Savar declared a degraded airshed over severe air pollution ^{CEFR B2}

The Department of Environment has declared Savar Upazila a "degraded airshed" after continuous monitoring showed the annual average ambient air quality was almost three times worse than the national standard of 35 micrograms per cubic meter. The declaration responds to long-standing pollution linked to local industry and construction and is intended to trigger stricter controls.

Data record 164 days of substandard air quality in 2023 and 160 such days in 2024. The main polluters are brick kilns, battery and lead factories, transport emissions and construction activity; brick kilns are regarded as the primary contributor. A 2023 study reported over 200 brick kilns in Savar, while the Department said 107 kilns operate without environmentally friendly technology. Savar supplies most of the bricks used in Dhaka’s construction.

• Main local facts: 164 poor-air days in 2023; 160 in 2024.
• Main polluters: brick kilns, battery and lead factories, transport, construction.
• New rules from September 2025 restrict burning and require clearances for new factories.

The government order takes effect in September 2025 and limits brick burning to tunnel or continuous kilns and hybrid Hoffmann kilns; it also bans open burning of solid waste and requires locational and environmental clearances for any new polluting factories. A Stanford University study highlighted how unregulated brick kilns drive severe air quality degradation. Local residents and activists welcomed the designation but warned that enforcement must go beyond paperwork. Salahuddin Khan Naeem of the Savar Nagarik Committee said he welcomed the initiative and urged action to restore Savar’s environment. National reports add urgency: the Air Quality Life Index links air pollution in Bangladesh to a five and a half year loss of life expectancy, particulate pollution rose by 66.2 percent between 1998 and 2023 (a further 2.4-year reduction), and UNICEF estimates at least 19,000 children under five died in 2021 due to air pollution.