The World Environment Day was celebrated in the region of Rooppur NPP construction. The events were held by the Rosatom State Corporation together with the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission (BAEC) supported by the local administration.
The package of events began with an opening ceremony, where schoolchildren were welcomed by Md. Moniruzzaman, Deputy Manager of Rooppur NPP; Ms. Nina Dementsova, Head of the ASE JSC Communications Division (Rosatom State Corporation Engineering Division being the General Designer and General Contractor of Rooppur NPP construction Project); Rupam Roy, the famous Bangladeshi sculptor and artist, founder of Dagee Art Garage and Studio Bhashkarmee; Khondakar Arifuzzaman, Associate Professor to the Department of Geography and Environment of the Pabna University of Science and Technology (PUST).
To maintain an environment free of pollution, waste management is an essential issue and the initiatives taken by Rosatom to raise awareness in this regard should continue. The nuclear power plant in Rooppur will not only help meeting our electricity needs, but it will have a significant positive social impact as well,” Md. Moniruzzaman pointed out.
“Plastic has become a part of our lives. We do not think about threats that it has brought to our lives, by causing enormous harm to the environment. Plastic has been accumulated in an amount such that makes nature cry for help,” Nina Dementsova noted in her speech.
The idea of a responsible use of plastic and its recycling ran through all the speeches like a golden thread.
“Plastic is a terrible waste that inflicts harm to the environment and the climate. If we are at least aware of this, we can protect ourselves fr om eventual consequences. Throwing garbage where it is supposed to be will actually be a good way to protect ourselves,” said Khandakar Arifuzzaman.
The ceremony was followed by a сleaning-up event, attended by more than 500 schoolchildren from Dashuriya M. M. High School. The children picked litter in the school yard and the surrounding area. One of the holiday’s highlights was a Tree of Knowledge art installation created by participants themselves, who left their colored handprints on a canvas showing a tree.
The key celebration event has been a Garbage Monster Parade art installation, to display clearly the problem of plastic pollution and remind of urgent addressing the environmental plastic issue. The installation concept is inspired by Bangladeshi folklore, wh ere ghost stories raised fear. The today’s world is beset by a different kind of monsters, such as plastic materials that surround us every day, but are often unnoticed. The ceremony was attended by more than 100 persons. The children attending the event took part as well in master classes held by the Public Counseling Office at Rooppur NPP.
According to Rupam Roy’s speech, “In recent decades, humanity has been threatened by a real monster, i.e. plastic, which inflicts damage to the environment. We tried to direct attention to this new threat with sculptures made from plastic waste. We are very pleased that local residents have appreciated our initiative and expressed their readiness to join our plastic waste purge campaign”.
The second day’s agenda was a сlean-up event attended by students from the Pabna University of Science and Technology (PUST). After cleaning up the university campus, they went to Rooppur More (the area adjacent to the Rooppur nuclear power plant), to hold several educational workshops for the local population and plant staff. More than 200 people including the PUST volunteers, took part in the event.
The festival ended with a tour to the Adnan PSF Industries Factory plastic processing plant. The PUST students got a clear idea of plastic recycling stages and processes. They attended a lecture too, delivered by Dr. Md. Rashedul Islam, Associate Professor to the PUST Department of Geography and Environment, and dedicated to the waste recycling’s beneficial environmental impact and the importance of using nuclear energy to achieve Sustainable Development Goals.
Environmental requirements are becoming important prerequisites for building up both new projects in industry and infrastructure. In Russia, considerable attention is focused on the development and implementation of new technologies aimed to protect the environment; these technologies are also being extended to foreign projects.
Environmental initiatives are becoming important areas of volunteering, guidance and investment activities. Rosatom is actively promoting a campaign dedicated to disposal and recycling of waste, elimination of landfills, preservation of forests and water bodies, reduction of emissions into the atmosphere, environmental education both in Russia and in other countries of its business operations.