Sea outfall assessment in Qatar : lessons for Bangladesh

Pollution in coastal waters is a major concern in the Arabian Gulf countries. In Qatar, the untreated water mainly consisting of stormwater is discharged into the Doha coastline via several surface/shoreline type outfalls. This may cause adverse impacts to the sea environment of a fragile ecosystem of the coastal zone in Qatar. The Ministry of Municipality and Environment (MME), Qatar has carried out a comprehensive sea outfall study to identify existing outfalls and assess theirs impacts on planning, regulation, design and implementation of environment friendly outfall schemes. Direct discharge of large quantity of domestic and industrial wastewater, pesticides and agricultural chemicals into the rivers and the Bay of Bengal is a major concern in Bangladesh. The pollution levels in the Bay of Bengal affect fish and other living things. In addition to the biological and chemical pollutants, heavy metals pollution has also been reported in coastal and riverine waters of Bangladesh which presents an enormous challenge of monitoring, environmental management and conservation efforts. The recommendations and outcome of Qatar sea outfall study could provide government stakeholders in Bangladesh with adequate information for a sustainable coastal management and the proper tools for planning, maintenance, and monitoring of sea outfalls as discussed in this paper.