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Odor Pollution and its Possible Management.

Introduction:
Day by day, our planet is getting polluted. Our own country Bangladesh is no different
from that state. Various kinds of pollutions are attacking our country rapidly. As a result
the biological balance of the environment is being damaged. In Bangladesh, air, water
and sound pollution has been present for years but these days a new kind of pollution is
overwhelming our environment and surroundings. It is the most common form of
pollution experienced in our society. It is Odor Pollution.
First, we would like to define odor pollution. We know any particle or element that
creates an imbalance in environmental elements is called pollutants. The negative effect
of pollutants on the organisms and environment is called pollution. Similarly, odor
pollution is caused by pollutants. These can be biological or chemical pollutants.
Generally, odor is caused by a sense in our brain as a result of inhaling dead cells emitted
from various sources. When these dead cells enter our nostrils we feel the bad smell and
sometimes it becomes un-bearable. This is odor pollution.
Now a day, odor pollution has become a part and parcel of our life. Especially in urban
areas it is un-avoidable. It is mostly experienced while moving through roads. Wastes and
dead bodies of animals are scattered throughout the footpaths or dumping sites without
any proper management. As a result these wastes and pollutants rot under clear sky and
produce a huge stink. Sometimes, they are so heavy that they cause suffocation for the
people moving around. People have to cover their noses while crossing that area. Not
only has a bad smelling experience, this kind of pollution has other adverse effect on both
animals and environment also.

Objectives:
In this report, we will try to find out the current condition of odor pollution. Our
objectives in this report are to:
 Find out the sources of odor pollution.
 Detect the undesirable effects of it on the environment.
 Come across the potential solutions for this problem.

Sources of Odor Pollution

Roughly speaking all sources of odor pollution in our cities can be categorized into two
sectors, namely formal and informal sector. While these two can be sub - categorized into
two sources again, which are residential and nonresidential, i.e. industrial? Presently
there are the two main sources which generate wastes which in turns causes odor
pollution in Dhaka city. They are pollutants from Residential and Industrial wastes.
Residential wastes are those which are produced from our daily life, e.g. house hold and
kitchen wastes. We can call it as municipal waste too. The industrial wastes are mainly
toxic chemical by- products produced by the mills, factories etc. Followings are the
description of those two sources.
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A. Formal Sector
1. Residential Sources
A. Untreated kitchen wastes such as perishable food particles and left over. Etc
B. Household garbage and solid wastes etc.
2. Industrial Sources
A. Throwing away toxic chemical wastes and by-products in the rivers, waste land
water bodies etc from factories etc.

B. Informal Sector
1. Residential Sources
A. Open air defecation of people living in slums, squatters settlements etc.
2. Industrial Sources
A. Untreated disposal and management of industrial wastes small scale informal sector
factories.

Factors exploiting these sources:

 Disposal of daily life waste products all over the place. (Solid wastes and cooking
remains)
 Un-planned dumping sites for wastes in the middle of the town.
 Animal and fish remains thrown by slaughterhouses and market places.
 Un-treated dead bodies of animals.
 Disposal of human and animal excreta here and there as result of lack of civic
sense.
 Huge amount of rotten food thrown away as left over.
 Discarding of toxic and dangerous chemicals used in industries e.g. tanneries.
 Throwing off the by-products or remains after manufacturing.
 Carrying the wastes in uncovered containers and vehicles.
 In-sufficient number of dustbins in urban areas.
 Sewerage clogging up and over-flowing in the drains.
 Open manholes and drains carrying municipal wastes.
 Open disposal of medicines, blood, human body parts, chemicals and used
bandages by hospitals and health facilities.
 Some industries generally emit odors such as leather

Causes: there are many probable causes which results in these factors. The primary
ones are:

1. Overpopulation: cities are densely populated and sometimes overpopulated. As a

result the huge population produces huge amount of wastes which is more than
the municipality can handle. There is not sufficient area to collect all the wastes
and handle them. So, most of the wastes remain beside the streets and when they
rot they produce a stench.
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2. Poverty and poor sanitation: Approximately seventy percent of the city dwellers
live in slums under the poverty line. In these areas there is little or no sanitation
system. So, in these areas people just dispose excreta and other human wastes
without thinking twice. In time these wastes produce bad odor and affect the
surrounding areas.
3. Old and weak sewerage system: In the cities most of the sewerage pipelines are
old and they can not bear the huge amount of wastes produced by people. The
main culprit is polythene and other garbage thrown into the drains which clog up
them. As a result wastes can not flow through them and overflow towards the
streets.
4. Little man-power and administrative complexity: in order to keep the city clean
and clear, municipality should have sufficient workforce. But, in our cities the
workforce is little and can not cope up with the huge task. As a result most of the
wastes remain un-treated and produce odor.
5. Fewer dustbins than needed: In urban areas, there are fewer dustbins than needed.
Because of this people do not get the chance to disperse their wastes and garbage
in a specific place and throw it here and there without considering the problems it
might cause.
6. Lack of consideration for others and civic sense: this is the biggest cause of the
problem we are facing these days. Even well educated people do not bother to
throw his garbage on the street rather than in a dustbin, let alone the poor and
illiterate. We just do not think about the aftermath of our activities and do not
mind to pollute the environment. These kinds of inconsideration cause huge odor
pollution as the wastes thrown decompose and create an odor which becomes
unbearable and sometimes suffocating.
7. Lack of proper knowledge; Most of the people working in the municipalities do
not know how to handle and recycle waste products. So, huge amount of garbage
remains untreated at the dumping sites and that area can easily become a
nightmare for the neighborhood.

Effects: The biggest and worst effect of odor pollution is experienced by us almost
everyday. It has become part and parcel of our daily life. It is faced mostly while crossing
a road just beside a dust bin or a dumping site. Not only that, wastes and garbage are
scattered on the streets everywhere. Sometimes dead bodies of animals are found on
roads. All these wastes decompose and produce an unbearable stench. The effect of these
odors is devastating on human health.

According to various researches, In the case of humans, the immediate

physiological stresses produced by odors can cause loss of appetite and food
rejection, low water consumption, poor respiration, nausea, and even vomiting,
and mental perturbations. In extreme cases, offensive odors can lead to
deterioration of personal and community well-being, interferes with human
relations, deter population growth and lower its socio-economic status.

Too much exposure to odor pollutants can cause these diseases:

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• Cough
• Increased sputum production
• Shortness of breath
• Chest tightness
• Wheezing
• Nausea
• Dizziness
• Headaches
• Runny nose
• Scratchy throat
• Burning eyes
• Muscle aches and pains
• Skin rash
• Fever

These were the main problems that can be caused by odor pollution. Moreover this
kind of pollution can create psychologically adverse effect on people and builds a
negative image for the society.

Possible Management: It is high time for us to control odor pollution. An

increasing amount of it can make our life drastic. The most effective and the most
important step is to raise awareness in the minds of citizens. Everyone should
consider for others and think about the next generation. We must keep in our minds
that our thrown garbage into the streets can cause a huge problem and a public
nuisance for the whole society. These steps can be taken in order to reduce odor
pollution:

 Reduce population especially in urban areas.

 Increase the number of dustbins in localities.
 Dispose household garbage in a specific place regularly.
 Inform the municipality as early as possible when dead animals are found on
streets.
 Establishing dumping sites outside localities.
 Collecting household garbage regularly and disposing it as early as possible.
 Taking necessary steps to recycle solid wastes as much as possible.
 Improving the sewerage and drainage system.
 Establishing an improved sanitary system.
 Most importantly, educating people especially in rural areas to raise some civic
sense.

Conclusion: Odor pollution is an increasing problem worldwide. It is our

responsibility to protect ourselves and the environment from the encroachment of this
kind of pollution. We should start working now; otherwise it might just be too late to
leave a clean and clear living place for our next generation.
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