Energy bulbs another hazardous E-watse
Say environmentalists
Environmentalists and development workers voiced concerns over the ecological aspects of the energy saving bulbs, calling them potentially hazardous.
The concerns came at a seminar on 'Sustainable E-waste Management: Bangladesh Perspective' organised by D.Net and Toxics Link, India at the Brac Centre Inn in the city yesterday.
While the compact fluorescent lights (CFL) bulbs use 80 percent less electricity than standard bulbs, they take too long to warm up and contain mercury, making them hard to dispose of, said the speakers.
Mercury along with other harmful elements present in these bulbs can trigger migraines, exacerbate skin conditions and lead to other serious health problems, they added.
"The [CFL] bulbs are brittle containing hazardous materials that pose serious health hazards," said D.Net Executive Director Dr Ananya Raihan.
These mercury-containing bulbs are among the hundreds of household and office electronic products that contribute to the piles of electronic waste in the country.
A Bangladesh Electrical Merchandise Manufacturers Association (BEMMA) study shows that nearly 2.5 million tonnes of electronic products are thrown away to waste dumps every year, said Dr Sarwar Uddin Ahmed, an Associate Professor at the Independent University, Bangladesh (IUB).
Electronic waste (E-waste), which refers to discarded electronics that are thrown in the trash, often contain lead, cadmium, mercury and other toxic materials that pollute the environment said Dr Sarwar in his keynote paper.
"Take batteries for example," he said, "just one small cadmium battery that are used in cell phones or photocopying machines could pollute 600,000 litres of water."
The cheap non-branded electronic products flooding the market makes the situation even worse, the discussants said.
The cheap mobile phones, for instance, used by remote rural villagers, lack durability and turns into e-wastes within a short time, they added.
"Immediate plans, policies are required to regulate the disposing of these mobile phones, which threaten to clog the riverbeds across the country," said Dr Ahsan Uddin Ahmed, executive director of Centre for Global Change.
At the seminar, Environment Secretary Dr Mihir Kanti Mazumder said, "When it comes to E-waste [management] we do not have anything policy."
"There are also no policies for solid waste management," he added.
As Bangladesh moves towards a technology driven culture, disposal of the wastes generated from the technologies becomes a major concern to control the environmental concerns it may arise, the speakers said.
They also asked the government for timely proactive steps to form explicit policies on E-waste management.
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