and household expenditure on food items. The main explanatory variables tested include indicators of soil salinity and household-level socio-economic characteristics. The results of logistic regression show that in unadjusted models, soil salinisation has a significant negative effect on household food security. However, this impact becomes statistically insignificant when households’ wealth is taken into account. The results further suggest that education and remittance flows, but not gender or working status of the household head, are significant predictors of food insecurity in the study area. The findings indicate the need to focus scholarly and policy attention on reducing wealth inequalities in tropical deltas in the context of the global sustainable deltas initiative and the proposed Sustainable Development Goals.