The carrot and stick policy to impose of green taxes on the one hand and incentivise green service providers on the other hand is meant to increase investments in the environment-friendly technology sector.
The government of Bangladesh is considering investment tax exemption for environment-friendly equipment and resources, and income tax exemption for green service providers with a view to checking environmental pollution. This was stated by the country’s Minister for Environment, Forests and Climate Change, Md Shahab Uddin on Tuesday at an award ceremony for green inclusive business champions.
“At the same time, the imposition of green tax to discourage pollution is also under consideration,” the minister said.
The carrot and stick policy to impose of green taxes on the one hand and incentivise green service providers on the other hand is meant to increase investments in the environment-friendly technology sector by encouraging business and industry to mobilise green technology resources. The government hopes this will help discourage polluting activities,” the minister said.
The minister said that the government’s is adopting specific policies for environmental protection and pollution control to achieve the sustainable development goals by 2030.
Earlier, the Bangladesh government had set up a fund of Taka 200 crore through the country’s central bank for the use of clean technologies.
The government’s drive to fine polluting industrial establishments or projects for environmental and environmental damage as so far yielded about Taka 190 crores since 2010.
Refinancing has helped investments in over 50 green products and a special fund has been set up by the government for the development and dissemination of environment-friendly green technologies and conducting research.
The minister claimed that the department of environment has brought polluting industrial establishments under compliance through strict enforcement of the environmental laws.
Environmental stress
The global environment performance index brought out by the Yale University’s center for environmental law and policy ranks Bangladesh at 162 among 180 countries. The environmental performance index is a data-driven summary of the state of sustainability around the world. It uses 32 performance indicators across 11 issue categories.
The environment is under stress in one of the most densely populated countries in the world. Writing a lament in the country’s leading newspaper, The Daily Star on the state of Bangladesh’s environment, businessman Abu Afsarul Haider spoke of the country’s urban centres growing in an unsustainable manner, with open spaces and water bodies gradually disappearing.
“Pollution and encroachment are the major culprits,” he wrote, stressing that Dhaka has consistently been ranked among the world’s most polluted cities.
Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) says that 175 of the country’s 310 rivers are in a miserable state. 65 are almost dead. 80 per cent of Bangladesh’s rivers lack proper depth.
Image: UNICEF
