Civil society urges urgent regional action against plastic pollution

Change Initiative, a civil society organisation, has warned against the rising tide of plastic pollution from cross-border rivers, a crisis that threatens the country’s coasts, ecosystems, fisheries, and public health.

Change Initiative made the warning through a press release commemorating Environment Day 2025 today (5 June).

According to Change Initiative’s new paper “Cross-Border Plastic Pollution and Its Impact on the Bay of Bengal”, an alarming 15,345 tonnes of single-use plastic flows into Bay of Bengal daily through 18 transboundary rivers- one of the highest such rates globally.

These plastics accumulate in the Sundarbans and the Bay of Bengal, where they smother marine life, disrupt fisheries, and endanger livelihood, the paper said.

Plastic is turning the Sundarbans- the world’s largest mangrove forest- into a “cesspit of waste,” threatening critical fish nurseries, coastal livelihoods, and public health, according to the paper.

An estimated $11.4 billion in ecosystem services are lost annually to Bangladesh and neighbouring countries due to marine plastic pollution, the paper reads.

Globally, Asian rivers contribute 86% of river plastic emissions into oceans, with the Ganges ranked as the second largest plastic-emitting river worldwide, discharging up to 115,000 tonnes annually, the paper showed.

Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Change Initiative M Zakir Hossain Khan said, “Our coast is becoming a plastic hotspot. Not only states but key plastic promoting corporate bodies must be held accountable for sustainable management of plastics.”

“Single-use plastic must be banned globally. The ban on hazardous plastic near ecologically critical areas (ECAs) and fishing zones must be enforced strictly, while pollution impact assessment for plastic-heavy coastal industries must be ensured,” he said.

Through the paper, Change Initiative called for legal personhood for key marine zones like the Sundarbans and coastal estuaries and empowering communities to hold polluters accountable through legal channels.

The CSO also demanded mandatory life cycle tracking of plastic products used in coastal and shipping industries under Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR).

The paper also urged the government to take the lead in pushing regional agreements on cross-border plastic waste under BIMSTEC and during the upcoming Global Plastics Treaty negotiations.

Without urgent national and regional action, Bangladesh’s coasts will remain vulnerable to the escalating “toxic pool of waste,” the paper further said.