"Dhaka’s waste-to-energy project faces opposition from pollution-weary residents", 15 Sep 2026

[...] the 42.5-megawatt North Dhaka project has raised concerns among nearby communities that have long suffered from exposure to polluted air, water, and soil.

Dhaka North City Corporation is the municipal authority overseeing the project, which is owned by the China Machinery Engineering Corporation. Some of the total $467 million in total funding has been pledged by multilateral lenders including the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and the New Development Bank [...].

[...] once the power plant is up and running, it will produce 74.8 metric tons daily of fly ash, [...]. Together with particulate matter and bottom ash, [...], that works out to 73,576 metric tons of solid waste from the plant annually, according to an analysis by environmental groups.

Even before the plant has been built, local farmers say they’re already suffering from the smoke produced by small-scale burning at the landfill, when waste collectors incinerate stockpiles of trash.

“If the power plant is built and run regularly, local residents, especially children and elderly people, will face more respiratory and lung-related problems, eye irritation, fatigue, and long-term health issues due to chronic exposure to air pollution,” [...].